The withdrawal of Great Britain from the European Union also entails changes that affect universities – for example, those involved in the EU’s Erasmus+ programme. How will Palacký University Olomouc, which currently has nineteen partner schools in the United Kingdom, deal with this situation?
According to the Czech National Agency for International Education and Research – a state-funded organisation of the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports – the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union means it has also left the Erasmus+ programme. The new EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement does not cover participation in the EU’s Erasmus+ programme.
Palacký University has nineteen partner universities in the United Kingdom at present, and according to Yvona Vyhnánková from the International Relations Office at the UP Rector’s Office, the United Kingdom has been and still is a popular destination for study and work stays for students as well as short teaching stays and training for staff. Under standard circumstances, twenty to twenty-five students travelled to the UK every year for study purposes. At the same time, UP received about ten British students. Ten to fifteen students also went to the UK each year for internships.
“Following the withdrawal of Great Britain from the European Union, British universities can continue the activities of Erasmus projects that have already been approved. However, they cannot enter into new projects. Both Palacký University and most of our British partners took advantage of this opportunity and extended the ongoing projects from the 2020 Call for Proposals to their maximum length. This will enable us to carry out student and staff exchanges until the summer of 2023,” said Vyhnánková.
According to her, the regime of entry and residence between the two countries still allows for study stays and short employee exchanges. These include stays of up to six months, for which a visa is not required. “Longer stays would be problematic. A long-term visa to Great Britain is relatively expensive, costing about ten thousand crowns. However, I want to emphasise that most study stays are only for one semester, or a trimester at maximum, so the limit is usually adequate,” she added.
According to information published on the Czech National Agency for International Education and Research website, higher education institutions will have the opportunity to establish cooperation with their British counterparts even after the completion of the projects from the 2020 Call for Proposals, and will thus be able to continue their student and staff exchanges. Cooperation will still be possible, either in the form of bilateral agreements or in accordance with the Erasmus+ rules concerning the support of cooperation with third countries. A new Turing programme is also to be launched in the United Kingdom, which should enable British students to study and work abroad. Thus, student and staff exchanges with Great Britain will not end with Brexit.
"The biggest complication at the moment, I think, lies in the Covid-19 pandemic and related restrictions. That involves the current British lockdown as well as restrictions on in-person teaching at universities in both the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic. We all hope that the academic year 2021/2022 will return things to normal, at least to a certain extent, and we can continue our cooperation,” added Vyhnánková.
The United Kingdom has long been one of the most sought-after destinations for Czech students and staff within the Erasmus+ programme. In the last funding period (2014–2020), thanks to Erasmus, more than ten thousand Czechs travelled to the UK in all sectors of education.
The Czech National Agency for International Education and Research is a state-funded organisation under the auspices of the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. Its main objective is to administer programmes focussed on international education and the promotion of Czech education abroad. More information HERE.
The Erasmus+ programme supports cooperation and mobility in the fields of Education, Training, Youth, and Sport. The programme is open to individuals (students, teachers, volunteers) as well as organisations such as schools, youth associations, and NGOs.