SSE Riga celebrates the accomplishments of the Class of 2023 at the Graduation Ceremony
On June 10, SSE Riga held the Graduation Ceremony, commemorating the accomplishments of the Class of 2023. This event marked the end of their bachelor's studies and the beginning of their professional journeys.
Amidst applause, the 93 graduates from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Afghanistan, Belarus, Russia, China, Moldova, and Ukraine received their SSE Riga diplomas in front of the 600 guests gathered at Hanzas perons. This was the class that was affected by the pandemic, and as a result, their first lectures took place via Zoom. However, they later transitioned to on-site lectures, which was eagerly anticipated by everyone.
Anders Paalzow, Rector of SSE Riga, delivered a farewell message to students, and Lars Strannegard, President of the Stockholm School of Economics, extended his congratulations, emphasizing the strong collaboration between SSE Riga and SSE in Stockholm and academic excellence.
Linda-Terese Makk and Lotte Vahelaan were honored for their outstanding Bachelor Thesis, titled "Unleashing the Potential of Estonian Firms: An Empirical Analysis of the Impact of ERDF Grants," supervised by Associate Professor Nicolas Gavoille. Exploiting rich Estonian firm-level data, Linda-Terese and Lotte provide a thorough evaluation of the causal impact of European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grants on firms’ performance. Combining a propensity score matching procedure with a difference-in-differences approach, they show that receiving an ERDF grant plays an important role in expanding workforce and fostering sales increase, especially for newly-created firms.
Representatives of the graduating class, Tatsiana Paulouskaya and Ahmad Jahid Sakhi, delivered a speech on behalf of the graduating class, expressing gratitude for their experience and reflecting on lessons learned during their time at SSE Riga.
Arta Beitane, President of the Alumni Association, welcomed the Class of 2023 graduates to the alumni community.
The event concluded with a remarkable performance by the SSE Riga choir. The graduates then gathered for a symbolic group photo, capturing the essence of their shared accomplishments, and later celebrated during the Graduation Party!
We wish our new graduates the best of luck, and we look forward to seeing you soon at our alumni events!