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General Information
• What is the Erasmus+ Program? Erasmus+ is a European Union program to encourage higher education institutions to cooperate with each other. The aim of the program is to improve the quality of higher education in Europe and strengthen its European dimension. This goal can be summarized as making good practices from different countries in Europe available to the whole of Europe.
• What does the Erasmus+ Program offer? The Erasmus Program provides students with the opportunity to experience abroad, to study in a multicultural environment, to do internships, to get to know different cultures, to introduce Turkish culture, to make new friends, to be a student in a different school and to see a different system.
• How can we benefit from the Student Exchange Program under Erasmus+? The Erasmus program is open to higher education institutions in 28 European Union member countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, which are not members of the European Union but are members of the European Economic Area, and Serbia, North Macedonia and Türkiye, which are candidates for membership of the European Union.
• How long can I stay abroad under the Erasmus+ Program? Erasmus+ study mobility may last a minimum of 2 months and a maximum of 12 months. The duration of the exchange is determined by the Erasmus Bilateral Agreement of the related department/faculty. Mobility activities lasting less than 2 months are not within the scope of Erasmus and cannot be funded.
Erasmus+ internship mobility may last at least 2 months (60 calendar days) and at most 12 months. Mobility activities lasting less than 2 months (60 calendar days) are not covered by Erasmus+ and cannot be funded.
• Who can benefit from Erasmus+ mobility? Undergraduate, master's and doctoral students studying full-time at a higher education institution can benefit from Erasmus+ study and internship mobility.
• Can we benefit from the Erasmus program twice? A student who has benefited from any mobility in a previous academic year can benefit from the Erasmus Program (study or internship) again. However, -10 points will be deducted from his/her total score for each mobility he/she participated in. The application and selection criteria are the same for each mobility with or without grant. It is possible to make Erasmus Mobility for a total of 12 months at one academic level.
Application
What should we do to apply for this program?
In order to participate in the program, it is necessary to follow the new semester application announcements on the web page of our university's International Exchange Programs Office (IEPO), the posters that will be pasted in certain places within our university and the bulletin boards in the departments. Application requirements and all instructions are included in the announcements. Announcement announcements are sent to the e-mail addresses of our students and staff with gtu extension.
• Can non-Turkish citizens benefit from the program? Citizens of the countries included in the Program and other countries can also benefit from the Program provided that they are students of our University. It is possible for these people to go to the higher education institution of the country of citizenship with Erasmus Mobility, but -10 points will be deducted from the student's score determined in the application.
• I am a first year bachelor's degree student. Can I benefit from Erasmus? You can apply during your freshman year and go during your sophomore (second) year.
• I am a student with disabilities, are the conditions the same for me? Students with disabilities have higher priority both in the evaluation phase and in receiving grants. In case of submission of documents and reports, the privileges with which our disabled students will apply for mobility are included in our announcements.
• I have failed courses, can I benefit from Erasmus+ Study Mobility? Yes. For students who have achieved the minimum academic average, having failed courses does not prevent them from being Erasmus students.
• I am a double major student at GTU. Can I go to an exchange program under my double major program? Yes, students can go to an exchange program with any of their majors. Students cannot go to the exchange program within “minor” programs.
Students will be able to have the credits of the courses they will take from the host university recognized only towards the major they have applied through.
• Can we not participate in the Erasmus Program if our GPA is below 2.20? The standards regarding the grade point average are determined by the National Agency and the University Executive Board and the required grade point average is stated in the application announcements. The application limit for undergraduate students is 2.20 GPA and 2.50 GPA for graduate students.
• Will our GPA affect the exam result? The effect of your GPA on the GPA of the Erasmus application process is determined by the National Agency. Since 2013, it has been applied as 50%.
• Is there an interview? Whether or not there is an interview to qualify for Erasmus+ depends on the criteria determined by the National Agency. There is no interview in the current practice. The overall score calculation is obtained by calculating the GPA and language score together.
• Can I go to any university in Europe as an Erasmus student? No. The department must have a Bilateral Agreement. You can find out whether the relevant department has Erasmus Agreements, with which country/university they are with and which special conditions they are subject to in the contracted universities table on our website.
