Nearly three million students from across Europe have benefited from a study period or work placement abroad since the creation of the Erasmus programme in 1987; of these, over 200,000 were from the UK. In its first year, 3,244 young, adventurous students took part in one of the 11 countries which initially participated in the programme. Now 33 countries take part in the scheme - the 27 EU member states, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey. In the past 25 years, the programme has seen a constant rise in both the number of students and in the quality and diversity of the proposed activities.

Under the slogan, 'Erasmus: changing lives, opening minds for 25 years', the silver anniversary celebrations were launched in Brussels on January 30 by Androulla Vassiliou, the European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth. Erasmus mobility is at the heart of the Commission's strategy to combat youth unemployment by focusing more on skills development

Commissioner Vassiliou said:
"Erasmus is one of the great success stories of the European Union: it is our best known and most popular programme. Erasmus exchanges enable students to improve their knowledge of foreign languages and to develop skills such as adaptability which improve their job prospects. It also provides opportunities for teachers and other staff to see how higher education works in other countries and to bring the best ideas home."

Read more about the inaugural event on our news page and watch the videos of a few of the Erasmus Ambassadors here.

The British Council will be holding events and celebrating the programme throughout the anniversary year.