Energy Linkage
Energy Linkage
- learn how the energy and cleantech sectors works from a commercial perspective, and how to make an impact and get innovations implemented in that sector
- meet and work with key decision-makers, experts, and changemakers from the energy sector
- work with like-minded, ambitious students from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds.
A joint course by
About the Course
Overview & Eligibility
This course is a unique learning experience with a target class size of 20 students, and is worth 10 ECTS credits. Applications for the course are accepted from all Aalto University and Helsinki University Master's and PhD level students, and students from other universities are welcome to apply.
The course is taught by teachers and guest speakers with years of practical and academic experience in innovation activities and the energy & cleantech fields.
Outcomes
Understand the sector: Build a clear picture of the rapidly changing energy and cleantech landscape. You'll know its main actors and roles (e.g., grid operators, utilities, developers, innovators), how markets and regulation shape decisions, typical constraints (cost, sustainability, reliability, intermittency), and current challenges & opportunities (renewables, electrification, decentralisation).
Get innovation skills: Build general innovation skills and apply them to energy- and cleantech-specific challenges. Be able to provide viable, feasible and valuable solutions for problems and be able to defend the recommended solutions.
Build professional contacts: Get to know companies and other organizations across the energy and cleantech sector, along with their expert representatives. The industry deep-dive combined with frequent expert interactions gives you the vocabulary and confidence to engage with professionals in the future.
Examples of insight the course offers:
- The transformation of industrial energy supply towards renewable sources and decentralisation and the strategies to solve the triangle of cost, sustainability and reliability
- Cleantech innovations, making mobility sustainable, from charging infrastructure, storage to sustainable aviation fuels
- New business models and innovation pathways created by the shift to cleaner and more volatile electricity supply
- The changing roles of grid operators, power consumers, project developers, cleantech innovators, bioenergy providers, legacy power producers and power markets in this shift towards decentralisation
- The role of AI in building the energy system of the future
- How the world of energy changes from a user perspective and which opportunities for innovation exist in cleantech.
Learning experience
The course runs every Thursday from 14:15 to 18:00, from mid-January to the end of April. Attendance is in person and mandatory, with only a couple of absences allowed. The classroom culture is safe, communal, and ambitious — we aim for interactive sessions, and while you can learn by listening, you're encouraged to participate in discussion. Between Thursdays, you'll work in teams on innovation challenges and prepare for (and reflect on) the guest lectures. Thanks to the staff's networks, our guests are experienced practitioners and decision-makers from the sector, not just generic company speakers.
In previous years, students met people who shared insights from companies including: Neste, Elisa, Kone, Virta, Fortum, Fingrid, Helen, Ilmatar, Ren-Gas, Solnet, Intergrid, Freyr Battery, and Calectra.
Projects & Milestones
The course is organized around weekly lectures led mainly by industry experts, complemented by excursions. Throughout the course, you will also work in teams on three project-based assignments:
- A hackathon at the beginning of the course
- A two-week challenge which allows you to be creative
- A six-week challenge where you solve a problem and innovate for a company
The course culminates in a community event where you present your solution to the six-week challenge to a panel and an audience from industry experts and decision-makers.
The course will be a demanding but rewarding experience!Important dates
Practicalities Summary
- Credits: 10 ECTS Cohort: ~20 students
- Eligibility: Master's & PhD students from Aalto University and the University of Helsinki; students from other universities are welcome to apply
- Schedule: Thursdays 14:15-18:00, mid-Jan → end-Apr
- Format: Lectures by staff and guests, reflections, hands-on group-work
- Attendance: mandatory in-person (limited absences allowed)
- Workload: weekly sessions + team work between Thursdays
- Application deadline: End of the day November 14th 2025
Apply early - places are limited. If you're proactive, curious about the domain, and motivated by innovation, we want your application
Questions about the course?
Should you have questions about the course, drop us an email to energy-linkage [at] aalto.fi. We are happy to help you with any questions you might have!
Participants are selected
based on the following criteria:
Prior experience and accomplishments
Please submit your study transcripts and CV, more details below.
Motivation
Tell us why you want to take part in the program. Please submit a motivation letter, see below.
Diversity
We want to have a good mix of students from different backgrounds, all sharing an interest in the industry.
Your application should consist of the following:
1. Copies of your Bachelor's and Master's transcripts, and a copy of your CV
These we ask so we can undestand your academic background, and we are equally, if not more, interested in what you have done and achieved outside of your studies too. Therefore we ask you to make sure that relevant prior experiences are visible from your CV.
2. A short letter explaining your motivation to attend this course
- What is the unique experience or insight you bring to the course?
- Describe any previous experiences that have inspired you to pursue this course. How did these experiences shape your interest in the field?
- What are your career goals, and how will this course help you achieve them?
Write a motivation letter of max. 250 words that answers the above questions. We are interested to get to know you as a person from your motivation letter (so using ChatGPT to write the letter or parts of it might not be a good idea).
energy-linkage [at] aalto.fi
Course Alumni
Backgrounds of the previous participants include:
- Advanced Energy Solutions; Sustainable Energy Systems and Markets
- Energy and Environmental Technology
- Computer, Communication and Information Sciences
- Engineering Physics
- Contemporary Societies
- Marketing
- Automation and Electrical Engineering
- Innovative and Sustainable Energy Engineering
- Agricultural, Environmental and Resource Economics
- Real Estate Economics
Not on the list?
Apply and diversify the alumni network!
There is a certain entrepreneurial spirit that has been once again awoken inside of me. Previously, I would have been rather anxious to explore the path of intra- or entrepreneurship. Today, I have more confidence, some tools and a better intuition. Thank you for a fantastic course!
Stella Keijzer, Agricultural, Environmental and Resource Economics - Energy Linkage 2023 Alumni
Course Staff and Contacts
Christian Langen is an Executive-in-Residence at Aalto University and has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the renewable energy sector and in cleantech. He is supporting investors and entrepreneurs in commercialising new technologies and expanding to new markets and customers.
Sonja is a doctoral researcher and teacher on entrepreneurial skills on all degree levels in Aalto. She has a background in large corporates (e.g. Microsoft, Mars) and several startups. She is passionate about art in its various forms.
Abdul Rehman is pursuing a Master's in Advanced Energy Solutions with a focus on Energy Conversion Systems and Sustainability. With experience in process optimization, clean combustion modeling, and energy storage research, his passion lies in developing efficient and circular solutions for a sustainable energy future.
energy-linkage [at] aalto.fi
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