• How important is foreign language in Study Mobility? Students who will go abroad as Erasmus students must speak a certain level of foreign language. This may not necessarily be the language of the host country. The English language is largely a unifying language within European countries. However, it is also possible to be required to know the language of instruction at the host institution.
The student must speak English or the language of the host country well enough to fulfill the requirements of Erasmus+ study mobility. Before starting the activity, it is necessary to know which language or languages are accepted in the host institution.
• If we have a language score such as YDS - E-YDS - YÖKDİL - E-YÖKDİL -TOEFL-IBT, do we still need to take the Erasmus Foreign Language Exam? If you have a valid language score, you are not required to take the Erasmus Foreign Language Exam if you submit the document among the application documents between the application dates.
IELTS exam is not accepted.
Host University
• What is a Bilateral Agreement? It is an agreement signed by two universities within the scope of the Erasmus+ program, committing to the exchange of students and/or teaching staff.
• How are bilateral agreements made? In order to carry out the mobility activity, your department must have an Erasmus Bilateral Agreement with the relevant department in a higher education institution with Erasmus University Charter in a European Union member country. Bilateral agreements are signed between the departments of the universities by the authorized persons of the universities with the content that a certain number of students will be exchange students for a certain total period of time.
However, no agreement can be for a specific student. Each agreement is a ground for exchange on behalf of the institution and is open to all students.
• My Department/Faculty does not have a bilateral agreement. What can I do? If your Department/Faculty does not have an Erasmus Bilateral Agreement, please contact your Erasmus Department/Faculty coordinator before the application deadline.
• My Department/Faculty does not have a Bilateral Agreement, but the university has a bilateral agreement. Can I benefit from Erasmus? No, you cannot. According to the procedure, you can only go as an Erasmus student to universities with which your department has an agreement.
• Can I benefit from the Erasmus program (KA131) personally, without the mediation of my university? No. The Erasmus program is an institutional activity. You can only benefit from the Erasmus KA131 program through the higher education institution where you are a student or staff member.
• How can we find out the courses and academic calendar at the university we will attend? The academic calendars of the preferred or placed universities can be learned by searching the websites of those universities. There are links to this information on the bilateral agreements page.
• Will I have the same technical and social facilities as the students of the university I am going to? Yes. During the semester at the host university, you can benefit from all facilities and social rights as a student of that university. Facilities (photocopying, public transportation card, etc.) that are subject to a fee for other students are valid provided that the same fee is paid.
• Will someone meet me upon arrival in the country I am going to? Being welcomed at airports, train stations or bus terminals in the destination country is entirely up to the host university. If there is a buddy program in place, you may benefit from it. Otherwise, the adaptation process will have to be carried out by the student's own means.
Accommodation
• How do we find accommodation in universities to study abroad?
It is not the responsibility of the center or universities to arrange accommodation for the students or university staff. Students who are selected as Erasmus students by our university also apply to the host institution. During this application, the host institution usually sends the student an “accommodation form” or provides information about accommodation opportunities (deadlines for dormitories, required documents, dormitory/accommodation fees, etc.). The International Office of the host institution will provide the student with information and advice on where to stay and accommodation options at the university and in the city. The information provided on accommodation should be followed and if no suitable option is offered, the student should search for his/her own accommodation options.
Course Selection
• What is a Learning Agreement? The Learning Agreement (LA -OLA) is a document that shows the courses to be taken at the destination university together with their credits. This document is made available online by the Commission at learning-agreement.eu. For a document to be an agreement, it must be signed by the institutions and individuals who are parties to it. In this case, the OLA must be signed by three parties: one at the student, one at the university where the student will study abroad, and one at our university. If the necessary signatures are missing, this document does not qualify as an agreement.
• Is there a certain number of courses I will take at my institution? It is compulsory to take 30 ECTS credits for 1 semester and 60 ECTS credits for 1 year.
• Can I change the courses in my Learning Agreement? Changes to be made to the learning agreement for various reasons must be made within 5 weeks at the latest following the start of the academic semester at the higher education institution the student attends and must be approved by the authorities of the student's home higher education institution and the higher education institution the student attends.
