Experience work in Europe

The Erasmus Traineeship

Looking to do a traineeship elsewhere in Europe? The University of Bonn funds study-related traineeships in over 30 countries lasting between 2 and 12 months as part of the Erasmus+ Programme.

The most important information at a glance

Key facts

  • Full-time traineeships in another European country that relate to your studies (exceptions for equal opportunities; see the “Funding” section below)
  • traineeeships found by yourself
  • Possible length: two to twelve months (at least 60 days)
  • Short-term stays of between 5 and 30 days are possible and may be combined with a virtual component (up to one year after graduating)
  • Financial support
  • Additional funding for “equal opportunities” and “green” travel
  • Academic recognition of compulsory traineeships completed abroad
  • Funding possible even after you have completed your studies/ doctorate
  • Guidance by both the University of Bonn and your host institution

Your contacts

All departments have a Departmental Erasmus Coordinator who you can contact if you have any questions and to submit your application.

Once you have been selected by your Departmental Coordinator, the International Office will help you prepare and sort out all the other organizational aspects of your stay.


Traineeship abroad with Erasmus+

The following film explains how the Erasmus traineeship works.

Praktikum im Ausland mit Erasmus+ (Publisher: DAAD)


Application

If you are interested in an Erasmus traineeship placement, you should apply to your Erasmus Departmental Coordinator, who will tell you how the application process actually works and what documents you will need. Students for Teacher Training should directly apply at the Zentrum für Lehrerbildung (BZL).

The most important information at a glance

Eligibility

  • During your degree programme/ doctorate: you must be properly enrolled at the University of Bonn and remain so for the duration of your stay abroad (does not apply to recent graduates; doctorates can also provide a letter of acceptance).
  • If you have already completed your degree programme or doctorate, you can obtain funding for a traineeship over the following 12 months. You must still be enrolled when you apply but deregistered during your traineeship.
  • Your nationality is irrelevant.
  • Your traineeship must last between two and twelve months (at least 60 days).
  • Short-term stays (5 to 30 days) are also possible. More information is available on the website for Erasmus studies.

To make your traineeship abroad both meaningful and successful, you should also have a good command of the language spoken in your host country. As a bare minimum, however, you should be proficient in the language used at the workplace where your traineeship will be based.

You are therefore advised to acquire the necessary language skills or consolidate your existing knowledge as early as possible. The University of Bonn runs a wide range of its own language courses.

You can find more information in the “Linguistic preparation” section of the website Organization and Planning.

Contact the Erasmus Departmental Coordinator responsible in your department to apply for an Erasmus grant for a traineeship abroad. They will tell you what criteria you need to meet in order to be eligible for funding.

General selection criteria

  • Study achievements
  • A knowledge of the language spoken in the destination country but at least of the language used at the workplace where your traineeship will be based
  • Your reasons/ motivation for doing a traineeship abroad
  • Quality of your traineeship placement and project
  • Benefit to your studies of your subject

Since traineeships are not necessarily tied to semester dates, there are no set application deadlines. However, some departments have internal application deadlines for Erasmus trainees. Either way, you should apply to your Departmental Coordinator at least two to three months in advance.

Do not register online with the International Office until you have been accepted by your Departmental Coordinator.

Traineeship institutions
You will need to source your traineeship placement yourself. Your department may also be able to help you (e.g. for traineeships in schools or laboratories abroad). The International Office has put together some tips on finding a traineeship abroad.

Potential institutions for your Erasmus traineeship:

  • Public- and private-sector companies (including public services)
  • Vacancies advertised locally, regionally or nationally
  • Chambers of commerce, craft or professional associations, and trade unions
  • Research institutions
  • Foundations
  • Schools, universities, institutes, educational institutions (including Goethe Institutes)
  • Charities, associations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs)

EU institutions and institutions that manage EU programmes are not suitable options. Alternative grant programmes are available for traineeships here, such as short-term scholarships awarded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for traineeships abroad.

Traineeships can be undertaken in any Erasmus+ Programme country. Traineeships in the United Kingdom can still be funded, even after Brexit, provided that sufficient financial resources are available.

It is not currently possible to fund traineeships in Switzerland.

After being accepted

If you have been accepted by your Erasmus Departmental Coordinator, the following pages contain some important information on what to do next in order to obtain your funding. They also tell you what documents and deadlines you will need to remember before you go abroad, while you are there and after you come home.

Erasmus traineeships following Brexit

Traineeships in the United Kingdom are still eligible for financial support from the Erasmus Programme as a basic principle. However, you will require a Temporary Work – Government Authorised Exchange (GAE) visa to enter the country. Since you will need a reference number (generally from your traineeship provider) in order to apply for your visa, this process can take some time. If you will be undertaking a research-oriented traineeship, you may be able to arrange it as a “research stay,” for which no visa is required. You must therefore address the visa issue at the same time as you apply for your traineeship.

