Erasmus+ traineeship

Terms and conditions for participating in the Erasmus+ programme as a student of EMÜ - PLACEMENT

 

Who can participate?

  • The student has to be enrolled at the Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMÜ);
  • BUT students who have graduated that same year can also apply for an Erasmus+ placement. The student must, however, keep in mind that the placement period must be within the next 12 months after their graduation and that they must apply for the placement while their studies are still ongoing. So if you graduated from university on June 16, 2023, you should have applied for the placement before this date and your mobility period must end by June 15th, 2024. Note that we can fund recent graduate traineeships for up to 6 months (up to 3 months in the graduate's home country). 

Duration of mobility

  • Students will be able to stay abroad for up to 12 months within each study cycle (bachelor, master or doctorate), irrespective of the mobility type (studies or traineeships) and number of mobility periods (for example, 2 periods of 6 months or 3 periods of 4 months);
  • NB! Prior participation in the Erasmus programme also counts and the period spent abroad before is subtracted from the possible duration of the study cycle at hand. For example: if a student has spent one whole academic year (12 months) abroad as a part of the Erasmus programme during their 1st study cycle, then they can no longer participate in Erasmus for a second time during their 1st study cycle (even if they have changed programs, what counts is that it is still the first study cycle). If prior participation was shorter than 12 months, then it is possible to participate in the programme again for 12 minus … months taking into account that the duration still has to be at least as long as is required by the programme, i.e. at least 3 months;
  • The period of the traineeship must be at least 2 months  (in one institution, can't be spread over several host institutions) and not more than 12 months.

Financing

Students participating in the Erasmus+ programme will also get a shcolarship to cover their living expenses. There is no separate travel grant. 

From 2024, the Ersmus+ scholarships provided by the European Commission for students going for mobilities for trainings from the Estonian University of Life Sciences are as follows: 

Country Group Country European Commission grant
Group no. 1 and 2 (countries with high and medium living standards) Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden 824 EUR / month
Group no. 3 (countries with lower living standards) Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey 756 EUR / month

 

Additionally, students will receive a scholarship from the Estonian Government (135 EUR per mobility). 

If a student belongs to at least one of the following target groups, it is possible to apply for an additional 250 EUR/month (send this signed form to karoli.koiv@emu.ee): 

Green travel top-up 

If the participant travels to their destination in a sustainable manner (determined in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide), they are eligible for a green travel top-up of 50 EUR + they can get up to 4 additional travel days funded. Green travel options: 

  • Bicycle
  • Bus
  • Carpooling
  • Train
  • Other low‑emissions means of transport, please specify

Travelling by boat, plane or car / motorcycle alone are not considered green by the programme. The participant is eligible for the top-up if they travel the majority of the distance between the sending and receiving institution sustainably (it should be altogether for both directions, to the host institution and back). As soon as travel plans have been made, the participant should fill this green travel declaration of honour, sign it and e-mail it to karoli.koiv@emu.ee. ;

Additional support for students with special needs

This additional support is meant for students whose physical, mental or health conditions would keep them from participating in the mobility without additional financial support. Expenses that can be covered include special accommodation, travel aid, medical aid, help of a support person, adjusting study materials, etc and this support is paid based on actual costs. For more information contact karoli.koiv@emu.ee

 

 

In addition to everyday living costs, the student must consider additional expenses on insurance and a residence permit. The Erasmus grant definitely does not cover all your expenses and it must rather be seen as an aid to cope with additional expenses concerning your studies abroad;

During their stay abroad, students still have the right to receive national grants, study allowance and loans on the same basis as students studying in Estonia. Students can apply for extra funding from different national or private funds for their studies abroad but as Erasmus students they are not allowed to use other grants coming from the official funds of the European Union  (Kristjan Jaak). The status and privileges of an Erasmus student can also be used without the grant (i.e. use the status of the Erasmus student and cover your own expenses). 

 

Language requirements and language courses

The trainee's language skills have to be good enough to participate in the work of the host organisation actively and successfully.

Usually, a proof of English proficiency is enough to apply, but in addition, a proof of your knowledge of the local language might also be required. As a proof of language proficiency, either a confirmation about passing an international language test is accepted (for English, TOEFL or IELTS for example), a confirmation about passing a language test at a university or passing the compulsory English or German course at EMÜ. If you have studied English or German at EMÜ at least at the B2 level, then please contact Ülle Sihver (ylle.sihver@emu.ee) to get the certificate.

 

 

Voluntary online language courses

Both before and during the mobility, students are welcome to benefit from the language study portal of the European Commission called Online Linguistic Support. 

 

Insurance

The student must be covered by health insurance during their mobility and is additionally required to have liability insurance (to cover possible damages caused at the workplace) and accident insurance (against accidents at work). Students from EU member countries must also have a European Health Insurance Card.

 

Visa and residence permit requirements

If you are a non-EU student, make sure to check what the rules are for staying in the host country for longer than 90 days. You might have to apply for a visa or a residence permit there or there might be some other procedures, depending on the country, even if you have an Estonian residence permit. It is the student's responsibility to make sure these rules are clear to them and that they can meet these requirements. 