• Will the courses we will take at the host universities be in English? Whether the courses at the universities where our students will study abroad will be in English or in that country's own language is completely related to the university. For this reason, it is recommended that our students make a conscious choice during the Erasmus application period and research the places they want to go in advance.
• Will I have to re-study the semester I did not study at GTU when I go back? No. The credits and grades obtained in the host country will be accepted by GTU. However, if you are missing credits due to the semester difference, you must complete the remaining credits.
• What happens if I fail a course in the host country? You must retake the equivalent course in your home country.
• Am I supposed to register for and select courses at GTU before going abroad? The student does not register for courses for the relevant semester at GTU, therefore no course selection is made.
• How will my courses be recognized? While preparing the Learning Agreement (OLA), the student submits the course substitution petition to the department showing which courses taken at the opposite university correspond to which courses at GTU. Since this petition is related to the selection of courses, it must be submitted to the department with the signature of the advisor after the help and approval of the Department Erasmus coordinator. The petition, which reaches the relevant Faculty or Institute with the approval of the department, is discussed in the board of directors and the courses to be substituted are secured. In case the student makes a course change while abroad, IEPO is informed first. The same process is initiated and repeated by the Office.
• What should I do if I have not received my acceptance letter? Each university has a different system. Some universities may send acceptance letters earlier than the normal process, while others may send them later. If there is a situation that develops outside the normal process, you can send an e-mail to the other university or call the other university personally by the student or the department coordinator instructor to ask for the acceptance letter to be sent.
• How are passport procedures handled? Students under 25 years of age must first apply for a regular (bordo) passport through the Civil Registry Office in order to avoid paying the tuition fee. Students who inform the counter officers that they have a student passport application at the time of appointment are exempt from the tuition fee.
There is no special option for students among passport types when applying online. It is sufficient to choose the regular passport during the passport application. At this point, it should be noted that only students over the age of 18 and under the age of 25 will be exempt from the fee. For example, a 23-year-old student may not be required to pay the fees, but a 17-year-old student must pay the required fees. In addition, those who have frozen their active student status cannot benefit from this right.
For students over 25 years of age, a passport fee exemption letter will be prepared and delivered to the student upon request. Where the letter will be sent must be found out from the relevant civil registry office.
Erasmus students are given a 1-year fee-free student passport (regular passport).
During visa procedures in many countries, it is checked whether the validity of your passport is valid for another 6 months from the end date of mobility. Please pay attention to this rule during your visa and passport procedures.
Green Passport
Students who have or are entitled to a green passport do not need to obtain a passport fee exemption letter. Green passport is obtained without fees.
Students with green passports are also required to obtain a visa for their mobility, otherwise the student will be held responsible.
Visa
• Why do we pay a visa fee at the consulate even though we have a letter from the university? Obtaining a visa facilitation letter from the university through Turnaportal is to ensure that the visa is obtained easily. The fact that some Consulates or Embassies require a visa fee is entirely at the discretion of those institutions. These institutions are independent within the countries in which they are located and such practices are entirely related to the states to which they are affiliated.
• Visa Procedures After the Letter of Acceptance is received from the university abroad, visa procedures can be started. The student is responsible for obtaining a visa. During the application process, it is very important to make sure that all the documents required by the consulate/embassy of the host country are completed.
• Should I register for my courses here if I do not have a visa? Even within the Erasmus Program, there is no 100% guarantee of obtaining a visa. If a visa is not obtained, it is obligatory to register for courses and continue the semester.
Insurance
• Why is a health policy/insurance required? The health policy is a mandatory document required from the students participating in Erasmus Study Mobility.
• Insurance Procedures Before choosing an insurance policy, it is absolutely necessary to learn the insurance coverage required by the destination country in the visa application.
Some countries may require insurance from an insurance company belonging to their own country in order to issue a visa or some universities to send an acceptance certificate.
It will be useful to find out whether the university or country to be visited has such a practice.
• For students whose parents have SGK: Currently, the following practice is in place in some EU member states. Up-to-date information on which countries are implementing this practice can be obtained from the SGK.
