Towards a truly
European Erasmus grant
#Erasmus500
Towards a truly European grant
The Erasmus500 campaign has come to an end in December 2020 after 8 months of raising awareness of the ideas embodied in the Erasmus500 declaration. The European University Foundation, the Erasmus Student Network and the European Students’ Union would like to thank all universities, student organisations, networks, students and stakeholders for their support! Together, we made it impossible for the European Commission not to notice our vision for the future of Erasmus+. Together, we will never stop advocating for a better grant system and for the improvement of Erasmus+ to make sure inclusion is a true focal point and a priority throughout the next 7 years.
Inclusiveness
Ensure that working students can afford to go on Erasmus, rather than being structurally excluded from it.
Simplicity
A European grant for the students of Europe – simple, fair and transparent.
Strong support
A much higher grant than what is currently the case to make Erasmus a realistic prospect for all.
The #Erasmus500 Declaration
In the last few months, we have witnessed an unprecedented disruption of our student exchange programmes1. And yet, universities are safe in the knowledge that such challenges will be vanquished in the months ahead, while present times afford us the opportunity to reflect how future cooperation can be planned and enhanced.
The Erasmus programme provides an invaluable framework through which our universities create joint educational initiatives, promote innovation in teaching and learning and carry out peer-learning activities. The programme is a harbinger of the European Higher Education Area and of the European Education Area and has been expanded to support the European Universities Alliances. These three initiatives are bound to have a transformative impact on European Higher Education. But the beating heart of Erasmus has always been – and it will always be – the academic exchange opportunities it affords to millions of students. Student mobility cements not only inter-university cooperation, but also the European project as a whole2.
If Erasmus is a central catalyst to bring about European citizens who are open-minded, civically engaged and resilient to populism3, it is essential that the next programme involves a greater number of participants and is more inclusive than is currently the case. For many years, financial obstacles have been proven to be the single biggest deterrent to participation in mobility programmes4. That is why we call for a reformulation of the Erasmus grants into a simpler scheme comprising a universal baseline of 500€/month, for the following reasons:
- Approximately half of all European students work while they study5 and those who rely on that income to meet their living expenses find themselves structurally excluded from participating in Erasmus, as the financial support they would receive is too low. A grant of 500€/month would offer a realistic possibility to compensate for the loss of such income, allowing a much larger number of students to participate in the programme.
- Erasmus is the quintessential European experience but its resource allocation strategies are everything but. Grant levels are currently scattered across 18 categories that are often applied inconsistently between countries6. A simpler grant system would allow to better promote the programme to future participants and enhance transparency for students from lower socio-economic backgrounds7.
- In 2018, the average Erasmus grant was 336€/month8, which is manifestly insufficient to cover even accommodation costs in many European cities9. According to research involving 24,000 students, 70% of respondents indicated that the Erasmus grant covers half or less of their total expenses10. A 500€/month grant would provide all Erasmus students a far more reasonable choice of mobility destinations that they can afford.
- In the current system, a significant amount of grants cannot be allocated every year. By setting a minimum grant with the option of top-ups, it could be possible to reallocate these remaining funds and provide the necessary support to those who need it.