 

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

How to apply?

  • Going abroad for a traineeship requires for the student to be very active and independent. While choosing the host institution, the student must first and foremost keep in mind their curriculum and personal interests;
  • The student needs to find the receiving enterprise/organisation themselves (consult with your institute and learn about the traineeship requirements of your institute). You can look for them by directly contacting different enterprises, training centres, research centres, universities, private companies, public institutions, non-profit organisations, etc. This page might help you get started;
  • Once you have found the right place for the traineeship and have received a “yes” from them, apply to participate in the Erasmus+ programme as a student of EMÜ by filling in an application in the SoleMOVE system. To get access to the system, e-mail karoli.koiv@emu.ee. 
  • Documents required for the application
    • Language certificate - If the language of instruction is not your mother tongue, you will need to prove your language skills. Ask for a language certificate from the head of the language centre, Ülle Sihver (ylle.sihver@emu.ee).
    • Transcript of records - For a transcript of records in English, turn to the study coordinator of your institute. If you are a 1st year MA student at EMÜ and do not have any credits to show from EMÜ yet, a transcript from your former studies will also be accepted.
    • Copy of your valid travel document
    • Passport style photo
    • Motivation letter - explain why you would like to study abroad and why in this particular university (approximately 1 page)

When to apply?

You can apply for the Erasmus+ placement all year round until there are free spots.

NB! Note the extra regulations and deadlines for traineeships in veterinary clinics at our partner universities!

Once the application on SoleMOVE has been submitted

  • The Erasmus coordinator of EMÜ will check it;
  • If you're applying for a traineeship at a university: if more applications are submitted for one university than we have agreed to send to the university in the bilateral agreement, the students will be ranked according to the following aspects:
    • weighed grade point average (positive results only)
    • proficiency of the main language of instruction stated by the host university (if it is not the student's first language)
    • ranking of the university in the student's application
  • The next step is to fill in the Learning Agreement for Traineeship. By signing this agreement, the three parties – student, their home university and the host institution – agree on the proposed mobility programme for the mobility period.
  • To have the traineeship recognised at your home university as a part of your curriculum or to replace some courses with the traineeship, you must also fill in the study abroad as a visiting student form (you can find it here). In the left bar of the form, write the courses (or traineeship) you are planning on carrying out at the host enterprise. Then, together with the RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) advisor of your institute, you can see if the traineeship will apply to your curriculum and whether you can replace your home university traineeship with the one you will do during your Erasmus+ placement or it will be considered as a free elective. The third bar of the form must be filled in together with your director of studies after which you should present the form to the RPL commission who will then confirm whether your traineeship will be recognised at your home university.
  • Once the RPL commission has approved the form, take the learning agreement and study abroad as a visiting student form to the Erasmus coordinator of your institute and then to the institutional Erasmus coordinator of EMÜ. The institutional Erasmus coordinator will keep the study abroad as a visiting student form and this will be used for transferring your credits after your exchange.

Grant

  • The Grant Agreement will be signed once the abovementioned documents have been submitted;
  • The grant agreement is generally signed before the student leaves but not before the learning agreement has been signed. This means that should the signing of the learning agreement be delayed, so will receiving the grant;
  • The grant is paid in two or three parts: if a student goes abroad for one semester, they get 80% of the total amount before their mobility and the rest after they have returned and submitted the required documents. In case of mobility lasting a whole academic year, 80% of the grant for the autumn and spring semester is paid separately before the given semester and the rest will be paid after they have returned and submitted the required documents.

During the mobility

Extension of your studies at your home university

As long as the placement period is at least three months and the student receives at least 15 ECTS for it, the student can get an extension on their studies.

The student’s rights and responsibilities during the mobility

  • If the student pays for tuition at EMÜ, they are also required to do so during their mobility;
  • During their placement abroad, the student is still eligible for national study allowances unless the institute decides otherwise;
  • The student is still eligible for national student loans during their placement abroad.

Changing the learning agreement

If the content of the traineeship turns out to be somehow different from what was agreed upon in the learning agreement once you arrive there, then you need to change the learning agreement. If possible, these changes should be formalised no later than one month after the beginning of the traineeship. The changes to the learning agreement will be noted down on the Changes to the Learning Agreement form which will then be approved by both your university and host organisation. In addition to the changes form, the student must fill in a new study abroad as a visiting student form. The Changes to the Learning Agreement are only valid together with the original learning agreement.

After your mobility period

  • Fill in your Traineeship certificate and collect signatures from your supervisor at the host institution and present it to the Erasmus+ coordinator of EMÜ;
  • If you received credits for your mobility, hand in a transcript of records also;
  • Turn in the documents confirming your traineeship to the person responsible for traineeships in your institute;
  • You must also fill in an online questionnaire to provide feedback on your Erasmus+ mobility period within 30 days after it finishes. This also serves as a basis on whether you receive the remaining part of your grant or not; 
  • Join ESN Tartu in their activities or become a buddy for EMÜ international students (contact EMÜ international office for more information).