Regardless of what was anticipated in 1957, when the European Union established in Article 45 the principles of freedom of labour, in 2012 only 6.5 million EU citizens have exercised their right and were working in another EU Member State. With the new Erasmus+ programme that aims to boost skills and employability over the next seven years, this situation should improve considerably.

The Erasmus+ programme received a 40% budget increase for a total of €14.7 billion to underline the EU’s commitment to invest in study and training opportunities in other EU Member States. The reason behind this substantial increase is two-fold. The earlier Erasmus programme proved that people who had the opportunity to study abroad were more inclined to be mobile later in life. Moreover, it turns out that a period abroad also makes people more culturally sensitive and aware that what may work in one country is not a standard recipe for success in others – an understanding much appreciated in working life.

The fact that nearly six million young people are unemployed in the EU while 40% of European employers report difficulties in finding skilled workers is rather alarming. The new Erasmus+ programme will not be a panacea, but it is definitely a step in the right direction. Providing EU citizens with an opportunity to meet other fellow EU citizens during a study exchange will support an openness that is essential for the European project to succeed. Each Erasmus student will be able to tell you a story about the challenges they encountered with regard to communication. In addition to the difficulties of speaking a different language, they will all relate to the cultural differences, in particular the diverse ways of interpreting something that one may always thought straightforward. Imagine how students communicate with academic staff: on a first name basis or by of academic title? Picture work with a diverse group of students: striving for consensus before starting on a research project or going with the idea that is offered most convincingly. The ability to work in teams, developing strong communication skills, cultivating cultural sensitivity, flexibility and diplomacy, just to name a few, are also developed during a study abroad period. And these are exactly the skills companies mention when asking what they look for in prospective employees. The possibility that Erasmus+ offers our young people – school children, students, young entrepreneurs and researchers – is a golden ticket to better-equipped European workers.

If Europe in 2020 wants to succeed in be(com)ing a strong economic power, respected for its competitiveness, its economic growth and its strong labour market, we need more mobility for EU citizens to reach these education and employment goals. We cannot waste Europe’s talent; instead we need to grow and sustain that talent, and supporting mobility for students and researchers is a model for European success.

Nannette Ripmeester
Expertise in Labour Mobility

This article is published under the title Mobility of students and researchers: Erasmus as a role model for EU mobility policies as part of the Harnessing European Labour Mobility (HELM) project by the Bertelsmann Stiftung.

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