Undergraduate students under the age of 25 (this does not include postgraduate students), provided that one of their parents is a member of the Social Security Institution (SSI), can obtain insurance coverage for emergency treatment while they are there, but not for an ongoing illness, by obtaining documents from the Provincial Directorate of Social Insurance (overseas services unit) to which the parent is affiliated. Students are required to submit a letter from our office to the Provincial Directorate stating that they will be going abroad as an Erasmus student. Information on the subject can be obtained from the Department of Overseas Services of the General Directorate of SGK.
Grant
• Will the Erasmus grant be enough for my stay?
The Erasmus grant is a kind of SUPPORT for additional costs incurred by the student while abroad during the Erasmus study period. It does not aim to cover all costs that may arise during the study period and is not sufficient for this purpose. The student must be financially supported by his/her own resources during the study period.
• How will we receive our grants? Grants are paid according to the dates written on the invitation letters from the universities where our students are eligible to study abroad. These dates vary from country to country and university to university and are the basis for the first payment, i.e. the 80% upfront payment. The final payment is based on the Certificate of Attendance and passport entry and exit dates that students receive upon their return after completing their study period, which may increase or decrease the 20% payment.
No monthly payment is made.
• When are the grants paid? The grants are paid to the relevant student's account as soon as possible after the grants are transferred to the Erasmus account of our university by the National Agency and after our students have completed their documents in full and as requested. The grant of the student who has not signed a grant agreement will not be transferred to his/her account.
• When can I receive the rest of my grant (20%)? The payment of the second installment is made at the end of the exchange period, after the student submits the Final Report, Transcript and Certificate of Attendance, and the total grant is recalculated according to the start and end dates specified in the Certificate of Attendance. There may be an increase or decrease in the 20% payment according to these dates.
• Is there a situation where the grant will be refunded in case of failing all the courses? Students who are found to have failed to attend their courses, take their exams and/or fulfill their responsibilities as a student during their stay abroad and who are documented to have failed to fulfill their responsibilities as a student will not be paid 20% of the total grant calculated for their activity period. In addition, these students may be asked for a refund of the first installment of 80%.
• How many payments will be made? If a grant has been awarded, students will receive two payments during the Erasmus period, the first in advance with a maximum of 80% and the second upon return with 20%.
• Why do the grant amounts differ for students going to the same university? If there is a difference in the grants of students going to the same university, this is due to the difference in the dates on the invitation letter.
• Can I benefit from Erasmus study mobility without a grant? Yes, even if no money is received from the Erasmus fund, it is possible to go to an educational institution with which there is a bilateral agreement as a “Grant-Free Erasmus” exchange student, provided that the student selection criteria of the relevant academic year are met, the application is made and entered into the success list. Non-grant students are also subjected to general evaluation together with other applications and go through the same process as grant Erasmus students. The difference of a non-grant Erasmus student is that the student is not included in the budget calculations and is not paid.
• What is a mobility agreement? It is an agreement that must be signed by the student before departure. Our office prepares the agreement. It is a document in which all rights and responsibilities are specified. Without signing this agreement, the student's mobility is considered invalid.
It is signed regardless of internship and study students.
All students, grant and non-grant, are required to sign the agreement.
• Why do we make two copies of the mobility agreement? The reason why the mobility agreement is made in two copies is that, as with the OLA, this document must be in the hands of each of the signatories for it to be an agreement. Once both copies of the mobility agreement are signed, the student can take one copy.
• How are the dates on the mobility agreement determined? The date on the mobility agreement is determined according to the date on the invitation letter/letter of acceptance and payment is made accordingly.
• Apart from the Erasmus grant, is there an additional allowance for accommodation, travel and visa costs? The Erasmus grant consists of the monthly grant amount determined according to the countries and the travel grant calculated according to the mileage. In addition, additional grants can be received if the travel is made and documented as announced within the scope of green travel. There is no other allowance in the Erasmus Program.
• If I become an Erasmus student, will my scholarships (including tuition loans and student loans) be cut off? No, being an Erasmus student does not interrupt any scholarship. This is because the financial support from Erasmus is not actually a scholarship. Erasmus is not a scholarship program. It is sufficient for the student to appear as an Erasmus Student in the ÖBS system and the student is responsible for the necessary actions to be taken to ensure that their scholarship is not interrupted.
