About the programme

Erasmus+ is the largest European educational programme that deals with the financing of mobility and cooperation projects in the field of education, training, youth and sports. It was created in 2014, and in 2021 it entered a new seven-year implementation period that will last until 2027. 

The projected budget for this seven-year period of the new Erasmus+ programme is larger than ever and amounts to 26 billion euros

General goal and priorities of the Erasmus+ programme 2021-2027

The Erasmus+ programme seeks to enable the participation of even more participants and a wider range of organizations in the period 2021-2027. In this regard, the new programme emphasizes inclusiveness, green initiatives and digitalization as key and most important priorities that supports through financial mechanisms, then strengthening civic values, dialogue of cultures, tolerance and understanding of social, cultural and historical heritage. 

The general goal of the Program is to support the educational, professional and personal development of people in the field of education, training, youth and sports through lifelong learning. 

Spending time in another country with the aim of learning, training and work should become the standard, as well as knowledge of two foreign languages in addition to the mother tongue. 

In this way, the Programme significantly contributes to sustainable growth, better jobs and social cohesion, encourages innovation and bridges the gap in knowledge, skills and competences in Europe. 

Who are the members of the programme?

These are primarily European countries, but also all other countries in the world in a certain capacity. All programme members are divided into EU Member States and third countries associated to the Programme and third countries not associated to the Programme. EU Member States and third countries associated to the Programme (EU members and six other countries: North Macedonia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Turkey and Serbia) can participate in all parts of the programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme (all other countries divided by regions) can participate only in some parts of the programme. 

Serbia has been a full member of the Erasmus+ programme since 2019 and has the status of a third country associated to the Programme and this status will continue in the new Call. This means that institutions and organizations from Serbia could continue to apply for all types of projects same as countries members of the European Union. As soon as the new programme is adopted at the level of the European Union, steps will be formally taken for the full participation of the Republic of Serbia in this programme. Until the completion of all procedures initiated by the European Commission, institutions and organizations from the Republic of Serbia can apply for projects as if Serbia is a full member of the programme, ie. programme country, the only thing is that Serbia’s participation in the Programme Guide itself is managed under the so-called conditional clause. 

Who can participate in the programme? 

Institutions and organizations directly or indirectly involved in education can participate in the Erasmus+ programme, as well as any public or private institution / organization that is active, can and wants to contribute to the implementation of the projects in areas of education and training. 
 
Specifically, these are: pre-school institutions, primary schools, secondary vocational schools and gymnasiums, universities and colleges, schools for adult education, organizations that provide various forms of vocational education and training, civil society organizations / citizens’ associations dealing with training for young people, local governments, small and medium enterprises, professional associations etc. 
 
It is important to know that projects can be submitted only by legal entities, ie. institutions and organizations, but the individuals employed at these institutions and organizations, as well as their pupils, students and trainees are those who benefit from them. 

How and when you can submit your projects? 

Depending on who do you submit your projects under the Erasmus+ programme, they are divided into centralized and decentralized

The centralized ones are submitted to the Executive Agency for Education and Culture (EACEA) in Brussels, while the decentralized ones are submitted to the Foundation Tempus. 

The Call for proposals and the deadlines for submitting projects are regularly updated for each year and each type of project on the Calendar of calls page on the Erasmus+ website. 

At the beginning of each Call for proposals, the European Commission publishes a Programme Guide that explains in detail who can apply and how. The latest version of this document can be found here

Programme structure 

All the projects in the Erasmus+ programme, regardless of whether they belong to the field of education, youth or sports, are divided into three areas, the so-called key activities (KA): KA1, KA2 and KA3. 

KA1 projects focus on international exchanges of employees, students and young people for training or teaching in another institution, obtaining scholarships, internships, joint master programmes, acquiring new skills, etc. 
 
Mobility projects are open to students and teaching staff in higher education, teachers and pupils in general education, teachers and pupils in vocational education and training, educators in adult education and young people and youth workers in the field of youth. A novelty in this programme is the opportunity for students in general education, as well as students in adult education to participate in mobility projects for the purpose of learning and acquiring new skills. 

Projects under key activity 2 relate to the cooperation of institutions in the field of education, training, youth and sports in the programme countries, with the aim of cooperation, exchange of experiences and good practices, as well as innovation and excellence. These include modernization of curricula, innovation of teaching methodology, improvement of teaching materials, training for adults, cooperation with companies through which student internships are realized… 

The projects in this key activity provide opportunities for the implementation of activities aimed at encouraging the development of innovative policies, dialogue and policy implementation and knowledge exchange in the fields of education, training and youth. 

Jean Monnet activities are a special part of the programme, and with the new Erasmus+ programme 2021-2027, Jean Monnet activities are also available to institutions in the field of general and vocational education and training and not only to institutions in the field of higher education which was the case in the previous period. 
 
Projects in the field of education have formal character, while the youth part refers to non-formal learning. 
 
In the field of sports, the emphasis is on international projects dealing with the inclusion of the general population in sports and physical activities, participation in physical activities, as a means to maintain and improve health, promoting integrity and values  in sports, education in sports and through sports, volunteerism in sports, mobility of coaches, managers, volunteers and staff of non-profit sports organizations, as well as the fight against negative phenomena and challenges in sports, such as violence, racism, intolerance and discrimination. 

Who can organizations from Serbia turn to for support and help in applying for projects?

The Foundation Tempus is in charge of implementing the Erasmus+ programme and its role is, among other things, to support all organizations applying for projects under the programme

The Foundation Tempus organizes numerous activities throughout the process – from the publication of Calls for proposals to the expiration of all deadlines. 

After the announcement of the call, the Foundation Tempus organizes Erasmus+ Info Days, where it introduces all those interested to the new call. After that, the Foundation organizes free workshops for writing Erasmus+ projects. 

Project advisors are always available for individual consultations with stakeholder, either by e-mail or in a direct meeting. Once the project is approved and the funds transferred, the Foundation Tempus monitors the implementation of the project until the final report, providing support to the organization throughout the project. 

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