Vocational qualification in Business QB
Start Your Business Career with the QB “Merkonomi in English”
Our next Qualification in Business (QB) – Merkonomi in English programme starts on 11th August 2026 in Lämmittäjänkatu 2, Helsinki (Herttoniemi
Business skills are essential in every sector of today’s working life. Whether you are a restaurateur, barber, hairdresser or florist, success requires solid business know‑how — from calculating profitability and pricing products to creating marketing materials and promoting services effectively.
The Qualification in Business (QB) – Merkonomi in English provides graduates with a broad and practical skill set that is highly valued across industries. Graduates gain strong customer‑oriented business skills, sales and marketing expertise, communication and interaction skills, language proficiency, digital and IT skills, and financial management competence.
QB graduates are confident working in both social and digital environments and know how to build professional networks. They can contribute to existing products and services or take an active role in developing new offerings, customer experiences and business solutions. Their skills open pathways to entrepreneurship, marketing and sales roles, and first‑level management positions.
With a strong focus on customer‑oriented sales and efficient customer service, graduates understand how to use business communication and interaction to reach their target audiences and increase visibility. Their ability to work profitably with customer solutions makes them valuable team members — whether as entrepreneurs, business developers, or as a reliable second‑in‑command supporting business owners.
Many of our graduates continue their studies in higher education or go on to establish successful businesses of their own.
As a QB graduate, you can work in a variety of jobs such as
- Customer Service
- Sales
- Marketing Communications
- Service Design
- Office Services in many different companies and plenty of different countries or start your own company.
Implementation of the application process
Application open
- Application opens Thu 28.5. – Thu 4.6.2026
- English language Pre-test sent out Fri 5.6.- Sun 7.6.2026
- Send out invitations to Finnish end English written tests and English interviews Mon 8.6.2026
- Finnish and English written test and English interviews at our Careeria premises in Lämmittäjänkatu 2, Helsinki (Herttoniemi) Wed 10.6.2026
That we can check that the applicant and person performing the test are the same person, please bring with you one of the following documents:
- Finnish ID document or passport
- Your own country passport with your valid Schengen visa
- Residence permit for Finland or Registered right of residence in Finland.
- Residence permit for studies or Mobility notification document
General information on studies
- The duration of studies is about 2,5 years, depending on previous experience and previous studies.
- The scope of the qualification is 180 Competence Points (CP), which include 145 CP of vocational studies and 35 CP common studies.
- Study is full-time in Lämmittäjänkatu 2, Helsinki (Herttoniemi) and the school day is usually 9.00-15.00.
The minimum entry requirements for all applicants
- Finnish language skills at level A2.1
- English language skills at level B1.2.
- Computer literacy
- Residence in Finland
- Over 18 years old
- The will to make a positive change in your life
All students from outside EU, unless they have a permanent residential status in Finland, are required to pay tuition fees for studies starting after 1st of August 2026.
Please also note the following if you are accepted to study at Careeria
- You will need a computer.
- You need proper health insurance for the duration of your studies (travel insurance is not enough).
- You need to have about EUR 7500 per year of study in cash in your own bank account (to cover living expenses).
- You will need to apply for a residence permit for study purposes.
More information about residence permits for studying in Finland.
Residence permit application
Apprenticeship cooperation: Stadin Vocational and Adult Education Center
Apprenticeship agreement with an employer
The student acquires a job herself/himself suitable for the diploma or it may be a current job. The job pays the student a salary according to the collective agreement, the average number of working hours per week is 25 hours.
You can study to become a merchant with an apprenticeship in cooperation with Stadin AO (Stadin Vocational and Adult Education Center, apprenticeship services).
For an apprenticeship, you must have a job suitable for the diploma, in which you may perform tasks that fulfill the criteria of the QB diploma.
For international students to be able to study via an apprenticeship, you need to also have a work permit and job in Finland.
Also check out Helsinki benefit for employer
Contents of the diploma
The scope of the qualification is 180 competence points (cp) including 145cp of vocational studies and 35cp common studies.
Compulsory vocational modules
Operating in the business environment 25 cp
Customer service, 15 cp
Optional vocational modules
Sales work, 30 cp
Working in a Project, 15 cp
Marketing communications, 30 cp
Planning a business, 15 cp
One other optional module, 15cp
Event Arrangement, 15cp
Common units
Communication and interaction competence, 11 cp
Mathematics and science competence, 6 cp
Citizenship and working life competence, 9 cp
Optional learning outcomes in common units, 9 cp
More information about the QB can be found at ePerusteet.
Content of degrees
Master the essential pillars of modern commerce with a curriculum designed to build versatile, future-ready professionals. This program integrates core business operations — such as financial budgeting and AI integration — with specialized skills in proactive sales, strategic marketing, and project management, ensuring graduates are equipped to excel in both corporate environments and entrepreneurial ventures.
- Common business forms, business models, operating methods and operating procedures.
- How to resolve problem situations in the workplace and identify opportunities.
- Information security, word processing, spreadsheet and presentation graphics applications and ways of using artificial intelligence
- Formation of the organization’s income and expenses, factors affecting profitability and budgeting.
- Formation of product or service price, including personnel costs and salary formation.
- Know the product or service you are selling, target customer groups and key factors influencing the customer experience.
- Be proactive in customer service situations, taking into account customer’s needs, product or service knowledge and solve problem situations professionally.
- Identify opportunities, appreciate feedback, provide positive customer experiences and work well in challenging service situations.
- Know information security threats.
- Know how to contact customers, chart customer’s needs, wishes and special characteristics of target customer groups.
- Understand competitive situation, ethical selling and ordering and delivery processes and availability
- Know how to present alternative products or services or total solutions that suit the customer’s needs and sell solutions that suit the customer’s needs.
- Know payment and financing options, key indicators of sales and how to close the deal.
- Understand project scope, realistic goals and metrics and plan measures and division of labour.
- Learn how to prepare a documented project plan and agree on the schedule and resources and implement the project according to the plan.
- Use project management tools and produce and manage project documents.
- Learn how to monitor project progress according to plan and resolve problem situations.
- Learn how to gather feedback and evaluate the final result.
- Learn how to define the target group, identify opportunities for different channels and media visibility and set goals.
- Learn how to choose the channels, plan the content, produce content, budget and implement marketing communications as a weapon of competition.
- Understand governing regulations, the organization’s instructions and copyright issues.
- Learn how to analyze marketing communication and measure the effectiveness of marketing communications.
- Learn how to evaluate a business opportunity or business idea, choose a feasible one, check the market and the competitive situation and develop the business idea.
- Prepare a business plan on a proposed company’s operations taking into account sustainable development, calculations of income and costs related to business activities and your plans for financing if necessary.
- Know the importance of business for society and take into account industry legislation in planning.
- Learn how to choose a suitable business form, present the company’s operating model to key stakeholders and prepare founding documents.
- Consider different ways of organising an event, define target group, objectives of the event, brainstorm content and help plan for it.
- Liaise with stakeholders, participate in planning of communication and marketing.
- Contributes to the preparation of the event plan documentation, planning and budget.
- Participate in implementation accordance to event plan and his/her job description.
- Collect feedback, participates in the de-briefing, evaluate the results based on objectives.
Contact
For further information contact Bryan Roberts.
bryan.roberts@careeria.fi
tel. +358 44 737 2410
For further information contact Hannu Okkonen.
tel. +358 40 131 9099