Erasmus - anyone got any experience of this?

[GrumpyOldBag]

DS is in Lower 6th and we are looking at University options. I have heard a little about the Erasmus programme enabling him to study abroad for a year as part of his degree (we would look at a Greman-speaking country). But the website is hard to follow and school not great at giving out info.

Anyone got any direct experience they can help with please?

[titchy]

Won't happen with Brexit....

Basically it's an EU exchange scheme. German students spend s year at UK university. UK students spend s year st German university. All arranged by the universities.

[Lemonsole]

The students receive funding to make it happen. Erasmus recognises that study abroad costs more than study at home, and that funding is needed to ensure that student mobility is a reality. I benefited from it in 1992, when my semester in Brussels coincided with the arse having fallen out of the pound after Black Wednesday. I really, really needed those extra pounds.

[BeakyMinder]

And it will be dead and gone if we leave the EU.

[lifeisunjust]

You need to look up options from each potential UK university really. You can do work placement as well as university Erasmus. 2nd son will be looking into get a work placement probably only a semester as he is due to do US or Canada for a whole year too.

[lifeisunjust]

There are non EU students who do Erasmus so Brexit will be of no consequene.

[notamummy10]

A couple of my friends did it...

It differs between the universities though, my uni does a semester abroad rather than the full year and had the choice of European or International! They chose the latter... Well you wouldn't you?

Brexit won't effect the programme... Mainly because the decision may be overturned and if it is decided to leave, it still won't happen overnight! Like a PP has already said, the programme isn't restricted to home students only (well it wouldn't be).

[marmaladegranny]

My DS benefitted greatly from Erasmus - he did a 'language with ...' degree and spent one semester at a German university and 6 months on a work placement in a different part of Germany. The university he attended promoted the scheme and they were very helpful and informative - in fact with their help he arranged everything and he is not good at that sort of thing!

[lifeisunjust]

I should have written it is for students who study outside the EU, no matter what their residency status or nationality, that is why Erasmus will be unaffected by Brexit, because if it happened, UK universities would be outside the EU, like many other non EU universities who are part of these exchanges.

[TheNotoriousPMT]

I did it in the early 2000s. It was awesome. It funded costs of travel and accommodation abroad for a semester. I had a brilliant time and learned a lot (well, not in the university but they guarantee your marks won't suffer as a result of having gone abroad...)
Long live the EU

[titchy]

Erasmus is EU. Mundus is broader. OP asks about Erasmus. Switzerland can no longer participate as they wont follow EU migrations terms.

[surroundedbyblondes]

I did it in the 90s. It was the making of me. I grew up and became much more self-sufficient and returned home with better motivation to study.

It also opened my eyes to other countries, cultures, careers etc. I moved abroad as soon as I had completed my final year at uni and I never returned to the UK.

[GrumpyOldBag]

Thanks for all the responses.

So, I guess we need to check which UK universities offer this as an option, yes? Does it apply to all subjects (DS will probably read Maths).

And it's a straight substitute for a term or a year, not an additional period of study, is that right?

[notamummy10]

Yep it is a substitute! I don't know about which subjects offer it, sorry!!

[LunaLoveg00d]

This has been going for years. My cousin spent a semester at an English-speaking Uni in Denmark. Don't think there are any additional fees, just accommodation costs.

[GrumpyOldBag]

Just looked on the Erasmus website and only 11 UK universities seem to be listed. Which seems a bit limiting.

[titchy]

Loads of universities do! at the moment The credits you gain from the study abroad are transferred back to your own university so you don't have to do any extra. It'll depend on the course as to what opportunities there are.

[titchy]

Ah you said maths. Sheffield has a list by subject:
http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/polopolyfs/1.580973!/file/whereecanIIgo.pdf

[Floppityflop]

I probably shouldn't say this, but I went to Germany (not with Erasmus) for a summer and lived with a German studying at the local university who used to call it the "Orgasmus" programme...! Mind you, this was some time ago and I'm sure students these days take their studies more seriously. I know quite a few people who participated in this or other study opportunities abroad and I think it really opened doors for them.

[GrumpyOldBag]

added benefits for my ds then Floppity

[caroldecker]

erasmus themselves say scholarships are available to study in non-EU countries and for non-EU students to study in the EU

[notamummy10]

glamourous nope, it's an European and International exchange/study abroad programme!!

[Needmoresleep]

OP, my understanding is that Erasmus is a longstanding EU programme designed to encourage academic links and exchanges within Europe. One aspect is to help organise/fund student exchanges.

Many Universities allow students to study abroad for a year. Particularly good ones are Warwick and UCL. Depending on subject there is scope to go to a whole range of Universities. Some of the European ones may be part funded/organised by Erasmus. However generally there is a whole lot more interest in Euopean students coming in than UK students going out, and often Universities try and balance the flows. So an interest in going to Germany would probably help a UCAS application at a relevant University. And if Britain did leave the EU, I doubt exchanges would stop. First it would take years to unravel and then there is no reason for study opportunities not to be placed on the same footing as similar opportunities to Australia, Hong Kong or California.

I would start by googling universities you are interested in and their study abroad programmes and see if German Universities are available.

And yes France has its DOMTOM.

You could also start in the other direction by asking the Goethe Institut about opportunities to study in Germany.