Erasmus+ is the European Union programme that supports education, training, youth and sport in Europe. The programme started in 2014 and runs to the end of 2020. There are lots of opportunities to set up projects, spend time abroad and gain new skills. Erasmus+ doesn’t just have opportunities for students. Merging seven prior programmes, it has opportunities for a wide variety of individuals and organisations. The EU has budgeted €14.7 billion on Erasmus+ over the seven years of the programme.
The aim of Erasmus+ is to contribute to the Europe 2020 strategy for growth, jobs, social equity and inclusion, as well as the aims of ET2020, the EU’s strategic framework for education and training.
Erasmus+ also aims to promote the sustainable development of its partners in the field of higher education, and contribute to achieving the objectives of the EU Youth Strategy.
Specific issues tackled by the programme include:
The Erasmus+ programme is managed by the European Commission (the EU’s executive body), the Education, Audiovisual, and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), a series of National Agencies in Programme countries, and a series of National Offices in some Partner countries.
Decentralised activities are directly managed by the National Agencies which are located in each programme country. The majority of these projects will be implemented on a national, regional or local level and focus on an exchange between countries.
Erasmus+ is jointly managed in Ireland by Léargas and the Higher Education Authority.
Their role involves:
For further information on Erasmus+ in Ireland check out the dedicated website http://erasmusplus.ie/.
