Movetia, the national agency for exchange and mobility, has been responsible for awarding funding for study visits and traineeships as part of the Swiss Programme for Erasmus+ since 2017. It completed its approval procedure for European mobility projects as planned in May and is set to grant CHF 26,9 million to support study visits and traineeships abroad, approximately 2 million more than in 2017.

School education shows the biggest increase
Efforts to promote and demonstrate the added value of exchange and mobility programmes for the Swiss education system aimed at the main target group, i.e. teachers, school managements, exchange officers and Universities of Teacher Education, have been successful. The number of approved mobility stays has tripled compared to the previous year, bringing the number to 263. Mobility projects encourage knowledge transfer in Europe and help Swiss schools develop international links. 

Strong growth in VET
In the field of vocational education and training, the number of applications increased by over 35% compared with 2017, to 1,621 mobility stays. The efforts made in this area have also paid off – international networks have been established and coordination centres set up in various cantons. Movetia intends to step up collaboration with professional associations and businesses in order to continue to strengthen mobility in the dual-track system of vocational and professional education and training.

Higher education: number of applications stable
In the higher education sector, a total of 8,999 mobility stays were approved, which equates to a 1% decrease compared with the 2017 call. Numbers decreased due to the more difficult conditions for Swiss universities since Switzerland was excluded from Erasmus+, the EU Programme for Education. The mobility projects that fall under the Swiss Programme are organised outside of Erasmus+ and regulated on the basis of bilateral agreements.

Adult education: untapped potential
The figures for adult education remain comparatively low, even though the sums awarded have also doubled. Movetia plans to intensify its promotion activities in this area and win over new partners in the field of adult education as Strategic Partnerships are an important means of developing exchange and mobility.

Overview of the 2018 call

• Approved, funded: all the figures mentioned below refer to applications and approvals. The actual number of mobility stays that are taken up will be evident at the latest in three years’ time when the projects end. Experience shows that the actual figures for the funded mobility projects are around 5-10% below the approved sums.
• Incoming and outgoing mobility: within the scope of the Swiss Programme for Erasmus+, Switzerland mainly funds mobility projects from Switzerland to Europe (outgoing mobility). In order to ensure the necessary reciprocity for a non-associated country, Switzerland also supports mobility projects from Europe to Switzerland (incoming mobility).