Master's Studies in Intellectual Property Law

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Learn more about studying IP Law within the Hanken Master's Degree Programme.


Why IP Law?

Intellectual property rights are essential assets of any business operating in our increasingly digital economy. The Intellectual Property Law (IPL) specialisation is a unique combination of legal and business studies. This specialisation gives you a solid expertise in both areas, providing you with an exceptional understanding of today’s markets and the world of intellectual property. Our courses are taught in close collaboration with industry, with IP organizations, as well as by internationally renowed visiting professors, to ensure they remain at the forefront of the developments in intellectual property matters.

The studies offer an international environment of high academic standard, with a wide range of career opportunities. As the first Finnish university to join the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) Opens in new window  University Network, our major offers a unique opportunity to network with students from other elite European institutions, as well as supervisors from EUIPO, which administrates European trademarks and design registration.

Our graduates are equipped with:

  • comprehensive knowledge of the intellectual property laws in Europe and internationally
  • competence in dealing with intellectual property rights in a business environment
  • research and analytical skills
  • communication skills

Structure of the program

The specialization in Intellectual Property Law is a two-year full-time programme and consists of 120 ECTS, of which 90 ECTS is specilization-specific. To attain the full 120 ECTS the students are to complete 20 ECTS of electives and the Global Competence Module consisting of courses within Social Responsibility and Market Analytics, as well as 5 ECTS language studies.

Mandatory courses:

  • Fundamentals of Intellectual Property Law
  • International and Comparative IP Law
  • Law and Economics of IP
  • Research Methodologies in IP Law
  • Research Seminar in Commercial Law

Examples of the elective courses:

  • Intellectual Property Strategy for Business
  • Moot Court Competition I & II
  • Practical IP Law in Europe (e-Learning)
  • Advanced IP Law (IP Summer School)
  • Information Governance and Trade Secret Law

Read more about IPL Master's Program from the IPRinfo-magazine! Opens in new window

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Facts about the degree

  • 120 credits, 2 years of full-time study
  • Language: English
  • Degree: MSc in Economics and Business Administration
  • Location: Helsinki

The programme is administered by the Department of Commercial Law and implemented in close cooperation with the IPR University Center Opens in new window , which is the leading academic intellectual property education and research centre in Finland.

  • IP-specific courses, 90 ECTS
  • Elective courses, 25 ECTS
  • Language course(s), 5 ECTS

In addition to the compulsory courses, the studies allow for a wide range of elective courses in, for example, law, finance, marketing, business administration, and accounting. We help you combine the best of both worlds, building meaningful, individual studies to suit your future career goals.

Compulsory Courses

Year 1:

  • 37014 Fundamentals of Intellectual Property Law (10 ECTS)

  • 37028 International and Comparative IP Law (5 ECTS)

  • 37046 Law and Economics of IP (5 ECTS)

  • 9995 Introduction to Market Analytics (2 ECTS)

  • 9996 Social Responsibility across Business Studies (3 ETCS)

Year 2:

  • 37048 Research Methodologies in Commercial Law (5 ECTS)

  • 37170 Research Seminar in Commercial Law (5 ECTS)

  • 3720-E Master's Thesis (30 ECTS)

The elective courses should be taken according to the recommended time in the course description (if any).

For course descriptions, see Sisu Opens in new window .

The Pan european Seal Logo

Pan-European Seal

The Pan-European Seal Opens in new window  is a professional traineeship programme promoted by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) Opens in new window , the European Patent Office (EPO) Opens in new window and strategic university partners such as Hanken. In cooperation with the Pan-European Seal Opens in new window , Hanken provides its students access to an online Intellectual Property (IP) training programme, as well as the possibility for a paid traineeship at EUIPO or EPO.

Online training

You can improve your knowledge of IP and also get ECTS credits by using the online training portals. In order to access the material, you first need to register Opens in new window  as "member of the Pan-European Seal" on the learning page.

EUIPO Academy Learning Portal Opens in new window

EPO Online Learning Portal Opens in new window

EPO IP Teaching Kit Opens in new window

Studerande som läser

Traineeships

In cooperation with the Pan-European Seal Opens in new window  Programme, Hanken will annually shortlist several high-achieving IPL students and students from other departments (and/or alumni) for a paid traineeship at EUIPO Opens in new window  or EPO Opens in new window for one year with possible extensions. Among the shortlisted candidates (including those of the other participating universities), a yearly average of 100 trainees will be selected by each office. The traineeship is tied to Hanken's online course 3798 'Practical IP in Europe'. Read more about the course on the moodle.

Details about the traineeship can be found on the Hanken's page devoted to the Pan-European Seal Traineeship Programme. For more information about the traineeship, please contact Hanken's IPL Programme Coordinator, Professor Nari Lee Opens in new window . Information is also available on the EUIPO's Pan-European Seal page Opens in new window  and EPO's Pan-European Seal page Opens in new window .

Students have full access to activities at Hanken, including its active student life and various events. Particularly during the first weeks and months of the first year, time is dedicated to extracurricular activities that enable the new students to bond with each other, the specialisation faculty, and the broader Hanken community. Our International Student Ambassadors and their Nordic Brilliance Blog can maybe give you some more valuable information!

We encourage are students to gain international experience! We definitely recommend students to complete an internship and support students in finding a placement. A semester abroad at one of Hanken’s partner universities can be incorporated into the programme as an optional component if the planning for it already starts during the fall of the first academic year.

Up to 98% of the 2018 & 2017 graduates had found employment within 6 months of completing their degree and to get an overview of how the careers of Hanken's Alumni look like, visit our Career Services' Explore Careers pages!

Our alumni from Commercial Law have job titles such as:

  • Licensing Manager, Liaison Manager, Research Coordinator, Associate Lawyer, and many more!
  • And note that the IPR University Center Opens in new window  cooperation enables our students to get close to highly topical research subjects early on, already during their Master's studies.

We are also proud of our Hanken International Talent initiative, where newly-admitted international MSc students are matched with Finnish companies for mentoring!