International students going on the Erasmus project in Europe face financial uncertainty and discrimination on the top of the travelling restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak, recent survey shows.
The data collected by Erasmus Student Network (ESN) addresses the struggles faced by exchange students who were affected by the outbreak.
Over 21,000 students participated to the survey taken between 19 and 30 March.
Respondents were students who either were studying in Europe during the spring of 2020, or who were supposed to be on an exchange but had their studies disrupted.
Almost two thirds of the student’s mobility periods continued despite the pandemic. While a quarter of them were cancelled, sees the report.
Nearly two thirds of students do not yet know what will happen with their grants, with some still in communication with their universities and national authorities.
A little over 13 per cent of students replied that they will be able to keep the grant for the period they were abroad, and this financial support will be ended on their return date.
Another 11 per cent said they will be able to keep the full amount, while seven per cent replied that they will lose all their grants for studies, the data shows.
It also shows as much as 24 per cent of Italian students and 19 per cent of Asian students experienced racism and discrimination, with over 20 per cent overall expressing feelings of isolation and social exclusion.
Oana Dumitrescu, representing the European Commission’s Directorate General for Education and Culture (DG EAC), addressed the problem on a webinar hosted by Erasmus Student Network (ESN) and European Students’ Union (ESU) in March.
She said: “DG EAC is working closely with National Agencies (NA) who are responsible for the management of Erasmus mobilities.”
It has also been recommended to Higher Education Institutions (HEI) and NAs the use of the “force majeure” clause to address any situation of students on the ground, to prevent “as much as possible” the negative impact on the students themselves.
“Force Majeure” refers to any changes to Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps activities that require an amendment to project contracts, which is sometimes because of a situation beyond their control.
The Erasmusplus UK states that the coronavirus outbreak is deemed to be a “force majeure”.
However, any changes to an Erasmus+ or European Solidarity Corps contract will need to be approved by the UK National Agency.
Asked if students can resume their studies at the host institutions later, Oana said it is possible that students continue their studies in the host institutions later, but it will need to be agreed upon between the students, the host and the home institution.
She also said where the clause of “force majeure” applicable, it is possible for HEI to cover “extraordinary” expenses such as travel, insurance or rent.
However, this will be negotiated between HEIs and NAs to evaluate these requests.
Oana added: “It is too early to make assumptions. If the full grant is not recognised, it is for the sake of the real cost being covered by the HEIs instead.”
One of the most common concerns is whether students need to apply for the program again next semester if they have already been nominated to go for mobility at some point soon in the application phase, but the mobility has been canceled due to this pandemic.
In response to this, Oana said DG EAC has advised HEI provide a plan B mobility option to current students who could not participate in their Erasmus+ project due to COVID-19 situation, and there should be “no selection implemented” for this plan B mobility.
Claudia Peritore, representative of Erasmus+ National Agency of Italy, added: “It’s also a matter of trust and goodwill between HEIs (…) institutions will need to discuss with their partners.”
She also suggested that the extension on activities offered by the Commission can be a possible solution to problems occurring in the crisis and said it is crucial that selection procedures must be transparent and equal to all students.
We are working closely to write about how students at Nottingham Trent University will be affected by this.
See our previous feature piece about an NTU student talking about his experience on the Erasmus+ project.
By Na Qing
Feature photo credit: Pixabay