Erasmus+ Traineeships: How to Fund an Internship Abroad
Erasmus+ pays a monthly grant for an internship abroad. This guide shows who can apply, the rule of 2 to 12 months, the 150 EUR traineeship top-up, and the steps through your own university.
Erasmus+ pays you to do an internship in another country. The money comes through your own university, not through a direct application to the European Commission. This guide shows the rules, the amounts and the steps.
Who can apply
The Erasmus+ programme supports traineeships for students "currently enrolled in higher education institutions in Erasmus+ programme countries at short-cycle Bachelor and Master level, as well as for doctoral candidates". Recent graduates can also apply.
A recent graduate has two conditions. The student must be "selected by their HEI during their last year of study", and must "carry out and complete their traineeship abroad within one year of obtaining their graduation". So you must apply before you finish your degree.
How long a traineeship can be
The Programme Guide gives the eligible duration as "from 2 to 12 months of physical mobility, excluding travel time".
Doctoral candidates have more freedom. For them the rule is "from 5 to 30 days or from 2 to 12 months of physical mobility". A short stay can also be blended: 5 to 30 days abroad plus a virtual period.
There is a limit for each degree. You can use "up to 12 months of physical mobility maximum per each cycle of study". The limit counts study periods and traineeships together. It starts again for your bachelor, your master and your doctorate.
Where you can go
A traineeship "can take place at any organisation located anywhere in the world (with the exception of EU institutions, bodies and agencies)". A company, a research institute, a university, an NGO or a hospital can host you.
The EU institutions have their own paid traineeship schemes, so they do not host Erasmus+ trainees.
What it pays
Your university pays the grant. The sending organisation is responsible for "grant payments". The monthly amount is not the same everywhere: "the monthly amounts will be defined by the National Agencies in agreement with National Authorities, and/or the HEIs on the basis of objective and transparent criteria". The Programme Guide sets the bands. One band for EU destinations is 292 to 606 EUR per month.
A traineeship gets extra money. Students on a traineeship receive "a top-up amount to the individual support of their EU Erasmus+ grant with an amount of 150 EUR per month".
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Monthly individual support | Set by your national agency or university, inside the Programme Guide bands (one band is 292–606 EUR) |
| Traineeship top-up | 150 EUR per month |
| Travel support, 500–1,999 km | 417 EUR with green travel, 309 EUR without |
The Programme Guide also has extra support for participants with fewer opportunities. Ask your Erasmus+ office which support applies to you.
Tip: Ask the office for the exact monthly amount for your destination country before you accept the place. The amount changes with the destination and with the call year.
Documents you need
- A learning agreement for traineeships. You, your university and the host organisation agree the tasks before the mobility starts. The Programme Guide states that the parties "must have agreed on the activities to be undertaken by the students — in a 'learning agreement' … prior to the start of the mobility period".
- A grant agreement between your university and you. It states the dates and the amount.
- Proof of insurance, as your office requires.
- A passport or identity card, and a visa or residence permit if the host country needs one.
If the host is a university, it cannot charge you fees. Institutions must "ensure that no fees are charged in the case of credit mobility, to incoming mobile students for tuition, registration, examinations or access to laboratory and library facilities".
How to apply, step by step
- Go to the international office or Erasmus+ office of your own university. Ask for the call for traineeships, the deadline and the amount for your destination.
- Check your eligibility. Count the months you already used in this cycle.
- Find a host. Contact research groups or companies directly, or use the Erasmus Intern traineeship portal that the European Commission links from its traineeship page.
- Agree the tasks, the dates and the supervisor with the host.
- Sign the learning agreement with your university and the host.
- Sign the grant agreement with your university.
- Arrange the visa, the insurance and the housing.
- After the traineeship, send the signed certificate of the host to your office. Your university recognises the result with ECTS credits or in your diploma supplement.
Deadlines and timeline
Each university sets its own deadlines, usually one or two calls a year. Start six months before your planned start date. A visa and a host agreement take the most time.
Common mistakes
- You wait until after graduation. A recent graduate must be selected in the last year of study.
- You ask the European Commission directly. The money always goes through your own university.
- You plan one month. The minimum for a student traineeship is two months.
- You forget the 12-month limit for the cycle.
- You start the traineeship before the learning agreement is signed. Then the grant can be refused.
A traineeship helps your next application
A research traineeship gives you a letter, a method and a result that you can name in a doctoral application. Use it in your cover letter, and ask your host supervisor for a reference.
Our guide How to email a potential PhD supervisor shows how to write that first contact. For funded doctoral study in Germany, see DAAD scholarships for doctoral study.
Where to find open positions
PhD Atlas collects internships and doctoral positions every day. See all PhD positions and funded PhD positions.
Create a free account. PhD Atlas then matches open positions to your CV and your nationality, and sends you an email when one fits.