Erasmus Traineeship

To be eligible for an Erasmus traineeship grant, you must:

• be registered as a fulltime-student at the University of Gothenburg at the time of applying.
• not simultaneously receive another EU-funded grant.
• have agreed on a traineeship with a company or organization.
• do a full-time traineeship for a duration between 2 months and 360 days on-site at one single organisation/company for a coherent period, or 5-30 days combined with a virtual component.  Please note that some organisations are not approved for an Erasmus traineeship.
• Intend to get your degree at the University of Gothenburg. Students taking one or a few courses without purpose of graduating are not eligible for the Erasmus traineeship grant.
• The traineeship must be in a country that takes part in the Erasmus programme. Note: Switzerland is not part of Erasmus on an equal footing with the Programme Countries, but will rather enjoy the same status as other third countries. Therefore it is not possible to finance an Erasmus traineeship within the programme at the moment.
• To receive the grant you need to be physically present on-site at the receving organisation or at least in the hosting country during the traineeship period.

An Erasmus traineeship carried out remotely from Sweden is not an approved activity for the grant, but if your traineeship period starts remotely from Sweden and transitions to a traineeship on-site abroad, you can receive a grant for the part that takes place on-site abroad, provided that the remaining period is at least 60 days.

Do I need to be a Swedish citizen to apply for an Erasmus traineeship grant?

A student no longer needs a particular citizenship or permanent residency status to take part in Erasmus exchange activities. All students at a Swedish university or university college are eligible as long as they meet the remaining grant requirements.

The grant is not intended to cover all of a student’s extra costs that arise in connection with the placement (such as travel and accommodation expenses), but should rather be considered a partial contribution. The value of the grant depends on the location and duration of the placement.

Long-term traineeship during the acadmic year 2025/2026

The grant amount is calculated based on the number of days abroad, but for simplicity the amounts below are shown per month (30 days).

• Group 1: €710/month (30 days)
  Programme countries with higher living costs:
  Denmark, Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Germany, Austria
• Group 2: €660/month (30 days)
  Programme countries with lower living costs:
  Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, the Czech Republic, Türkiye, Hungary

Switzerland and the United Kingdom are not currently part of the Erasmus+ Programme and are therefore not eligible destinations for an Erasmus traineeship grant.

Short Blended Traineeships during the academic year 2025/2026

Grant amounts for short blended mobility:

• Days 1–14: €79 per day
• Days 15–30: €56 per day

Travel grant and travel days

All students going on long-term and short blended traineeships receive a travel grant.
The amount is based on the one-way distance between the home university and the host organisation.
All participants also receive a grant for travel days, calculated at the same daily rate as study days.

Double funding

It is not permitted to receive more than one grant from the EU or from the Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) for the same mobility period.

Payment of the grant

If you have submitted a complete and correct application on time and been approved, the payment will be made around the start of your traineeship.
It is not possible to give an exact date for the transfer, as processing times vary between banks.

Holiday periods

You are entitled to keep your grant for the days when your host organisation is closed due to public holidays, for example during Christmas and New Year.

For which countries may a traineeship grant be approved?

The following countries are categorised as programme countries and can fully participate in the Erasmus :

• The 26 EU Member States (Not Sweden)
• EEA countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway
• Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey
• "Outermost regions": the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Azores, Mayotte, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Réunion, Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthelemy
• The Territories in the list, “Overseas countries and territories
   

Switzerland and the UK are not currently part of the Erasmus program and are therefore not approved countries for Erasmus traineeships.
Switzerland and some other countries have initiated their own Government scholarship that students can apply for. However, for traineeships in Switzerland, the student's application must go through a Swiss partner university who is willing to administer the students´application. Contact your department to find out if there is an agreement with such a partner university.

It is important to know that Government scholarships cannot be combined with funding from The Swedish Board of Student Finance (CSN) so the student must choose one of the forms of funding.
 

Which types of organisations are eligible to serve as traineeship hosts?

• Businesses, organisations and centres for research and education
• Foreign university/higher education institution affiliated with Erasmus
• Swedish public employers and international secretariats of foreign universities.
• Swedish diplomatic representations (for example embassies and consulates)

The offices of the political parties at the EU Parliament are not considered to belong to the EU Parliament and may therefore be approved as traineeship hosts.

Which organisations are not eligible?

• EU institutions and other EU bodies
• Organisations that administer EU programmes, for example national offices for Erasmus such as the Swedish Council for Higher Education (to avoid potential conflicts of interest and/or double funding).

