Undergraduate students [What Europe does for you]

With European elections coming up in May 2019, you probably want to know how the European Union impacts your daily life, before you think about voting. In the latest in a series of posts on what Europe does for you, your family, your business and your wellbeing, we look at what Europe does for undergraduate students.

If you are studying your first degree or are considering in enrolling for one, you may think about going abroad for a part of those studies. In that case, your university’s international office will have information about the possibility of an Erasmus exchange. As an Erasmus student, you do not have to pay registration or tuition fees to your host university, your studies count for your degree, and you receive an EU grant.

You should also know that as an EU citizen, you are entitled to study in any other EU country under the same conditions as nationals. The Your Europe website has information on admissions, fees, financial help, or working while studying to help you plan for your degree abroad.

However, the recognition of academic diplomas in different EU countries is not yet automatic. By supporting the development of the European higher education area, the EU is promoting a process that gradually makes this simpler. In the meantime, centres exist in all EU countries that assess the comparability of diplomas. Once you obtain your degree you can also ask your university for a Diploma Supplement to ease recognition.

One of the EU’s targets is for over 40 % of young people to complete higher education by 2020. To this end, the EU brings together policy-makers from the Member States to exchange experiences on updating higher education in terms of attractiveness, accessibility and relevance to contemporary realities. The EU also ensures that graduates receive a quality job offer or an opportunity to further their studies by means of its Youth Guarantee programme.

Further information

• Erasmus+, http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/
• Your Europe: Education & Youth: University, https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/education/university/index_en.htm
• The Bologna Process and the European Higher Education Area, http://ec.europa.eu/education/policy/higher-education/bologna-process_en
• Enic-naric.net, http://www.enic-naric.net/
• Diploma Supplement, http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/documents/european-skills-passport/diploma-supplement
• Attainment : raising graduate numbers, http://ec.europa.eu/education/policy/higher-education/attainment_en
• Working Group on the Modernisation of Higher Education, https://ec.europa.eu/education/policy/strategic-framework/expert-groups/modernisation-higher-education_en
• Youth Guarantee, http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1079