The radical simplicity of this proposal is aligned with the European Pillar of Social Rights11 and builds on successful experiments carried out by the NA in 2018 and 2019. By streamlining the management of the grants, we can reduce their administrative burden12 and cost, allocating more of the programme’s budget directly to the beneficiaries: the students. According to our calculations, a universal baseline of 500€/month is perfectly within reach of the forthcoming EU multiannual financial framework.
Making Erasmus simpler and more inclusive can also lead to reducing the carbon footprint of our exchange and cooperation activities if Erasmus students would be able to access low cost week-long train (and/or bus/ferry) tickets to reach (and return from) their host cities and universities13. This would ensure that their academic exchange is also a journey of discovery through the history and culture of Europe.
We call upon the European Institutions and Member States to consider and adopt these proposals.
See footnotes
- Gabriels, W., Benke-Aberg, R. (2020) Student Exchanges in Times of Crisis – Research report on the impact of COVID-19 on student exchanges in Europe [Online]. Erasmus Student Network AISBL. Retrieved at https://esn.org/covidimpact-report
- European Commission (2018) Mid-term evaluation of the Erasmus+ programme (2014-2020) [Online].Retrieved at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52018DC0050&from=FR
- Banet, R., Pinto, J., Japiashvili, N., Rousou, K., Katava, T. K. (2019) ESNsurvey 2019 – Active citizenship and student exchange in light of the European elections [Online]. Erasmus Student Network AISBL.etrieved at https://esn.org/ESNsurvey
- Sundberg, C., Koppel, K., Schwitters, H., Patricolo, C., Gajek, A., Susnjar, A., Prihoda, F., Hovhannisyan, G. (2018) Bologna with Student Eyes 2018 [Online].European Students’ Union. Retrieved at https://www.esu-online.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/BWSE-2018_web_Pages.pdf
- Hauschildt, K., Vögtle, E. M., Gwosć, C. (2018) Social and Economic Conditions of Student life in Europe, EUROSTUDENT VI 2016–2018 I Synopsis of Indicators [Online]. EUROSTUDENT. Retrieved at https://www.eurostudent.eu/download_files/documents/EUROSTUDENT_VI_Synopsis_of_Indicators.pdf
- Grants vary per type of mobility and according to a table where countries are grouped in three cost categories. However, such clusters hide enormous differences among countries (e.g. Group 2, which accounts for nearly 70% of all outgoing students, includes countries with economic characteristics as diverse as the Netherlands and Greece) and their existence has proven ineffective to ensure a rational resource allocation; e.g. German students on the Erasmus programme in Portugal have a higher Erasmus grant than Portuguese students on the Erasmus programme in Germany. The fact that top-ups meant for students from disadvantaged backgrounds is also applied inconsistently compounds complexity and makes it nearly impossible to ensure equal treatment of students.
- Vossensteyn, J. J. H. (2005) Perceptions of student price-responsiveness: A behavioural economics exploration of the relationships between socio-economic status, perceptions of financial incentives and student choice. Enschede: Center for Higher Education Policy Studies (CHEPS).
- European Commission (2020) Erasmus+ Programme – Annual Report 2018, Infographic package [Online].Retrieved at https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/about/statistics_en
- Hauschildt, K., Vögtle, E. M., Gwosć, C. (2018) Social and Economic Conditions of Student life in Europe, EUROSTUDENT VI 2016–2018 I Synopsis of Indicators [Online]. EUROSTUDENT. Retrieved at https://www.eurostudent.eu/download_files/documents/EUROSTUDENT_VI_Synopsis_of_Indicators.pdf
- Josek, M. (ed.), Fernández, J., Perez-Encinas, A., Zimonjić, B., De Vocht, L. and Falisse, M. (2017)The International Friendliness of Universities. Research Report of the ESNsurvey 2016 [Online]. Erasmus Student Network AISBL. Retrieved at https://esn.org/esnsurvey/2016
- In particular principles 6, 14 and 20, found at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union/european-pillar-social-rights/european-pillar-social-rights-20-principles_en (2017)
- As per the NA experiment and original proposal, semesters (or trimesters) would be treated on a unit cost basis, thus simplifying payment, reporting and auditing of SMS mobilities
- Exceptions to this rule would obviously continue to apply as necessary, notably as far as mobilities to/from outermost countries and regions are concerned and students with special needs.
They support #Erasmus500
Members of the European Parliament

