Application manual

There are primarily four different ways to go on an traineeship with an Erasmus grant:

1. Within the framework of a traineeship course at Uppsala University

You conduct a traineeship at a company, university or an organisation within Europe. Uppsala University will be responsible for the assessment and grading of the course. Your credits will be registered as internship/traineeship, not as a regular study course.

2. Within the framework of a degree project/thesis

You are registered for a degree project/thesis in Ladok that will be assessed in Uppsala (and your credits will be counted towards your thesis/dissertation, not a regular university course), but will conduct your data collection at a university, company or organisation in Europe. Your supervisor at Uppsala University must approve the placement/data collection. During a traineeship, you are not allowed to register for courses at the host university.

3. Outside your regular study programme

You conduct a traineeship outside of your regular study programme, but before graduation from Uppsala University. You cannot receive credits for the traineeship, however you may apply to have the traineeship registered as a note in your Diploma Supplement when you graduate from Uppsala University. A member of your department must be able to confirm the traineeship’s academic relevance.

4. Traineeship after graduation

It is possible to conduct an Erasmus traineeship after graduation, however you must apply for the traineeship grant during your final semester at Uppsala University whilst you are still a student. You cannot receive credits for the traineeship. The entire traineeship must be completed within 12 months of the date on which your final course at Uppsala University is registered as completed. If you are going to participate in the traineeship after graduation, a member of your department must be able to confirm the traineeship’s academic relevance.

You are responsible for finding your own traineeship placement, either independently or with support from your department before you can apply for the Erasmus grant for traineeships.

Timeframe

Note that it takes about one month to process the Erasmus traineeship grant application if you are a EU citizen. If you are not, you might need a visa or a residence permit, which will most likely prolong the process. Therefore,we recommend you to find a placement well in advance and match your start date with a suitable application round in order to have the best chance of obtaining the Erasmus traineeship grant.

Tips for findning a placement

Applying for a traineeship can be similar to applying for jobs. As a student of Uppsala University, you are offered career advice and guidance, for example individual guidance and feedback on your CV and cover letter as well as other career-activities, via UU Careers.

You can contact the companies or organisations you are interested in on your own. Your department might also be able to help you as they often have extensive contacts via research, networks and exchange agreements. Major companies and organisations often advertise “Internships/Traineeships/Student Projects” on their websites and there are several search databases available. You may use resources such as GoinGlobal, erasmusintern.org, Erasmus Internships & Placements and Go Overseas to find a traineeship.

Organisations not eligible for Erasmus traineeships

Some organisations are not eligible for Erasmus traineeships, such as:

• EU institutions and other EU bodies. However, party secretariats for the EU parliament are not considered a part of the European Parliament, and are therefore eligible hosts. See a full list here.
• Organisations that manage EU programmes, for example national Erasmus+ agencies such as the Finish National Agency for Education (in order to avoid potential conflicts of interest and/or double funding).
• Higher Education Institutions primarily funded by the EU, e.g., European University Institute (Italy) and College of Europe (Belgium and Poland).

Once you have found a traineeship, it is time to create a Learning Agreement for Traineeship. A Learning Agreement for Traineeship is a contract between the trainee, the host organisation, and Uppsala University. It contains information about the traineeship, its duration, number of working hours per week and what you as a trainee are expected to do and learn. A Learning Agreement for Traineeship must be completed and signed by you, your contact person at Uppsala University and your contact person at your host organisation.

You will find the template document for drafting a Learning Agreement in the link list at the bottom of the startpage for Erasmus traineeships within the EU.

Traineeships within the framework of a traineeship/internship course or degree project:

For this option, fill in box one on page three of the Learning Agreement. Your contact person from your department will then sign as the responsible person in the sending institution on page five.

Traineeship outside of your regular study programme or after graduation:

For this option, fill in box two or three on page three. Someone from your department will then sign off to confirm that your traineeship is relevant to your studies. This person can for example be a programme coordinator, the department’s international coordinator or thesis supervisor. Once you have submitted your application and it has been approved, the Unit for International Mobility will sign off as the responsible person in the sending institution.

There are at least five application rounds for the Erasmus traineeship grant each year. Applications are not accepted for traineeships that have already started, so remember to submit your application on time. It takes around one month to process an application.

Applications are submitted electronically via the system MoveON. The application form is published at the start of each application round.

