Press Release: Record number of Erasmus Students, bless or curse?

PRESS RELEASE

Bruxelles, 22/06/11
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SAVE THE DATE: PRESS CONFERENCE ON THE 13th of JULY at 19.00
Record number of Erasmus Students, bless or curse?

The Erasmus Student Network welcomes the record number of Erasmus students. However, ESN stresses that more focus should be given to the quality of the Erasmus mobility and to its financial support. The pan European ESN research projects PRIME and ESNSurvey prove that these two issues still need to be improved. Their latest releases, with the latest figures, will be presented at the press conference.

The Erasmus Student Network welcomes the record number of students receiving EU grants for study and training abroad with the Erasmus Programme. According to the recently published report more than 213.000 students received Erasmus grants in the academic year 2009/2010, an increase of 7.4% compared to the year 2008/2009. These numbers coincide with the Youth on the Move Initiative conducted by the European Commission, which aim is to extend opportunities to all young people in Europe by 2020, thus increasing the numbers of mobile youth. 

Nevertheless, the Erasmus Student Network wishes to underline that it is important to raise not only the quantitative aspects but also the qualitative aspects of the Erasmus mobility. 

An important aspect that influences the quality of mobility is the recognition of the courses taken during the study abroad period. Although a plethora of tools are in place, PRIME 2009 (Problems of Recognition in Making Erasmus), a research project conducted by ESN, shows that only 66% of the students receive full recognition of their studies, fact which should be addressed in the new framework of the programme post-2013. 

Also, it is noticeable that the average monthly Erasmus grant received by students fell by around 7% to €254, due to the increased numbers getting support. Demand strongly exceeds the availability of Erasmus grants in most participating countries. ESN suggests that the member states take this into consideration for the next multi-annual financial framework which is currently under discussion. 

“We undoubtedly agree that Erasmus is the world’s most successful student exchange programme and we do support the target of 3 million European students on Erasmus by 2012/2013. This will of course be a great addition to the 25thanniversary of the programme since its launch in 1987. However we believe that more focus should be given to the quality of the Erasmus mobility as well as the financial support”, underlines Eva Ntovolou, President of the Erasmus Student Network. 

The ESNSurvey and the PRIME research project have been reconducted in 2009-2010 in order to get more precise and more updated results. The topic of the ESNSurvey 2009, that changes every year, focuses this time on the financial aspects of the Erasmus exchange. Its tile is “Evaluate your exchange”. The outcomes of both surveys will be presented at the press conference taking place on the 13th of July.

About Erasmus Student Network 

Erasmus Student Network (ESN) is one of the biggest non-profit interdisciplinary student associations in Europe, founded in 1989 for supporting and developing student exchange. ESN is present in more than 360 Higher Education Institutions from 35 countries. ESN works for the creation of a more mobile and flexible education environment by supporting and developing student exchanges on different levels, and providing an intercultural experience also to those students who cannot access a period abroad ('internationalisation at home'). 

For more information please contact:

Eva Ntovolou, President, ESN AISBL, Tel: +32 477 567889, president@esn.org

Marco La Rosa, Communication Manager, ESN AISBL, Tel: +32 470 472 225, communication@esn.org

Useful links

www.esn.org

www.prime.esn.org

Attachments
Press Release - Record number of Erasmus Students.pdf Press Release - Record number of Erasmus Students.pdf (388.17 KB)
CP Conference ESN int (FR).pdf CP Conference ESN int (FR).pdf (139.07 KB)