However, EU institutions may be approved for students receiving a grant for a traineeship at an EU institution from the Swedish Council for Higher Education. (The website above is linked to information in Swedish. Please contact  the Swedish Council for Higher Education for information in English)

Can a traineeship be completed at a foreign university/higher education institution?

Traineeships at another higher education institution may be approved if the mobility clearly concerns work and not studies. The institution must be affiliated with the Erasmus Charter. 
The following rules apply:

• You must engage in work and not studies during the traineeship period.
• You must be ‘employed’ as an intern at the host institution and may not be enrolled as a student. (If the student is enrolled in courses at the host institution, the visit is considered a study period and not a traineeship.)

Can I complete an Erasmus traineeship in my home country?

A student who prior to enrolling at a Swedish higher education institution resided in another Erasmus country may complete a traineeship in that country. However, such traineeship are given the lowest priority in the assessment of applications.

Note that this provision only concerns which country the student moved from to study in Sweden and has nothing to do with the country in which the student has his/her ethnic roots or was born.

In which subject areas can I apply for an Erasmus traineeship?

There are no limitations. The Erasmus grants are not connected to certain subject areas. All students who meet the eligibility requirements can apply.

You can carry out an Erasmus traineeship lasting anywhere between five and 360 days:

• The traditional Erasmus traineeship lasts between 60 and 360 days with the same host organisation.
• Short blended mobility lasts between five and thirty days and combines a shorter physical traineeship with a virtual component that can take place before, during, or after the physical period.
  The virtual component must be full-time, have clear learning objectives, and be closely linked to the physical part of the traineeship. It must also be organised by the host organisation. The student and the host organisation can jointly agree on how the virtual component is arranged.

You can only receive an Erasmus grant for the physical mobility period abroad, not for the virtual part.

There are three different ways to carry out an Erasmus traineeship connected to the University of Gothenburg. The rules for credit transfer and recognition depend on the type of traineeship you undertake.

1. Traineeship as part of your studies (mandatory/embedded traineeship)

This type of traineeship is an obligatory part of your study programme, for example as part of a work placement (VFU) or another internship period.
The traineeship is credit-bearing and forms part of your regular programme.

2. Voluntary or independent traineeship

A voluntary traineeship is not linked to a specific course, but it must still have a clear academic connection to your studies at the University of Gothenburg and be relevant to the degree you intend to obtain.
The traineeship can, for example, be carried out between semesters, during the summer, or alongside other studies.

This type of traineeship is recognised through a statement in your Diploma Supplement. Students are responsible for including the necessary documentation when applying for their degree. These documents are provided if the scholarship application is approved.

3. Traineeship after graduation (recent graduate traineeship)

You can also do an Erasmus traineeship after completing your studies.
In this case, no credit transfer or recognition via the Diploma Supplement is required.

If you plan to do a traineeship as a recent graduate, you must apply for the Erasmus traineeship grant while you are still registered for a course in Ladok that is part of your planned degree or programme. The last date on which you are registered for such a course in Ladok is considered the end of your study period. 

Your traineeship must both start and end within 12 months of that date.

You can ask your Department about already established contacts with companies and organisations. Many companies and organisations are happy to receive interns, and many also advertise internship opportunities on their websites.

Is there any company or organisation where you would like to do your traineeship? Contact the company with your questions.

In the list below, you will find searchable portals and more, where you can find traineeship placements.

• ErasmusIntern
• Go Overseas
• Annonsportalen
• Föreningen för utvecklingsfrågor, FUF
• Globalplacement.com
• JobTeaser
• Tyska i praktiken
• Career services at School of Business, Economics and Law
• Praktik inom utrikesförvaltningen
• Absolute Internship

Traineeship within the EU institutions

For internships at EU institutions, you can apply for the "Praktik vid EU-institutioner" program through the Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR).

IAESTE

International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience, provides international internships for students mainly in technical subjects. Currently, only students within the Faculty of Science can travel through IAESTE.

More information

For specific questions about tips on established contacts with companies and organisations, or whether the traineeship can be credited or recognized, please contact the international coordinator or internship coordinator at your department.

The application consists of only one document: the Learning Agreement for Traineeships (LAT), which is an agreement between you, the University of Gothenburg and the host organisation.