The application consists of the following parts:

1. An application form in MoveON
2. An Academic Purpose Statement (text field in the MoveON application form)
3. Learning Agreement
4. Official transcript of records
5. If relevant, a certificate of buddy/mentorship programme (optional)

1. Application form in MoveON

The application form in MoveON consists of:

• Personal information and your contact details: Ensure that you provide an email address that will be valid for at least 3 months after the planned end date.
• Emergency contact such as close relative/friend: You are responsible for having informed this person that they will be contacted in the event of an emergency if we cannot reach you.
  
• Your educational background: Here you provide information about your current education, such as education level and institution
• Information about the traineeship and its duration: Here, you write, among other things, the so-called Academic Purpose Statement (APS) in a free-text box. You also specify whether you will be taking a language course in the host country before the start of the traineeship. Read more about the APS below.
• Grant Information: Here, you write whether you have received an Erasmus grant for studies and/or for traineeships before and at which educational level (this also applies to any Erasmus grants you have received from another HEI/university). You also indicate whether you are interested in inclusion support and/or an additional grant for sustainable travel.
• Bank details: This is where you state your bank account number (and clearing number if relevant), the bank’s name, country, IBAN, BIC/SWIFT and the name of the account holder. Please note that we can only pay the grant to a bank account for which you are the account holder. Be very careful when you state your bank details, please note that any mistakes will delay the grant payment.
  
• Uploading documents: This is where you upload the Learning Agreement, official transcript of records and any certificate of a buddy/mentorship programme.
  
• Consent: This is where you give your consent to our processing of your personal data.
  

2. Academic Purpose Statement (APS)

The Unit for International Mobility works actively to support students in improving their employability, by ensuring they benefit from their period abroad, and are able to identify their skills and verbalise them. Therefore, when you apply for an Erasmus traineeship grant, you have to write an Academic Purpose Statement (APS). In your APS you are expected to explain how the traineeship will help you reach your academic and/or professional goals. The application for an Erasmus traineeship should indicate how the placement relates to your studies and/or your future career.

Your APS should be maximum 400 words and is a text field in the online application via MoveON. Your APS should be written in English. Exception: You can write your APS in Swedish if it is the work language used where you will conduct your traineeship. It is a good idea to prepare your APS in a separate document.

3. Learning Agreement

You upload a Learning Agreement signed by all parties directly in MoveON. However, if your traineeship is outside of your regular study programme or takes place after graduation, the Unit for International Mobility will sign as the responsible person at the sending institution (on page five) once your application has been received and approved.

4. Official transcript of records

For students at bachelor level, it is mandatory to attach a transcript of records for all university credits you have, even from other universities and HEIs besides Uppsala University. This is to verify that you have completed university studies of at least 60 ECTS credits at the time of application. Master's or PhD students do not need to attach a transcript of records.

5. Buddy/Mentorship certificate (if relevant)

If you have been involved in any buddy/mentor/welcome activities at Uppsala University, you can include a certificate to confirm this.

Usually, it has not been necessary to employ any form of selection since most applications that meet the eligibility criteria are typically granted a grant. However, if Uppsala University finds itself in a situation where not all eligible applicants can be awarded a grant, the selection principles below will be applied.

An application can be awarded up to 8.2 points as follows. If multiple students have the same number of points, interviews will be conducted with these students

The priority order for the traineeship 1–4 points

• 4 points - Students undertaking credit-bearing traineeships that will be entirely credited and included in their degree. For full-time traineeships, 1 week should correspond to approximately 1.5 credits.
• 3 points - Students undertaking credit-bearing traineeships that will be partially credited and included in their degree. For full-time internships, 1 week should correspond to approximately 1.5 credits.
• 2 points - Students undertaking non-credit-bearing traineeships before their degree completion.
• 1 point - Students undertaking non-credit-bearing traineeships after their degree completion.

Academic Purpose Statement 1–4 points

• 4 points - Exceptionally strong academic and professional motivation.
• 3 points - Strong academic and professional motivation.
• 2 points - Satisfactory academic and professional motivation.
• 1 point - Weak academic and professional motivation.

Other

• 0.1 points - Student studying a underrepresented subject (in the application round).
• 0.1 points - Student who has been involved in mentorship or welcome activities.
• -0.1 points - Student who has participated in an exchange with an Erasmus grant for studies through Uppsala University.