Going abroad – information for staff

The so-called staff training weeks, which are international meetings for exchanging ideas and experiences, are the most popular option for university staff who would like to spend time abroad for training purposes. These are set programmes offered by various universities abroad for a specific duration (usually three or five days), which bring together participants from various countries and universities in one location to present the host university’s own structures or to discuss a topic relevant to universities in general.

In addition, anyone interested in taking part can have their details added to a mailing list at International Affairs (S-International) and will then receive information via e-mail whenever new opportunities arise. Staff must apply individually to take part in a specific Staff Week and applications must be made in consultation with International Affairs. There are usually specific forms and deadlines for the guest institutions. Any registration or participation fees must be paid by the applicant (or may be covered by third-party funding). Via the Erasmus+ programme, participants can apply for lump sums to cover the cost of accommodation and travel, which are usually sufficient to cover these expenses in full.

A wide range of educational institutions or other organisations abroad offer specialist courses, seminars or workshops that can be especially beneficial for your own work. Participation and course fees must be paid by participants (or from third-party funds, if applicable). In this case, the Erasmus+ programme also provides grants for accommodation and travel costs that considerably ease the financial burden of taking part in such courses. Such courses usually last between two and five days.

Library staff should be aware that an increasing number of international universities, especially those in Europe, now offer a staff week that caters specifically to their requirements. Funding for participation in these events is available via the Erasmus+ programme. Please refer to the section ‘Staff Weeks’ for more information. BI-International (a standing committee of Bibliothek und Information Deutschland (BID) (the Federal Association of German Library and Information Associations) offers another opportunity for librarians to spend time abroad. Grants are provided from federal and state funds for various international activities. Other options for funding are listed on the library staff exchange website. Library staff should first familiarise themselves with the internal selection process of the University Library and contact Ms. Stephanie Kolbe before submitting their application to the host university or International Affairs (S-International).

Sometimes, there is no ‘ready-made’ event abroad that is specifically tailored to your requirements. Some initiative is required on your part in this case to put together a project yourself, for example, by finding potential hosts abroad, defining the date and duration (usually between two and five days) and deciding on potential topics for discussion. Perhaps there’s a university in Austria that’s currently using the same software you have just recently purchased or a botanic garden in Spain that works with special species of plants that you are interested in? Or you would like to find out how your colleagues in another examinations office work and compare work practices? The Erasmus+ programme provides funding for such individual stays, placements and job shadowing at institutions abroad by providing grants towards travel and accommodation costs. The opportunities in Erasmus+ partner countries tend to be rather restricted, as job shadowing is only possible at selected universities. A wider range of host institutions is available in Erasmus+ programme countries. Information about country groups is available below.

Language courses abroad are also a popular type of training. You must find the right course by doing your own research, but International Affairs and the Language Centre at FAU will be able to help you. In Erasmus+ programme countries, you can take part in language courses at private language schools, at universities or at other educational institutions. In Erasmus+ partner countries, however, you can only take these courses at selected universities. You usually have to pay the course fees yourself, but there is some funding available via the Erasmus+ programme. This funding covers a one-off grant for travel costs, depending on the distance, and a lump sum towards accommodation costs (daily allowance), depending on the host country. Funding can be provided for a maximum of twelve days per course and applicant.

Since 2007, funding has been provided by the Erasmus+ programme for stays abroad not only for students, but also for university staff via the STT line (Staff Mobility for Training). International Affairs is responsible for STT at FAU and the names of the relevant contacts are displayed at the top right of this page.

Detailed information for FAU staff can be found below. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) also has helpful general advice on its website.

Our presentation called ‘Mobil in Europa’ (in German) contains information to help you choose the type of staff mobility programme most suited to you.

This scheme is not an exchange programme as such. You should, however, generally be willing to receive incoming members of staff. Please also note that you should have the relevant language skills to make the most of your stay abroad. The Erasmus+ mobility grant does not include any kind of insurance. Participants must therefore ensure that they take out all required insurance for the duration of their stay themselves. Every business trip must be discussed with your manager in good time and applications must be made via the official channels.

Funding is available for all types of mobility listed under the heading ‘Type of mobility’, if no other funding has already been provided.

All staff members of all nationalities who are employed at FAU are eligible to take part:

• University staff and trainees from all areas of the University (e.g. general and technical administration, the University Library, subject departments, finance, international offices, public relations, students’ representatives, the Botanical Garden, laboratories, etc.);
• Academic staff, if the purpose of the stay abroad is not research or teaching, but rather training (professors and lecturers with a contractual relationship with FAU, lecturers on paid teaching assignments, teaching staff with contracts for works and services, emeritus professors and retired lecturers, research associates, doctoral candidates with employment contracts with FAU, etc.).

Erasmus+ has differentiated between programme and partner countries since 2015.

The programme countries (funding line KA103) are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia (FYROM), Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom (currently until 2022).

There is a Swiss European Exchange Programme with Switzerland. Stays abroad can be organised at all institutions/universities/organisations in these countries.

