The Erasmus Programme

The Erasmus programme is to be applauded. It allows university students the opportunity to study abroad. This is not just for language students, but for any who wish to broaden their outlook be getting to know another culture in a context with which they are familiar. Needless to say, their language skills will improve just as a by-product.
They do provide a very helpful on-line guide-book that tells students how to get started setting up an Erasmus Society. This is student-led and does put the onus, quite healthily, on the students doing the work themselves. The Erasmus society provides two areas of support: it supports the incoming Erasmus student from foreign universities and promotes the programme to students who might like to participate in the future. The may also positively promote language tandem-learning schemes – where two people of different nationalities support each other in learning each other’s language. If used effectively, these can be very powerful.
All the EU member states take part in this programme. The programme claims it improve students’ flexibility, adaptability, maturity and employability. I imagine they’re right. I know for certain that contact with a different culture and a different language does do that. Most students take part in this programme during their second or third year, depending on how it might fit in with any of their courses. The Erasmus programme does award a grant to help with extra costs incurred form studying abroad.
It all seems like a fantastic idea to me.