The Erasmus Plan as internationalisation strategy

4 hours

2 hours of theory

2 hours of workshop + self-assessment

Digital devices or offline support (paper and pen) to carry out the SWOT analysis and provide inputs for a draft version of the Erasmus Plan.

To produce a SWOT analysis, you can use the model offered by Canva https://www.canva.com/graphs/templates/swot-analysis/

This Unit provides practical information on how to plan and manage an internationalisation strategy within Erasmus.

Learning outcomes

• Design a successful Erasmus Plan;
• Set realistic indicators;
• Plan the activities according to the Erasmus quality standards.

Unit 2.3.3: The Erasmus Plan as internationalisation strategy

HOW TO WRITE A SUCCESSFUL ERASMUS PLAN

When writing an Erasmus Plan there are some tips to be followed:

• Know your starting point in terms of skills, resources, strengths and weaknesses as well as opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis) – Go to “EXERCISES and ACTIVITIES” section, Activity 1;
• Establish an ambitious but realistic vision for the future – Go to “EXERCISES and ACTIVITIES” section, Activity 2;
• Engage all actors involved in a co-creation process of the Plan: learners, staff and stakeholders, in particular the business sector;
• Think to a flexible strategy that can be adapted to changes.

Keep in mind that Erasmus Plans will be evaluated on the basis of the:

1. Relevance

The Applicant’s profile (or members of the Consortium) should be relevant with the objectives of the Erasmus accreditation.

1. Objectives

The objectives of the Erasmus Plan must address the needs of the applicant organisation, its staff and learners in a clear and concrete way; the objectives must be realistic and accompanied by tracking measures allowing the monitoring of the Plan’s progresses.

1. Quality of project activities

The number of participants in mobility activities must be proportional to the applicant size and experience and appropriate to the Plan’s objectives; the profiles of participants must be relevant to the field of the accreditation; participants with fewer opportunities should always be included.

1. Quality of project management

To guarantee a high-quality management, the applicant organisation must:

• • Guarantee the respect and improvement of the Erasmus quality standards;
  • Allocate an appropriate amount of budget to each activity;
  • Adopt risk prevention measures in case of changes in the staff or management in the applicant organisation;
  • Include in the plan concrete steps to guarantee the sustainability of the activities and their integration in the regular work of the applicant organisation.

At planning phase, applicant organisations that are creating or adjusting their international team for the management of Erasmus+ mobilities should always include a representative for the project management. Indeed, at least one representative within the beneficiary organisations must provide regular information about planned and completed mobility activities in the tools provided by the European Commission.

For further details on the award criteria, see the Programme Guide, 2023 (pp. 82-83).

SUPPORT TO THE MOBILITY’S PARTICIPANTS

When implementing an international work-based learning initiative under Erasmus+ it is important to guarantee a high-quality support to the mobility’s participants in terms of:

• Practical and logistic arrangements (travel, accommodation, visa applications, social security, etc.), considering that even if these tasks are delegated, the beneficiary organisation will remain ultimately responsible for verifying their provision and quality;
• Preparation about practical, professional and cultural aspects of the stay in the host country (better if done in collaboration with the host organisation);
• Linguistic support, since the beneficiary organisation must ensure appropriate language training, adapted to the personal and occupational needs of the participants;

The Erasmus+ Programme offers specific tools that could be used for this purpose, such as the EU Academy Online Language Support ;

• Definition of learning outcomes, which must be agreed between the sending and hosting organisations (the form of the agreement will depend on the type of the activity);
• Monitoring and mentoring, identifying a mentor who will be following the participants during the stay abroad and who will help them achieve the desired learning outcomes.

Before the mobility takes place, it is extremely important to define contact persons in both organisations and communication protocols in case of exceptional circumstances;

• Evaluation of learning outcomes for the participants, which will be analysed to improve future activities. Regarding this particular purpose, there are several indicators that could be used, like:
  • Better knowledge about the topics involved, better insight in practical applications of the subject, better insight in the European context of the subject (KNOWLEDGE);
  • Learners take the initiative to know more about the subject and show more motivation (ATTITUDE).
  • Better oral performance in foreign language (SKILLS).

There are different tools for evaluation that can be suitable for a work-based learning experience.

• • Individual and group interviews with participants of the mobility or other stakeholders;
  • An observation guide based on specific factors such as changes in attitudes, gaining or improvement of particular skills etc.;
  • Skills assessment test to be done before and after the mobility;
  • Surveys;
  • Group discussion about the mobility experience (brainstorming, world café, storytelling etc.).

Moreover, beneficiary organisations must ensure that participants - at the end of the mobility - complete the standard report provided by the European Commission to collect feedbacks.

• Recognition of learning outcomes in the sending organisation that for this purpose could use available European and national instruments.

True or False

When developing an Erasmus Plan it is not necessary to include participants with fewer opportunities (e.g., geographical, economic, social etc.)

• True
• False

Multiple Choice

What are the awarded criteria for the Erasmus Plans?

• Relevance, objectives, quality of project activities, quality of project management
• Motivation, relevance, quality of activities and management
• Relevance, quality of project activities, quality of project management

Activity 1

Arrange a small workshop with the colleagues to discuss where you are right now using a SWOT analysis and where you would like to be in 5 or 10 years with the internationalisation of your WBL initiatives.

Activity 2

In collaboration with your colleagues, set a detailed action plan for at least the first year, deciding roles, dividing tasks, budgeting and setting indicators for the strategic goals

After presenting the Unit’s content and some best practices in KA1 (see “Learning Material” section), it is recommended to organise a small workshop where participants carry out the following activities:

1. Picture the current situation of their organisation (with the support of a SWOT ANALYSIS) and brainstorm about where participants would like to be in 5 or 10 years with their internationalisation strategy;
2. Set a detailed action plan for at least one year, deciding roles, dividing tasks, budgeting and setting indicators for the strategic goals.

Case Study

Examine these good practices to have an example of successful Erasmus Plan and WBL initiatives under Erasmus KA1

Good practice in KA1 | Go! Talent (VET institute)

Good practice in KA1 | ŠKODA AUTO (enterprise)

Evaluation in Erasmus Plans

https://www.erasmuspluscourses.com/blog/erasmus-ka1-application-how-to-write-good-evaluation-plan

Erasmus Quality Standards

Standards to ensure good mobility experience and learning outcomes for all participants, and to make sure that all organisations receiving the programme’s funding are contributing to its objectives

Léargas, Principles of Writing an Erasmus Plan, (consulted on 21/02/2023)

https://blog.leargas.ie/blog/principles-of-writing-an-erasmus-plan