Photo: Pihla Pulliainen, Aalto University Mikkeli Campus
BScBA students of Aalto University Mikkeli Campus, who participated in the bachelor’s thesis process for the academic year 2025-26, were awarded on Friday 17.4.2026.
The MUC Thesis Award 2026 was announced by Matti Malinen, the secretary general of Mikkeli University Consortium. Bachelor’s thesis of the year 2026 was awarded to Thi Cat Ha Pham with the topic Examining the Effects of ESG Score on Cost of Equity: Evidence from Nordic Countries. The thesis demonstrates excellent empirical rigor, a strong command of financial economics, and a sophisticated engagement with the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) finance literature.
The student employs panel data methods on a large sample of Nordic firms and delivers a well-executed and methodologically sound analysis with a novel and carefully interpreted result. The thesis addresses sustainability in business by examining how ESG performance is priced in capital markets. By analyzing the relationship between ESG scores and firms’ cost of equity, the study provides important insights into whether sustainability initiatives are rewarded or penalized by investors.
- The findings contribute to understanding how sustainability considerations are integrated into financial decision-making and corporate strategy in advanced economies. This is an outstanding thesis that combines strong theoretical grounding with advanced empirical analysis. The student demonstrates independence, critical thinking, and the ability to engage with complex and policy-relevant questions at a high academic level. The work makes a meaningful contribution to the growing literature on ESG and financial markets and reflects exceptional undergraduate research quality, tells the thesis supervisor Cynthia Bansak from the St. Lawrence University in USA.
The Planning Officer Mari Syväoja announced the two candidates for the Suur-Savo Energy Foundation scholarship: Alexander Krohn with the topic An Analysis of Demand Response Incentives and Regulatory Capital for Finnish Energy Balancing and Inka Lappalainen with the topic Wholesale Electricity Proce Volatility and Its Transmission to Households: A Comparative Analysis of Germany, Sweden and Finland, both also students at the Bachelor’s Program in International Business.
More information:
- Mari Syväoja, Planning Officer, AALTO UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, Bachelor´s Program in International Business, Mikkeli Campus, Lönnrotinkatu 5, 50100 MIKKELI, FINLAND
email: mari.syvaoja@aalto.fi,
mobile: +358 44 7044 211
biz.aalto.fi/mikkeli, aalto.fi/studies/mikkeli