Partner countries (funding line KA107) vary according to the applications made by FAU and approved by the EU and are currently only possible at selected universities. The following countries and universities currently take part:

• Egypt (Cairo University, Al-Azhar University and German University Cairo, for DIRS members only)
• Ethiopia (Aksum University, for staff from the Geography department only)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina (Univerzitet Sarajevska škola za nauku i tehnologiju, University of Sarajevo, University of Eastern Sarajevo)
• Chile (UFSM Valdivia, others to follow)
• Costa Rica (Universidad de Costa Rica)
• Dominican Republic (Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra)
• Haiti (Université d’État de Haiti)
• Iran (University of Tehran)
• Israel (Hebrew University Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, Technion Haifa, Haifa University, Beit Berl College in Kfar Saba, Bar-Ilan University, Ben Gurion University, Weizmann Institute, Al-Qasemi College)
• Lebanon (University of Balamand, others to follow)
• Morocco (Université Ibn Zohr Agadir, Université Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah Fès)
• Japan (NITECH)
• Jordanien (Yarmouk University Irbid, University of Jordan Amman)
• Malawi (currently in preparation, for employees of the Geography department only)
• Palestine (Bethlehem University and Birzeit University)
• Russian Federation (Vladimir University, St. Petersburg State Polytecnic University)
• South Africa (University Kwa-Zulu Natal, Durban, Durban University of Technology, University of Limpopo)
• Tanzania (currently in preparation, for employees of the Geography department only)
• Tunisia (Université de Sousse, Université de la Manouba)
• Ukraine (Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv National University of Economics, Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University)

Accommodation costs

The funding available for Erasmus+ mobility for training purposes is based on the varying cost of living in the host countries. Standard lump sums for accommodation costs are paid for funding by German universities.

Programme countries (funding line KA103)

Host country	Average costs/day
Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Lichtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom	180 euros
Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain	160 euros
Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey	140 euros

In the KA103 funding line, grants are paid as a daily allowance, whereby only the days on which training takes place are used for the calculation and not the days on which applicants travel or days on which no training takes place. The latter are not funded.

Partner countries (KA107 funding line)

Grants are paid as a daily allowance for accommodation costs, based on the number of working days and a maximum of 2 days’ travel if staff travel on days that are not working days. The daily allowance is 180 euros, irrespective of the host country.

Lump sum for travel costs

In addition to the daily allowances, funding lines KA103 and KA107 also provide lump sums for travel costs, depending on the actual distance between the home and host destinations (one way), which are all determined using a distance calculator.

Distance Amount (one-off payment)

• Less than 100km: 20 euros
• 100 to 499 km: 180 euros
• 500 to 1999 km: 275 euros
• 2000 to 2999 km: 360 euros
• 3000 to 3999 km: 530 euros
• 4000 to 7999 km: 820 euros
• over 8000 km: 1500 euros

The minimum duration of training in KA103 is two days. Weekends or days just spent travelling are not included. The maximum possible funding duration at FAU is currently twelve days, although the stay abroad can be longer (without funding).

The minimum duration of training for KA107 is five days, although in this case, a weekend is included between the working days. One or two days’ travel can also be included, and are eligible for additional funding if this is not the case. Due to the limited amount of funds, the maximum possible funding available is for 14 days (including travel time). However, the contracts signed with almost all partner universities are for one week only.

Since staff mobility is possible during the entire year and at different institutions, the application process and deadlines also vary greatly from institution to institution. While it is generally up to the individual to submit an application to an external institution, please ensure you contact International Affairs before you apply directly. In some cases, the home university has to nominate or pre-select applicants (for Erasmus+ partner countries, for example) and, in all cases, International Affairs must also check if the planned stay abroad is eligible for funding. The host university is solely responsible for approving or rejecting submitted applications.

There are currently no set application deadlines for Erasmus+ funding for STT mobility at FAU. Applications for funding can be submitted at any time. It is advisable to contact International Affairs at an early stage in order to inquire about the current status of the budget and to have your name put on the list.

After approval has been granted by the host university, the application for funding is submitted by International Affairs via the ‘Mobility Online’ platform. Candidates are informed via e-mail of all the documents they need to upload, such as CV, approval from the host institution, and the programme.

Erasmus coordinator Bianca Köndgen selects the successful candidates after checking the submitted applications. We reserve the right to appoint a selection committee if a large number of applications are submitted or if there are restrictions at the host institution. General EU guidelines apply and the planned staff mobility must be relevant to the applicant’s work. This means that the activity must encourage the applicant’s professional development, be clearly suitable for training purposes and generate added value for the employer. Applicants can participate more than once. Applications can only be made for countries that are not the main country of residence of the applicant. Approvals and rejections are sent by e-mail. Flights and accommodation should only be booked after receiving approval.

Various documents relating to the funding must be submitted before, during and after participation (mobility agreement, grant agreement, final report, certificate of attendance, EU survey, and so on). Please ensure these are submitted within the relevant deadlines.

All other information about documents and deadlines and funding payments is available in our information sheets:

Inclusion and equal opportunities are key objectives of the Erasmus+ programme. FAU strives to facilitate autonomous mobility and independence for people with disabilities. University staff with a certified degree of disability (Grad der Behinderung) of 50 or more can therefore apply for special funding from the Erasmus national agency.

International Affairs aims to publish the reports written by previous participants as soon as possible via the new ‘Mobility Online’ platform. Until then, we have a few older reports available on the site that still provide a good overview of what to expect and could inspire others to take part in the scheme.

International Affairs is part of the President’s Staff. Within International Affairs, Bianca Köndgen is the coordinator responsible for initial consultation and Barbara Blum is the coordinator responsible for planned mobility measures.