Choosing the right degree course and the right institution has become more important than ever. Last year, courses that were perceived to offer a clear career path saw a significant rise in applications. Students are also recognising that the job market is now an international one, so not only will they be competing with UK graduates, but also with highly qualified graduates from other countries. The Erasmus programme enables our UK students to compete more effectively, developing not only language skills but also life-skills, maturity and confidence. As Erasmus helps set them apart in the job market, students are looking for courses and colleges that allow them to combine their subjects with a period abroad.

We therefore encourage you to review the opportunities available to your institution through Erasmus, the European Commission’s flagship Lifelong Learning Programme (LLP). The programme offers a range of opportunities for students to study or carry out a work placement and staff (both academic and non-academic staff) to teach and train in one of the 30 other participating European countries. You may be particularly interested in the newer elements of the programme, such as work placements and opportunities for students engaged in short-term vocational higher education and foundation degrees.

If you are a Recognised or Listed Body you are eligible to apply for an Erasmus University Charter (EUC), providing you offer courses at foundation/HND level or above. It is open to all types of higher education institutions, all academic disciplines and all levels of higher education study, up to and including doctorates. Post-secondary level vocational education institutions may also participate.There is no cost or commitment associated with applying and you need only apply once to the European Commission. We will post information on the deadline for next years' application on our website as soon as the date is announced. This year's deadline was in June. You can read more about the application process and find useful links on our Apply section.

More than 3100 institutions currently hold the Charter in 31 participating countries. You may like to read some comments from participating universities on our Institutions' testimonial page.

Stimulating co-operation for modernisation and exchange

The Lisbon Strategy seeks to create a European knowledge society, which will not be possible without a high performing higher education sector. Therefore, the Erasmus Programme helps Europe's universities and other higher education institutions to better work together through projects and networks in different fields in order to organise student and staff mobility, and to reach common objectives, especially in modernisation of curricula funding and governance.

The Erasmus Programme offers the following programme action lines to higher education institutions:

Mobility actions for students and staff:

Student Mobility: The most popular activity within Erasmus is student mobility for studies. Until 2008, this accounted for three quarters of all Erasmus moves. Student mobility for placements introduced in 2007 reflects the increased need to offer students the possibility to get exposure to work life during their study.

Staff Mobility: Teaching and, since 2007, non-teaching higher education staff may also participate. This type of mobility experience can be very beneficial both for its students and staff in terms of enriching their academic life and enhancing their career prospects. Taken as a whole, mobility, especially by staff, may lead to more inter-institutional cooperation and vice versa..

Higher education institutions receive a per capita management fee called "organisation of mobility" grant for running student and staff mobility actions

Cooperation

Erasmus mobility has become a strong driver in internationalising and modernising Europe's higher education institutions. Therefore, Erasmus focuses its project support on modernisation and innovation in the higher education sector. Joints projects involving higher education institutions from different countries in Erasmus can be in the form of intensive programmes, multilateral projects, academic and structural networks or other measures accompanying the main Erasmus actions.

Intensive Programmes (IP): IPs are short study programmes covering a specific topic with a minimum participation of three countries. Grants are provided to participating students and staff and for organisation of an IP.

Multilateral projects: Institutions may participate in four different types of multilateral cooperation projects: curriculum development, higher education modernisation, cooperation between higher education institutions and enterprises and virtual campuses. Such projects run up to three years and involve a minimum of three countries.

Networks: Academic and structural networks are designed to innovate in specific academic disciplines or organisational aspects and provide forums for the exchange of best practice. Since 2007, support has been made available for structural networks limited to a minimum of five partners.

Accompanying Measures: Projects, which promote the objectives and results of Erasmus projects like information and communication activities, thematic monitoring of projects and dissemination and exploitation of project results.

Preparatory Visits: Institutions may prepare mobility actions and exchanges by exploring and establishing inter-institutional agreements for Erasmus student and staff mobility and intensive programmes. In order to achieve this, grants for preparatory visits to partner institutions are available. They may also visit enterprises to establish a new student placements scheme or staff mobility

Contact us by email for further information on how to get involved in individual mobility actions( student and staff), Intensive Programmes and Preparatoty Visits

For information on participation in all other cooperation activities, institutions should contact the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency in Brussels.