TAMK annual review 2024: Education

More active development in education efforts

New curricula entered into force in autumn 2024. They enable more choices for students and help build more unique study paths.  The most significant changes were made in optional professional studies as well as in common studies of social services and health care. Work-based learning and competences acquired in working life were made more prominent at the curriculum level.  

New degree programmes were launched and developed to meet the needs of working life. A new degree programme in dental hygiene was launched in autumn 2024. For our degree programmes in Nursing, Radiography and Radiotherapy, and Biomedical Laboratory Science, we gained a total of 200 additional study places for 2024 and 2025. Our Master's Degree Programme in Competence for Energy Transition Management was developed together with Kajaani and Vaasa Universities of Applied Sciences to meet the needs of working life. Additionally, the online Bachelor's Degree Programme in Business Information Systems was developed together with the Vaasa University of Applied Sciences. 

The Finnish Olympic Committee awarded Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK) with a Top Athlete-Friendly Higher Education Institution quality label. It indicates that TAMK is a committed pro-athlete institute where students are supported in their efforts to pursue both high-level sports and academics. 

Active student cooperation continued with Tamko Students' Union, with dialogue that has been both constructive and successful. We want to extend our thanks to Tamko Students’ Union for productive cooperation! 

Number of graduates continued to grow 

The number of graduates continued to go up (3%), and we exceeded our targets in both Master's degrees and professional teacher education.  We continued measures promoting graduation in all our schools, and the number of dropouts took a downward turn across all fields of study (12%) following a long period of increasing dropout numbers. In degree-awarding studies, the number of completed credits was higher than in previous years (totalling over 475,000). The percentage of those who completed over 60 credits increased slightly from the two preceding academic years. 

The majority of Bachelor's degree students still complete their studies in target time, even if their share, now at 69.5%, slightly decreased from the previous year (2023: 70.7%).  

Further strides in pedagogy  

Our pedagogic development programme supports teachers, teacher teams and schools in their efforts to develop pedagogic competence. To support the programme, we have created a set of pedagogical principles: learning-centred approach, community spirit and inclusiveness, working life development expertise, and sustainable future. The underlying theme is digital transformation.  

In 2024, we focused on supporting our curriculum reform as well as implementing and developing our competence badge system. The number of completed competence badges stands at approximately 500, with Accessible Teaching and Learning the most popular badge. We also launched a process for the development of our guided online learning by creating a digital pedagogy model for teachers along with high-quality online implementations. 

Development of Education and Learning Services took further steps forward 

We moved forward in our transition to a more team-based working model in our Education and Learning Services, and new team leader roles were adopted. To clarify the areas of responsibility, the unit also saw some further organisational modifications implemented. Our work for a centralised study schedule was expanded to cover our technology education. A service management system (Efecte) was implemented in the few remaining Education and Learning Services service solutions to yet adopt it. By consolidating all services primarily aimed at students at the Service Street, we have made it easier for our students to find the services they need. 

Feedback  

While there was some variance depending on degree programmes, the annual feedback from (2nd and 3rd-year students) improved on every topic regarding studies and education. According to our graduate feedback survey, feedback from both our Bachelor's and Master's graduates remains on par with the national average. In Bachelor's degree graduates, TAMK's total average improved slightly from the previous year, while the numbers in Master's degrees showed a minor decline. 

TAMK continues to be an appealing choice for students 

Our Bachelor's degree programmes had over four primary applicants on average per one available study place. The total number of degree students stood at 11,503, more than the year before. The number of students in our Bachelor's degree programmes increased while our Master's degree programmes saw a slight decrease. We had a total of 476 students in our professional teacher education. 

International degree programmes are available across all our fields of study. The number of international degree students has continued to grow, which is in line with our strategic focus. In 2024, we had a total of 1,122 international students, with 866 of them from outside the EU/EEA. 

Of our Bachelor's degree programmes, the top draws in 2024 included music (musical theatre), emergency care and a degree programme specialising in law. We were especially delighted to see the interest shown for the Degree Programme in Business Administration with specialisation in law. Among our Master's degree programmes, the top draws in 2024 included degree programmes in Health Technology (Master's Degree in Health Care and Social Services) and Data Expertise and Artificial Intelligence (Master's degree in Business Administration as well as Master's Degree in Health Care and Social Services).  

Towards working life 

The weakened job market situation was reflected in the employment rate of our graduates.  Again slightly down from the year before, the figures continued their downward trend. According to our graduate feedback survey, approximately 68% of our Bachelor's degree graduates were employed, with 71% of them in the Pirkanmaa region. Of our Master's degree graduates, slightly above 84% reported being employed, with approximately 50% of them in the Pirkanmaa region. 

Of foreign students that completed a Bachelor's degree, nearly 55% have since been employed, with 84% of them in Finland. Of our foreign students that completed a Master's degree, approximately 54% have since been employed, with slightly above 52% of them in Finland. 

Several development measures have been taken to help our international students better gain employment. For instance, the shared work placement coordinator hired in 2024 by the City of Tampere and Tampere University helps students find work placements. 

Measures to support students and improve well-being 

New counselling models were implemented, and we continued our close stakeholder cooperation with the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS), City of Tampere and third sector operators. We created practices at the TAMK level for individual study arrangements, and our personnel was trained on accessibility and individual study arrangements.