Erasmus+ study mobility: be prepared for a life changing experience!

Sist oppdatert Torsdag, 01/10/2020

Erasmus+ provides opportunities for young people to spend time abroad and widen their horizons. Here are a few tips and blogs written by Erasmus students.

Before you leave

Under the Erasmus+ study mobility programme, you can spend between 3 and 12 months at an institution of higher education in any participating country. Check the conditions here!

Make sure to do some background check before you select your host institution. If you're short on ideas, you can have a look for instance at the EU U-Multirank tool for comparing universities and reading the blog section for tips, you can also check specialised websites such as Study.eu or iAgora for reviews of universities in Europe (and the rest of the world) and students' feedback.

If you've been selected for an Erasmus+ exchange, start preparing by talking to students from your university who've already studied at the same institution. Check the Study in Europe website for tips!

It may seem obvious, but don't forget to make sure you have somewhere to stay! For tips on short-term accommodation (hostels, sublets, etc), click here.

When you arrive

Make as many new friends as you can! There'll probably be an Erasmus club or café near the institution where you're studying. These often organise welcome events and other activities – a good way to get to know your fellow-students before you get down to study. You can also look for international student associations such as Erasmus Student Network (ESN) or AEGEE that can help you integrate into academic and social life, as well as provide you with practical tips on living in your new country.

Do your best to learn the local language or improve your existing knowledge. Talk to local people and get to know other students in your class. Some universities organise language tandems between students with different native languages. Other options include the language courses through Erasmus+ Online Linguistic Support.

Erasmus+ isn't just about partying and making friends, though. You'll also need to work as hard as you would back home, but you will gain so much from the experience!

Interesting links

• Study in Europe Portal: read more about applying to study in Europe and get advice on how to choose a course.
• EU Immigration Portal: if you want to know what documents are needed to enter your chosen country.
• Scholarships: check our article on tips to find and get scholarships to study abroad. 
• U-Multirank: compares universities, you can check one of the readymade rankings to see how your potential future university scores on various criteria.
• Study in Europe: shows universities and colleges, tuition fees and bachelor’s and master’s programmes in each European country.
• StudyPortals: aims to bring transparency to the many study opportunities in Europe and beyond. You can browse their database by study programmes and by country.

All that remains is to pack your bags and move!