Quality in mobility : a key success factor in getting the best of mobility Patricia De Smet Principal Administrator Higher Education and Erasmus, European Commission Erasmus Placement: put it into practice Rome 20th November 2009

Agenda The increasing role of learning mobility New Youth & mobility initiative Green paper Erasmus – quality framework NAs 2008 YR – specific obstacles to placements What next?

3 The increasing role of learning mobility What do we mean and why is it important? What do we mean and why is it important? « Transnational mobility for the purpose of acquiring new skills » Strengthens employability and personal development Can prepare for mobility in working life Makes E&T systems more open, more European and more international Enhances Europe's competitiveness Helps combat xenophobia and fostering European citizenship.

New Youth and Mobility initiative LM has been given a huge boost recently. President Barroso announced in political guidelines for the next Commission a new initiative “Youth on the Move”. By 2020 “all young people in Europe must have the possibility to spend part of their educational pathway in other MS”

5 The Green Paper Why a Green Paper and what kind of mobility? The three phases of a mobility period: preparation, stay abroad, return – obstacles and good practice. New partnership for mobility. Conclusions and how to take part in the consultation.

Preparation phase Information & guidance Promotion and motivation Languages and culture Legal issues Portability of grants and loans Mobility to & from Europe (eg visa issue, ) Preparation of the period & quality assurance issues Reaching out Disadvantaged Groups

The stay abroad & follow-up Mentoring and integration Recognition and validation

8 Examples of questions raised How can the availability of info and guidance be improved? How can young people be better informed about the benefits of LM? How can linguistic obstacles best be addressed? What are the main legal obstacles to LM? What are the main obstacles to the portability of grants and loans?

Quality : a key success factor in getting the best of mobility Quality : one of the main barriers to mobility Quality: one of the success factors to increase the benefit of mobility Benefits of mobilty tends to increase with the duration and the quality

Erasmus – quality framework for placements EUC (extended) Inter-institutional agreement revised to cover placements Training agreement revised to include the partnership with a HEI abroad Mobility quality commitment

Erasmus placements quality framework VS specific obstacles ( NAs 2008 YR ) Training agreement Mobility commitment Learning outcomes participants Suitable host organisation, duration, content/tasks/responsabiliti es Cultural, linguistictic, practical preparation Logistical support Monitoring & mentoring Validation -recognition Evaluation Insufficient information Finding suitable internships with qualified supervision Problems linked to insurance Linguistic preparation, lack of opportunities to follow language courses Accomodation at a reasonable price Social networks more difficult to build

Good practices NA thematic meetings & QIMV Green paper : Euronaver, fast visa track for AIESEC trainess, Good practice:Ap n’go,.. Forum University-Business: Shell Step,.. ERA centralised projects: EUE-Net ( European University –Enterprise Network)..

What next (1) ? Reflect on the improvement of the framework, new models Better use of the revised inter-institutional agreement Identify & disseminate good practices related to the different phases and steps of the mobility Are some of the good practices transferable?

What next (2)? Tools to monitor the quality Methodology/tools to assess the benefits New cooperations to find suitable internships in respect of the ERA framework Centralised projects: Enterprise-University cooperation, structural networks, accompanying measures - Priorities for the 2011 calls - Content monitoring

Thank you for your attention

16 Why a Green Paper now? 2007: 20 th anniversary of ERASMUS programme June 2008: High Level Expert Forum on Mobility Nov. 2008: Council requests LM for all young people April 2009: Bologna Conference (“20% by 2020”)‏ Political Consensus on Objective Open debate with stakeholders

17 What kind of mobility? What kind of mobility? M of young people in all sectors (schools, HE, VET, volunteers, youth exchanges...)‏; Organised M, linked to learning outcomes; Mainly within Europe, but also beyond; Not only like-to-like, but also cross-sector M; Primarily physical M, but virtual M can play important role; Concentrates on young people (16-35 years).‏

18 Where do we stand? Where do we stand? Numerous European programmes: Lifelong Learning Programme, Marie Curie, Culture, Youth in Action, Europe for citizens, Erasmus for young entrepreneurs... European tools: ECTS, ECVET, Europass, EQF, Diploma Supplement, Youth Pass, EURAXESS... BUT: only 310,000 of y olds benefit from EU programmes (= 0.3%)‏ Clearly much more could be done to boost LM

19 New partnership for LM: Mobilising Actors and Resources How can all actors be better mobilised? How can businesses be motivated to be more strongly involved in LM? How can ICTs be used to enrich physical mobility? What are the main obstacles to a stronger engagement of teachers and trainers in promoting LM? Are targets useful in defining a mobility strategy, and if so, at what level (European, national...)?

20 What next (1)? What next (1)? New partnership for mobility: The Commission calls upon all stakeholders, from governments to individuals, to support its efforts to make LM the rule rather than the exception. Many issues imply action at national, regional and institutional level, plus the active involvement of civil society, business and other stakeholders.

What next (2)? So far, almost replies received We need your support to disseminate the GP to all relevant stakeholders and other interested parties etc. and encourage participation in the consultation. Consultation open until 15 December 2009 The Commission will carefully evaluate the feedback to the consultation and prepare a proposal for the follow-up. Political follow-up to be ready in second half of 2010 under the new Commission: «Youth on the move ».