In October of 2023, the Stockholm School of Economics launched its new Center for Wellbeing, Welfare, and Happiness, led by the world’s first Professor in Happiness, Wellbeing and Welfare, Micael Dahlen. The Center aims to establish Sweden as the foremost knowledge hub for wellness and happiness research in the world and spearhead the drive for a happier and more prosperous world. As part of this effort, the Stockholm School of Economics is now putting happiness on the curriculum for all new bachelor students, starting in the fall semester of 2024.

In August, for the first time, the School will hold a crash course in happiness and wellbeing for all new bachelor students at the School's conference center outside of Sigtuna. The course is based on SSE’s most popular elective – Happiness and Wellbeing: Making a Better Life  – taught by Micael Dahlen. The 360 new students will be divided into four groups, each spending 24 hours at the conference center. The purpose is to set the tone for the coming three years at the Stockholm School of Economics.

Welfare, wellbeing and happiness – fundamental for Economics

Students will be given the tools to put their studies into a broader context and explore different perspectives from their own lives, the people around them, and the world we live in. How can they become sustainable individuals who are part of and contribute to what economics is fundamentally about – welfare, wellbeing, and happiness?

Students will participate in group exercises and will be given individual tasks both on-site and to keep working on throughout their first year of study. They will reflect on and set goals for what they want to achieve with their studies and how they will promote their own and other's wellbeing.

"This is very exciting. By laying this foundation for both their student life and their fields of study, we hope they will feel better both now and in the long-term, and that this will have a positive ripple effect, far beyond our walls," says Micael Dahlen.

For already enrolled students, the course Happiness and Wellbeing: Making a Better Life will continue to be an elective for third-years. For students in the Retail Management program, a course on the same topic will be mandatory for all students enrolled from 2023 onward and will be offered for the first time in the spring semester of 2025.

"Investing in our students' wellbeing is a given, not only to help them get through their studies but also to contribute to our shared welfare. Many of tomorrow's leaders start their careers at SSE. By integrating wellbeing into their academic and professional development, we hope that our students and alumni will want to help create a more sustainable and healthy world, both for themselves and their colleagues," says Lars Strannegård, President of the Stockholm School of Economics.

As part of this new initiative, the students’ happiness will also be measured during their studies, starting with the crash course. Another project, launched recently, will  measure the happiness of the School's alumni, in the hope of increasing our understanding of how career and life choices affect alumni's perceived sense of wellbeing.

For more information, please contact:

Micael Dahlen 
Professor of Wellbeing, Welfare and Happiness
Center for Wellbeing, Welfare and Happiness, Stockholm School of Economics
Email: micael.dahlen@hhs.se

Ylva Mossing
Content and Media Relations Manager
Stockholm School of Economics
Email: ylva.mossing@hhs.se
Tel: +46 730 97 26 16

About the Stockholm School of Economics

The Stockholm School of Economics is rated as a top business school in the Nordic and Baltic countries and enjoys a strong international reputation. World-class research forms the foundation of our educational offering, which includes bachelor, master, PhD, MBA, and Executive Education programs. Our programs are developed in close cooperation with the business and research communities, providing graduates substantial potential to attain leading positions in companies and other organizations. 

The School is accredited by EQUIS, certifying that all of its principal activities – teaching as well as research – maintain the highest international standards. The Stockholm School of Economics is also the only Swedish member institution of CEMS and PIM, which are collaborations between top business schools worldwide, contributing to the level of quality for which our school is known. 

For more information about the Stockholm School of Economics, or see all of our press releases, please visit our website.