Brazilian students, why not explore Europe with Erasmus?

25 Oct, 2013

Read in English here / Leia em Português 

By Natalia de Santana Revi

Nowadays, with intense competition in the jobs market, students are increasingly looking for opportunities to enhance their CV and develop professional skills.  The Erasmus Programme gives students an opportunity to do just that as well as supporting their personal development.

Erasmus is the European Commission’s university student exchange programme which supports students who wish to study abroad or undertake an international work placement in any one of 33 participating countries. The programme has been going for over 25 years and in that time nearly 3 million students in European universities have participated. In 2014 the Commission is planning a dramatic increase in the scope of the programme with the launch of Erasmus+ .

Under the current Erasmus programme, a Brazilian student studying in a UK university can spend a period of between three months and a year studying in another European country. Students receive a monthly grant which partially covers accommodation and living costs. They do not have to pay tuition fees in the university they travel to.  Another option available to students is to undertake an Erasmus work placement and spend up to a year working in a company overseas, developing skills and knowledge which is relevant to their degree.

All UK citizens are eligible to apply for the programme as are international students studying in universities in the UK. There are loads of benefits to studying abroad. Jude Wood, who assists in the management of the programme in the UK, points out that improved language skills and knowledge gained about the culture and way of life of the host country are two of the main benefits which Erasmus students identify about their Erasmus experience. An Erasmus work placement is also one of the best ways to develop your professional skills before you graduate. The fact that you have worked in another country can only enhance your CV and job prospects.

According to the Brazilian PhD student, Gilvano Dalagna , who travelled from the University of Aveiro Portugal to study at the Institute of Education - University of London for six months “There are an enormous number of benefits to Erasmus including the development of new professional perspectives”. Gilvano also highlights the fact that the Erasmus Programme is an opportunity for personal development. Under the new programme, Erasmus+, the number of participating countries will be increased beyond Europe so that students in universities in other parts of the world will potentially be able to participate. This means that students in Brazilian universities will be able to travel to European universities and students in European institutions will be able to travel to Brazil.

The British Council is the UK’s National Agency for the programme and there are Erasmus Coordinators in all of the universities which participate. Brazilian students in UK universities who are interested in Erasmus should contact their university’s Erasmus Coordinator for more information. In the UK the vast majority of universities participate in the programme and have relationships with universities all over Europe.

For more information access the link .