Good to know!

Erasmus traineeships following Brexit

Traineeships in the United Kingdom are still eligible for financial support from the Erasmus Programme as a basic principle. However, you will require a Temporary Work – Government Authorised Exchange (GAE) visa to enter the country. Since you will need a reference number (generally from your traineeship provider) in order to apply for your visa, this process can take some time. If you will be undertaking a research-oriented traineeship, you may be able to arrange it as a “research stay,” for which no visa is required. You must therefore address the visa issue at the same time as you apply for your traineeship.

Digital Opportunity Traineeships

The Digital Opportunity Traineeships are a European initiative that is funded via the Erasmus+ Programme and that is intended to give students and graduates the opportunity to gain valuable practical experience in the tech sector from working in a company abroad.

Funding

You can spend up to 12 months in an Erasmus+ Programme country (plus the United Kingdom) per study phase (bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate) or up to 24 months if you are studying for the state examination. Studying for a second degree does not confer any increased entitlement to receive financial support.

Previous Erasmus traineeships abroad and Erasmus grants from another university will also be taken into account. Information on funding short-term traineeships (5 to 30 days) is provided on the Erasmus Study website.

The most important information at a glance

  • Payment of a mobility allowance — the various destination countries in Europe are divided into three country groups, each with different funding rates, based on the average cost of living there
  • Additional funding for “equal opportunities” and “green” travel
  • Free online language courses
  • Support with getting ready to go abroad

The monthly grant installments are the same for all universities in Germany and are usually recalculated every year.

For long-term stays

  • Country group 1: €750 per month (€25 per day)
    Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom
  • Country group 2: €690 per month (€23  per day)
    Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain
  • Country group 3: €640 per month (€21,33 per day
    Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey

The mobility allowance is paid out in two installments, one at the start and one at the end of your traineeship abroad.

The International Office will tell all the Erasmus trainees who have been selected about the necessary formalities and is responsible for distributing the financial grants.

Funding of “green travel”
If you discard planes and ferries and travel to your host country by train, bus, carsharing or bike instead, you will receive an extra lump-sum allowance of €50. You will also be able to obtain subsidies for any additional days’ travel.

More information is available in the information sheet on “green” travel.

For short-term stays
Information is available on the Erasmus Study website.

BAföG recipients will receive the standard mobility allowance. However, any amount in excess of €300 per month will be taken into account when determining the BAföG. Even if you are not eligible for the BAföG for your degree programme in Germany, we still recommend finding out about the International BAföG on the Federal Ministry of Education and Research’s “BAföG” web page.

You cannot claim a scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and an Erasmus+ grant at the same time.

You cannot claim an Erasmus Mundus grant and an Erasmus allowance at the same time.

If you receive a scholarship from another institution (e.g. foundation, Deutschlandstipendium), you will still receive the standard amount of Erasmus funding. However, you should tell your scholarship provider about your Erasmus grant.

The following circumstances qualify you for additional funding (€250 a month):

  1. You have a disability (starting at a disability level of 20)
  2. You are suffering from a chronic condition or proven disability that will result in additional costs when abroad
  3. You will be taking your child abroad
  4. You are a student/ doctoral student and hold a job (not self-employment; earning you net monthly income above €450 and  below €850)
  5. You are a student/doctoral student from a non-academic household (individuals whose parents or carers do not hold a degree from a university or university of applied sciences)

The following also applies to groups 1 and 2: if you will be facing additional costs of over €250 a month, you can alternatively submit an individual application up to two months before you go abroad (this can also be used for a preparatory trip).

If participants are unable to undertake a full-time traineeship due to a disability, chronic condition or childcare commitments, they will be able to obtain funding for a part-time traineeship by providing justification for their circumstances.

You will find more details in the information sheet on additional funding (PDF).


Recognition of traineeships

Recognition of achievements earned abroad is a very important part of Erasmus+. It is therefore governed by the Learning Agreement for Traineeships, which you are required to fill in together with the person responsible in your department in Bonn and at your host company and have signed before embarking on your traineeship abroad. You will also need to submit a Traineeship Certificate once your traineeship is complete.


Contact

Avatar Bredendiek

Anne Bredendiek

Erasmus Traineeship (Outgoing)

0.003

Poppelsdorfer Allee 53

53115 Bonn (Germany)

Office hours

Please book an appointment via eCampus

  • Monday
    10:00 am - 12:30 pm

  • Wednesday (by phone or Zoom)
    02:00 - 04:00 pm

  • and by arrangement

The University of Bonn participates in the EU’s Erasmus Programme on the basis of the Erasmus Charta for Higher Education.


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© EU

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The author bears sole responsibility for the contents of this publication; the Commission accepts no liability for any use made of the information that it contains.

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