Iuliu WINKLER
European People's Party (Christian Democrats), RO

Corina CREȚU
Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, RO

Marcos ROS SEMPERE
Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, ES

Vladimír BILČÍK
European People's Party (Christian Democrats), SK

Ivan ŠTEFANEC
European People's Party (Christian Democrats), SK
International Networks
International Association for Political Science Students
UNIMED - Mediterranean Universities Union
Coimbra Group
Crue Universidades Españolas
Erasmus Student Network
Board of European Students of Technology
Young Universities for the Future of Europe
Junior Enterprises Europe
Footura
European Students' Union
EPSA - European Pharmaceutical Students' Association
Association Européenne des Conservatoires
AEGEE - European Students' Forum
Lifelong Learning Platform
SGroup European Universities' Network
Utrecht Network
French Rectors' Conference (CPU)
Higher Education Institutions
University of Barcelona
University of Zurich
University of Eastern Finland
Selçuk University
University of Parma
Vytautas Magnus University
Instituto Politécnico de Tomar
Università della Svizzera italiana
Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
Ghent University
Bern University of Applied Sciences
Vilnius Gediminas Technical Univerisity
IT University of Copenhagen
DTU - Technical University of Denmark
Université Le Havre Normandie
Università degli Studi di Trento
University of Westminster
Czech Technical University in Prague
Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
University of Porto
Institute of Technology, Sligo
University of Luxembourg
Oslo Metropolitan University
University of Herzegovina
University of Pavia
Aarhus University
University of Applied Arts Vienna
University College Copenhagen
University College Northern Denmark
Sakarya University
Roskilde University
University of Usak
Universitat Politècnica de València
Université de Liège
Aarhus School of Architecture
Cyprus University of Technology
Trinity College Dublin
Philipps-Universität Marburg
Instituto Politécnico de Coimbra
St. Petersburg State University
Czech University of Life Sciences Prague
Zurich University of the Arts
Zurich University of Teacher Education
University of Copenhagen
Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa
Erciyes University
Northumbria University
Aix Marseille University
Mykolas Romeris University
Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
Universitat Rovira i Virgili
University of Jaén
Universidad de Alcalá
University of Latvia
University of Split
Transilvania University of Brasov
Mendel University in Brno
University of Geneva
University of Catania
Mus Alparslan University
Pädagogische Hochschule Luzern
Aalborg University
University of Poitiers
Universidad Europea de Madrid
Istanbul Arel University
Hasan Kalyoncu University
I.E.S. Felipe Trigo
JAM MUSIC LAB Private University for Jazz and Popular Music Vienna
University of Murcia
Student Organisations
Erasmus Student Network - Spain
Fédération des associations générales étudiantes (FAGE)
CREUP
SFS - Sveriges förenade studentkårer
ESN UIA
UDU - Unione degli Universitari
ESN TU IC
National Union of Students in Denmark
Študentská rada vysokých škôl - ŠRVŠ
National Union of University Students in Finland
Georgian Student Organisations Association
UNEL - Union Nationale des Étudiant-e-s du Luxembourg
ESN Turkey
ESN France
VSS-UNES-USU Swiss Student's Union
Union of Students in Ireland
Erasmus Student Network - Malta
Erasmus Student Network - Luxembourg
TU Dublin Student's Union
ESN Bahcesehir
SK RVŠ
National Alliance of Student Organisations in Romania (ANOSR)
National Union of Students in Hungary
Erasmus Student Network - Germany
V4+ Student Alliance
Austrian National Union of Students
Federation of Estonian Student Unions (EÜL)
ESN Croatia
FAQ
Can my endorsement really help improve the Erasmus programme?
Why make this proposal now?
Practically speaking, what would be the impact of #Erasmus500?
Changing the grant calculation from daily rates into unit costs would also be beneficial for universities, enabling simpler administration, reporting and auditing requirements. A mobility will be the triggering event for funding, meaning a single documental proof will be required; confirmation of stay with detailed information about the mobility period will no longer be necessary.
What happens to the existing Erasmus top-ups?
The proposed grant is a suspiciously round number… is this a political statement?
Where will the money for #Erasmus500 come from?
The remaining funding required to reach 500€/month could come either from budget lines that are being discontinued after the end of the current programme or from the increase of the budget allocated to the Erasmus programme, as per the discussions for the new multiannual financial framework. And while the current crisis induced by the COVID-19 pandemic might reshuffle the proposals, we call on the European Parliament, the European Commission and the 27 Member States to make the Erasmus programme more equal and attractive, in times where simplification and accessibility become more relevant than ever to support student mobility.
The Erasmus programme works fine. Why fix something that is not broken?
What about national funding?
What about COVID-19? Will student mobility still matter once things go back to normal?
It is also worth bearing in mind that economic crisis always impact students hard, thus we need to boost the financial capacity of the programme to be able to upkeep and expand participation.