• Why do I have to open a Euro account? The reason for opening a Euro account is that the money is transferred in Euros from the Directorate for European Union Education and Youth Programs to the universities in Türkiye and the money is available in Euros in the university budgets.
Semester Extension
• I have been selected as an Erasmus student for one academic semester. Can I extend my Erasmus mobility period? Yes. Within the framework of an Erasmus Bilateral Agreement covering 1 academic semester, the student may want to benefit from Erasmus in the 2nd semester after being an Erasmus student with a grant for the 1st semester. In this case, the approval of both the department and the Department/Institution coordinator at the university abroad is required. The student can extend the Erasmus program without a grant, provided that he/she fulfills all the obligations of the Erasmus program.
• What should a student who goes abroad for a single semester for the fall semester do when he/she extends his/her study period for the spring semester? If he/she gets the approval of the Department Coordinator, he/she must redo the OLA and adjustment (course counting) procedures. In addition, there must be an acceptance letter from the opposite university stating that they have received an extension. These procedures must be completed before the end of the Erasmus Fall semester. A new OLA, new acceptance letter, extended insurance for new dates, visa and grant agreement must be submitted to IEPO for the extended semester.
Document Preparation
• Can I get help to prepare the learning agreement? The information needed to prepare the learning agreement is provided in the meetings held after the selection process. The online meetings are recorded and sent to the students who request it. The prepared learning agreement can be sent to the IEPO e-mail address with a request for a formal check before it is submitted for signature.
• Where can we find the codes that need to be written in the learning agreement? The codes that need to be written in the learning agreement can be found in the footnotes in the learning agreement and the links directed in the footnotes.
• What is GTU Erasmus ID Code? TR KOCAELI01
Other Questions
• What do I need to do on my return? For the documents to be submitted upon return, please visit the Outgoing Student Mobility for Learning section on the IEPO web page. After these documents are submitted in full, the remaining grants of the students are deposited and the procedures for the end of the exchange program are carried out.
• How are master's or doctoral students' thesis studies/specialized field courses recognized? The thesis topic of the master's or doctoral student who will take a specialization course at the partner university must be determined at GTU and the Directorate of Student Affairs must be notified. Students cannot take a specialization course without officially determining their thesis topic.
• What kind of a procedure will I face if I return before the completion of the planned activity period at the university I am attending? In the event that students return early from the planned mobility activity period due to force majeure (unforeseeable circumstances), the student is requested to return the overpaid grant, leaving the amount of the grant to the student for the period of the student's stay abroad. In case the student fails to complete the activity period without justification, the entire grant will be taken back.
• How many times can I benefit from the Erasmus+ program? You can benefit from the Erasmus+ program as a student for up to 12 months at each level of study (undergraduate-graduate). You can benefit more than once, provided that it does not exceed 12 months (for example, an Erasmus undergraduate student who is in Germany for 6 months can take part in a 6-month study mobility or internship mobility after returning if he/she is entitled again.
• I benefited from Erasmus+ Mobility for Learning Program, can I also benefit from Erasmus+ Internship Program?
Yes, it could be. Two mobility types can be applied for in the same application period. It should be noted that two mobility types cannot be done at the same time. One mobility type cannot start before the other one ends. In addition, a -10 point deduction will be implemented in a mobility type according to the student's preference during the application.
• What should the internship acceptance letter look like? The internship topic, scope, internship dates and the contribution of the internship to the student must be specified. In addition, it must be printed on the letterheaded paper of the institution, signed and sealed, and the title of the authorized signatory must be indicated.Care should be taken to ensure that the letter clearly states who, where, when and how the internship will take place. The dates of the acceptance letter should cover a minimum of 60 days and meet the requirements of the relevant Consulate in visa-related procedures.
• Can I have my Erasmus internship counted towards a compulsory internship? Yes, it could be. However, before your internship mobility, you need to discuss the related notifications and procedures with your Department Internship Commission.
• Can I get general information about Erasmus internship mobility? Our web page on internship mobility and finding an internship place can be accessed by clicking on the title of Outgoing Student Traineeship Mobility.
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