ERASMUS+ traineeships in partner countries

Unlike studying abroad with Erasmus, spending time abroad on a traineeship (internship at a company, carrying out practical research for your final thesis, research placement, practical year, clinical practice, working as an assistant teacher) is eligible for funding from the first semester onwards. We would recommend, however, studying at least one academic year at FAU before commencing a traineeship abroad. You should be sufficiently proficient in the working language and/or the language of the country you intend visiting.

Students may be granted Erasmus+ funding (for programme countries and partner countries) more than once as detailed below:

• Bachelor’s, Master’s and doctoral degree/PhD: a total of 12 months in each period of study can be spent studying and/or taking part in a traineeship abroad. This corresponds to a maximum of 3 x 12 = 36 months.
• studying to be a teacher in Germany, state examination: 24 months for either studying or taking part in a traineeship abroad before completing the first degree. A further 12 months are possible when studying for a doctoral degree, in other words a maximum total of 24 + 12 = 36 months.

You are entitled to funding if you are enrolled for a degree programme with the aim of obtaining a university degree (including a doctoral degree) and are planning a traineeship relevant or applicable to your degree programme in another country outside Europe (see list of possible host countries below). There are no restrictions as to nationality. Only full-time internships (35h/week) according to the laws of the destination country are eligible for funding.

FAU has received funding (2020 project KA107) for: Egypt, Bosnia, Japan, Israel, Jordan, Palestine, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Lebanon, Tunisia, Ukraine and Morocco. Some restrictions apply to the host institutions and level of study.

Within the context of International Mobility (project KA131 IM), FAU has received funding that it intends to use to support stays abroad for the following purposes:

• Practical training and clinical electives for medical students and assistant teaching abroad in least developed countries and Namibia
• Green Erasmus: Placements in the area of climate change, environmental protection and sustainability
• Dedicated citizens: Placements in the area of refugees, migration and human rights and interreligious dialogue

The following applies to both lines:

Traineeships ending before October 31, 2023 are eligible for funding. When taking the minimum duration of the internship into account, this means that the latest possible date for starting a traineeship would be September 1, 2023. No traineeships will be financed with EU funds after this date.

While Great Britain and Switzerland have been classed as partner countries since August 1, 2021, restrictions to funding mean that FAU does not generally offer the option to complete an Erasmus+ traineeship in these countries.

Funding is available for traineeships in companies, organisations, research facilities, hospitals, educational facilities etc. Traineeships can be carried out in any institution based in one of the programme countries acting either in the employment market or in areas relating to general and vocational education or youth work. They must all, however, have their place of jurisdiction in the host country. Research placements at institutes of higher education are also possible.

Funding is not available for traineeships at:

• EU institutions and other EU facilities including specialised agencies
• Institutions administering EU programmes (e.g. national Erasmus+ offices)
• Institutions with their legal headquarters in Germany.

The traineeship must last at least a total of 60 funding days.

Funding is provided, for example, from 2 October to 1 December or from 15 March to 14 May. No other funding is available. If you complete your traineeship in less than 2 months, you are obliged to pay back the entire grant. An extension is possible, but must be applied for at least 4 weeks before the traineeship is planned to end.

Please inform us in good time of any changes to the duration of your stay. We need written confirmation from the organisation hosting your traineeship. We will then re-calculate your grant.

Any differences are then settled with the final instalment, depending on the funds we have available. There is no guarantee that we will be able to extend your grant.

You are free to choose the starting and finishing date of your traineeship yourself. Traineeships abroad in partner countries are eligible for funding until March 31, 2023 under the Erasmus+ funding period 2020 and the “international mobility” project 2021.

The latest starting date for a traineeship lasting at least 2 months in the current funding period is therefore February 1, 2023.

Funding is only granted as long as sufficient financing is available. Funds are allocated according to the order in which applications are received. Incomplete applications are moved to the end of the queue when allocating funds.

