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PRESS RELEASE ESU CALLS FOR A MORE STUDENT- FRIENDLY PROPOSAL OF ERASMUS MUNDUS 2.0
RELEASE DATE: MAY 15th, 2008 At the recent 54th Board Meeting of the European Students’ Union held at beginning of May in Slovakia, delegates of the national unions of students in Europe raised concerns about the European Commissions’ proposal for the continuation of the Erasmus Mundus programme. This proposal does not focus enough on student needs and we, the students of Europe, ask for European Parliamentarians to seriously consider amending their proposal.
STUDENT PERSPECTIVE Forcing tuition fees
In the proposal, the rules for participating in the program demand the establishment of a common tuition fee per consortium, independent of where the student starts, continues and finishes her or his education for each Erasmus Mundus education programme. In some countries this leads to situations were the tuition fees charged are higher than the legal maximum. In other countries it increases the pressure to introduce tuition fees and tuition fees have been introduced for foreign students. The situation is especially difficult for countries that have free education. A large part of the HEIs of the EU-countries collect tuition fees and countries that maintain a principle of free higher education are forced either to begin collecting tuition fees, or to accept a situation, in which they must be ready to pick up the tab for all EU-citizens on Erasmus Mundus education programmes. At the same time the programs force the HEIs in the countries with limitations to exceed the allowed level. The consortia is already creating problems. The money flows within the consortia are not transparent. Many programs demand a common tuition fee and use the consortia to escape national legislation regarding tuition fees that students have been fighting for. Mobility and quality for all
The number of grants that Erasmus Mundus offers is very limited. ESU believes that programmes that aim at the increase of attractiveness and quality of European higher education should be directed towards the vast majority of students and institutions rather than at institutions and students meeting the criteria of excellence. At the institutional level the creation of programmes directed at top-level institutions and/or students may lead to further segregation and ranking of higher education institutions. Balanced mobility
Concerns about the increase of ‘brain-drain’ have been raised in the programme initiative. It is very important to stress that the main principles for any kind of educational co-operation with third countries should be solidarity and reciprocity. The aims and actions of the programme can be predicted to lead to an increase of brain-drain. When it comes to brain-drain it is also worth mentioning the amount of grants in the programme. In some participating European countries the end result may be that the grants of third-country students are bigger than the salaries of their teachers. Added value
Programs of mobility and cooperation must have a clear added value, especially if they claim to enhance the quality of higher education. However, the problems with joint programs are manifold. In many countries there are problems with legislation leading to recognition problems. Research regarding joint programmes like the quality of these programs can be much improved. Lots of programs exist with both internal and external quality assurance. STUDENT AMENDMENTS Tuition fees
It is crucial that the proposal to continue the expansion of the Erasmus Mundus program does not pass in the EU with the inclusion of the demand for joint tuition fees regardless of the actual place of study. ESU wants the Erasmus Mundus program to be constructed in a way that makes it possible for all countries in the EU to participate in the program with respect for the national financing system and legislation of the participating countries. The proposal should be amended as following: In the Financial Provisions Action 1: Erasmus Mundus Joint Programmes including Scholarships A. Erasmus Mundus Masters Programmes, point 2 (p. 23): 1) Master courses: "For the purpose of the programme, Erasmus Mundus masters programmes:" bullet J (p. 24): "shall establish a joint tuition fee regardless of the actual place of study of the students within the masters programme." Change to : ”shall respect the right of the national states to decides the model of financing in education.” 2) Doctoral programs (p. 25 and p. 26) bullet J: "shall establish a joint tuition fee regardless of the actual place of study and research of the doctoral candidates within the doctoral programme" Change to: ”shall respect the right of the national states to decides the model of financing in education.” Research about brain-drain effect
The possible ‘brain-drain’ effect must be investigated. This can easily be done by conducting a survey in the alumni network about where they are working. Research must be conducted on the socio-economic and cultural background of the participants of the Erasmus Mundus program. ESU has spent the last quarter of a century fighting for student rights and quality education for all. We strongly hope that the European Parliament will amend their proposal in accordance with students’ basic rights to quality education across Europe.
For more information, please contact: Bea Uhart on +32 473 669 894, or
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