Headset on, avatar on the move: at HEC Lausanne, students no longer simply analyze risks – they experience them first-hand. Thanks to virtual reality, an immersive course plunges them into the heart of contemporary challenges – risk management, climate change, global uncertainties – to prepare them for the realities of the professional world. Led by Professor Séverine Arnold from the Department of Actuarial Science, this course is offered to Bachelor’s students in Management and Economics.
The challenges facing organizations today are numerous and deeply intertwined. The emergence of new social, environmental and technological risks presents challenges at the heart of actuarial science, requiring not only strong analytical skills but also the ability to collaborate, communicate and make decisions in uncertain and international environments.
To address these challenges, the course entitled ‘International Hybrid Academia-Industry Internships via Virtual Engagement’ relies on total immersion in virtual reality. All interactions take place within a virtual company, accessible via virtual reality headsets provided by HEC Lausanne.
Each week, seven HEC Lausanne students take part in this collaborative experience, with each joining an international team within this digital environment. They interact as avatars to work on real-world projects proposed by companies. The issues addressed directly mirror real-world challenges: from risk management and insurance, to assessing the financial impact of climate change, modelling demographic risks and analyzing the relevance of cyber insurance.
“The aim is to recreate, as faithfully as possible, the dynamics of the international professional world, whilst providing a secure and innovative learning environment. Virtual reality allows for a level of immersion and quality of interaction that traditional online tools do not offer.,” explains Professor Séverine Arnold.
This course is aimed at Bachelor’s students in management and economics, who will be working not only with peers from other universities and countries, but also with students from a wide range of academic backgrounds: social sciences, psychology, mathematics, geology and data science. It is a resolutely multidisciplinary approach, mirroring the collaborations they will encounter in their future professional lives.
Already offered in the 2023/2024 academic years, this course – delivered in collaboration with York University (Canada) – is now entering a new phase of development. From the 2026–2027 academic year onwards, whilst continuing this partnership, HEC Lausanne intends to gradually develop the educational and organizational infrastructure for this type of program. The aim is ultimately to be able to offer and manage this format independently and to pave the way for new partnerships, particularly with European universities.
Through this course, HEC Lausanne is thus continuing to develop new, action- and experience-oriented approaches to education.
