(not only) about Erasmus

So far, we have completed the first round of the selection process for the Erasmus+ semester trips for the 2022/23 academic year. Even though we anticipated that students would be eager to spend a part of their studies abroad without restrictions, the level of interest exceeded our expectations. For comparison, here are the numbers from the first round of the 2019 call for applications, that is the selection process before the pandemic: 134 students applied in the first round, and 113 were selected.

This year in the first round we had 265 students apply and 191 were selected! So, we're at twice the number.

Our faculty still holds the first place in the number of students sent abroad: our students represent approximately one tenth of the total number of MUNI students, but in this round of the Erasmus call for applications we nominated a full fifth of the total number of MUNI nominees. (191 were from FSS, out of 936 from MU as a whole).

In March, a selection procedure for stays at FSS partner universities outside Erasmus also took place. Here too there was great interest from our students and already in the first round, we filled all of the vacancies at our partner universities in the USA, Israel, South Korea, Switzerland, and Azerbaijan.

In addition, there are still other selection procedures awaiting our students at partner universities of all of Masaryk University, others within the framework of the non-European Erasmus+ ICM program, and, last but not least, exchange stays at universities belonging to the prestigious ISEP network. And also for Erasmus studies, there will be another two rounds of selection procedures. We still have vacancies to offer. In addition, the call for work placements both within Erasmus and outside the program runs all year round.

These excellent results were also thanks to the applications of students from our study programs taught in English. A total of 19 students from these programs were selected in the selection procedures already held.

This year, summer school programs with the physical participation of students have also started again. In the past two years, these short-term mobilities were offered almost exclusively online. Here too, we expect a great deal of interest from our students. Especially as we can support more of them with scholarships, thanks to our membership in the European Digital UniverCity EDUC.

And it is not only students who are looking forward to trips abroad. The selection process for short-term, teaching and non-teaching, Erasmus staff mobility is currently underway. At the time of writing, the number of applicants and selected candidates was unknown, but here too we expect there to be an increase compared to the pre-pandemic period.

Ing. Dagmar Hábová