Funding for the Erasmus+ traineeship is paid in two instalments. 70 percent of the total is paid out before the traineeship, the outstanding 30 percent are then paid by bank transfer once you have completed your traineeship and your report and traineeship certificate have been received. You are still eligible for Erasmus+ funding even if during the traineeship you receive funding from a private or public foundation, a BAföG international grant, the DAAD, or remuneration from the institution where you are doing the traineeship. You are not, however, entitled to other funding from the EU at the same time.

You receive a partial scholarship, which is an allowance of 700 euros a month for living costs that is calculated according to the exact number of days and a contribution towards travel expenses, depending on the distance one way according to the EU calculator:

• To apply please submit the following information to the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA) as soon as possible with the subject line: “Pre-application Erasmus-SMP PARTNER COUNTRIES, NAME, First Name”:
  • First name, last name
  • Date of birth
  • E-mail address
  • Student registration no.
  • Degree program at FAU
  • Exact date of planned stay (to the day)
  • Exact name of host institution, including country and the contact person there
  • Your traineeship contract or confirmation of traineeship (or alternatively our template for the confirmation of traineeship) indicating that it is a full-time position of at least 35 hours per week.
• You will then receive an e-mail with a link for an online application and further information about the process.
• Applications for Erasmus+ funding are processed according to the date on which they are received. When allocating funding, attention is paid to when the documents were submitted and whether they are complete and consistent.

Places are allocated in a fair and transparent manner by staff at the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA). The selection criteria are divided into qualitative and formal criteria.

The formal criteria are:

• Documents must be complete
• Information given must be correct
• Information must be plausible
• Deadlines must be met, any other agreements complied with and applicants must have the required language skills.

The qualitative criteria are:

• The applicant must be motivated to do the traineeship for reasons relating to their subject and their career
• The traineeship must be incorporated into the applicant’s course of studies.

Please contact the supervisor at your institute or faculty if you have any questions about having your traineeship accredited towards your degree programme. The Central Office for International Affairs (RIA) arranges for your stay abroad to be included automatically in your diploma supplement.

Check first of all with someone responsible at your institute or your faculty which specific requirements have to be met when working on your final thesis or ensuring that the traineeship counts towards your degree.

You are not allocated a traineeship place as part of the scholarship. It is up to you to organise a traineeship place abroad before applying. The Central Office for International Affairs (RIA) is happy to advise.

Further information:

• Information on looking for a traineeship
• Currently available traineeships
• FAU Career Service – correcting application documents in English, taking part in application workshops

Once you have been offered a place, you should apply to the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA) and register online. You need to upload certain documents to the portal (confirmation of enrolment, traineeship contract with host institution etc.). Your data is recorded and afterwards you will receive a personalised EU Learning/Mobility Agreement for Traineeships online in the portal.

Complete the Learning/Mobility Agreement for Traineeships in consultation with the institution where you are to do the traineeship and the person responsible for accrediting the traineeship at your institute or faculty. Please note that all parties involved have to sign before the traineeship starts.

Upload a high resolution PDF scan of the Learning/Mobility Agreement signed by all parties at the latest one month before the traineeship is due to start.

Once all documents are complete, you can access your grant agreement via the online portal, as well as the grant confirmation, confirmation of BaFöG and, in the case of non-EU citizens, any documents you may require to apply for a visa to the host country. Please print off two copies of the Grant Agreement, sign both originals and send them back by post to the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA). We can only accept originals, not scans. One original will then be returned to you by post, and 70 percent of the agreed grant is transferred to you in advance. Now you can go abroad and start your traineeship as planned.

Shortly before the traineeship is due to end, you will be provided with a template for the required Traineeship Certificate via the online portal. This must be issued and signed by the institution where you are doing your traineeship (see section ‘Documents and forms’). After completing their stay, all participants receive an invitation to take part in the EU Survey. You will then receive a PDF document that you must also upload onto the online portal of the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA). The data is then checked and the grant adjusted if necessary. You are provided with a final confirmation online and the second instalment or final payment is transferred or you are asked to make a repayment, as the case may be.