You complete the LAT in consultation with your traineeship host. Among other things, it should specify the tasks you will carry out and the outcomes and experience expected from the traineeship period. The document must be signed by you and your contact person at the traineeship host. Your application must also be endorsed by a representative of your faculty or department, who confirms that the traineeship is relevant to and in line with your studies at the University of Gothenburg.

You can find the Learning Agreement for Traineeships under "For your application" below.

Send your application by email to erasmustrainee@gu.se.

Your application is considered submitted once you, your department and the traineeship host have completed and signed the Learning Agreement and you have sent it to the email address above. Only complete applications received by the deadline will be processed.

Grants are awarded on an ongoing basis to all approved applications, subject to the availability of funds.

If your application is approved, the next step is to complete and sign a Grant Agreement. The agreement includes, among other things, your bank account details. In order for your grant to be paid, you need to send your signed Grant Agreement to erasmustrainee@gu.se before you start your traineeship. You cannot apply for the grant once your traineeship has started.

It is important that you have good insurance coverage while being on an Erasmus traineeship abroad.

The University of Gothenburg has signed the so-called Student UT insurance with Kammarkollegiet for students studying or completing a traineeship abroad within the framework of an exchange programme or exchange agreement.

The insurance applies around the clock in your host country, from 14 days before until 14 days after your traineeship period. However, it does not apply if, for example, you travel to another country during your traineeship. 

Read more about the terms and conditions of Student OUT at the page Insurance

All outbound students within the Erasmus programme are offered to take an online language test before the traineeship period in the language mainly used at the receiving organisation/company.

The intention with the test is to give the students an idea of their language skills. The test is available in many of the languages spoken in the EU countries.

The test is voluntary and the same tool also offers  language courses. The language test and course a are free of charge for students.

Yes, but the total duration of all student mobility activities – including both studies and traineeship – may not exceed 360 days per cycle (first, second and third cycle).

Students who travel by train, bus, bicycle, or share a car with at least one other student are eligible to apply for a green travel grant. At least 50% of your journey must be completed using a sustainable mode of transport to qualify as a green trip. Means of transport such as boat, car (one person), motorcycles, or airplane are not considered green.

If travelling green extends your journey, you may receive up to three additional travel days in each direction. The green travel grant only applies to travel from Sweden to the traineeship country and back to Sweden.

Students who have special needs and/or have children (the child does not have to accompany the exchange) can receive extra support. If this support does not cover incurred costs, you can also apply for Erasmus inclusion support.

In cases where you as a student need educational support or special adaptations during your time abroad you have the opportunity to seek a special grant for additional costs that may arise. “Additional costs” refers to the extra costs that will affect the department or individual students and that are not financed in other ways, for example:

• transport
• teaching materials
• accommodation
• Assistant / companions
• medical follow-up, physiotherapy
• medical examination in the host country

Note that the grant only applies to students with permanent disabilities or illness.

To apply for this grant, please contact erasmustrainee@gu.se at the International Centre.

You can receive additional funding on top of the regular Erasmus grant if you currently have, or have previously had, refugee status under the Refugee Convention, or if you are under subsidiary protection according to national regulations.
This support also includes individuals who currently have or have previously had a residence permit as a person in need of protection under earlier legislation.
Other types of residence permits, or residence permits granted by another country, are not eligible.

To apply for this inclusion support, please contact erasmustrainee@gu.se. You will be asked to provide the first page of your residence permit decision from the Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket).

The protection of personal data varies significantly between countries. The University of Gothenburg (GU) is committed to safeguarding your personal integrity and applies the principle of data minimization. 

Within Europe/EEA, the General Data Protection Regulation, GDPR, applies. 

For traineeships at organizations in countries outside the EU/EEA, GU will not transfer personal data to the host organization. Instead, as a trainee, you are responsible for sending the necessary information to the host organization, which may include your personal data. You should be aware that the requirements for personal data protection in these countries do not always correspond to the standards within the EU/EEA. This may entail risks to your privacy, as the GDPR does not apply outside the EU/EEA. Such risks may include, for example, that you as a data subject are not entitled to information about further processing of your personal data, or that the recipient otherwise does not comply with GDPR. The level of risk depends on the host country’s own data protection legislation.

If you have questions regarding how your personal data will be processed by the host organization, you should address them to your contact person at that organization. You may also contact GU’s international officer at erasmustrainee@gu.se for questions regarding the traineeship placement process.

For general questions regarding data protection at the University of Gothenburg, you can contact GU’s Data Protection Officer at dataskyddsombud@gu.se.