Erasmus+ update - European partnership opportunities

In a December 2013 edition of International Education News, we outlined changes to the European Commission’s education funding programme. The new programme Erasmus+ started on 1 January 2014 and will run until 2020 - the budget for the seven-year programme is EUR14.7 billion, a 40% increase on current spending. It has two categories for participation: ‘programme countries’, who are member states of the EU and other specified European countries, and ‘partner countries’, which is all others including New Zealand.

The key point of interest for New Zealand is that Erasmus+ will fund international credit mobility exchanges (learner and staff exchanges) between European and New Zealand higher education institutions, without the need for co-funding. Approximately EUR 1.68 billion will be available to fund mobility with non-EU countries.  Applications are made by the European institution to their national agency – see below. 

The deadline for this programme has been moved back, following some implementation delays, giving more time for New Zealand institutions to build or reinvigorate existing partnerships.  Applications are expected to be invited in September 2014. Funding is allocated to European national agencies, depending on factors such as population and previous uptake of student mobility funding, which means some key European markets for New Zealand will have the largest budgets: Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Poland and the UK.  

New Zealand higher education institutions can participate in four parts of the Erasmus+ programme. Mobility programmes open later this year: 

• International credit mobility - which will support 135,000 learner and staff exchanges between European and partner countries (within partnerships with a European institution)  – call for applications by European institutions is expected in September 2014 (closing in early 2015), and every year after.

These programmes have closed for 2014, but might offer opportunities in following years:

• Jean Monnet activities - which aim to stimulate teaching, research and reflection in EU studies worldwide – this is the only programme which New Zealand institutions can apply to directly, rather than via a partnership with a European institution.

• Joint Masters degrees - developed with European institutions, open to institutions and students from anywhere in the world

• Strategic partnerships and knowledge alliances - non-European institutions can participate if they can demonstrate added value for Europe.

For more information, talk to your EU higher education partners, or contact Shelley Robertson (Brussels) or Ute Haug (Berlin) for help developing new relationships.