Forty years on from its foundation to serve the Swedish city that it describes as having "the best qualities of a small town, with the vibrance of a bigger city", Hogskolan Halmstad aims to "add value, drive innovation and prepare people and society for the future". In 2022, it enrolled just under 12,000 students, many studying part-time, on its campus a bike ride from the city centre.
Students divide between four schools: business, innovation and sustainability; education, humanities and social science; health and welfare; information technology. But HH also defines itself in terms of two main challenges: health innovation, and smart cities and communities.
Health innovation is a response to the pressures on Swedish healthcare. Responses include master’s programmes in digital service innovation, health and lifestyle, and industrial organisation and innovation. HH is also linked with businesses, regions, municipalities and seven other universities in the Research School for Health Innovation.
Smart cities defines itself as "a local academic enabler for sustainable societies", operating across areas of governance, economy, mobility, development, people and living. HH offers five bachelors’ programmes and five master’s in these areas, among them embedded and intelligent systems and involvement with five other universities in the National Industry Research School.
HH marked 2023 by appointing its first female vice chancellor, Susanna Ohman. New courses include a degree in applied artificial intelligence. Annual projects include the student experience and employability student (SEEP), which offers 30 international students the chance to learn Swedish and develop other attributes to help them to stay on after graduating.
