What are European Youth Exchanges?
They are international short-term meetings (usually one week long), that allow that groups of youngsters from different countries to get together and discuss about themes of mutual interest, in order to get to know new cultures. These initiatives are supported by the “Erasmus+” European Programme.
Objectives
These projects involve active participation of youngsters, being designed to allow them to discover and become aware of different social and cultural realities, learn from each other and simultaneously reinforce their feeling of being European citizens.
Conditions of participation
– Be between 13 and 25 years old (in exceptional situations, some participants can be until 30 years old)
– Have legal residency of one of the Programme’s country
Duration
Between 6 and 21 days, excluding travel days. The exchanges can be organised at any time of the year.
Number of participants
Exchanges must have between 16 and 60 participants, excluding the group leaders. The national groups must be composed by at least 5 people. Each group must have at least one group leader.
Who is the group leader?
A group leader is an adult (18 years old or more) who accompanies the young people participating in the Youth Exchange, in order to ensure their effective learning, protection and safety.
What does the programme offer to the participants?
– Accommodation, participation in the activities, visits, insurance, visas etc.
– Reimbursement of up to 100% of the international travel costs according to the European Commission’s limits
Youthpass
After the completion of the exchange, all participants are eligible to receive a Youthpass certificate, which describes and validates all the experiences and new competences of both non-formal and formal learning acquired during this project.
Organisation
Throughout the process two parts are mandatory:
– hosting organisation** (responsible for the logistical part of the exchange, for the preparation of the programme and activities, and for the selection and organisation of the hosting country national group.)
– sending organisation(s) (responsible for the preparation of the programme and for the selection and organisation of their countrys national group).
Selection process and the pre-departure steps***
- As soon as we know that an Exchange has been approved by the Erasmus+ National Agency, we provide information about the exchange through our communication channels (website, blog, newsletter, Facebook, etc.) From this moment, the selection of the participants begins!
- Let us know, as soon as possible, that you are interested in participating in an exchange promoted or organized by Spin! The ones who get in touch with us in advance are more likely to get a spot in the exchange.
- Fill in our application form and sign the rules of participation.
- Spin will analyse your application. The selection is made according to the interest, motivation, opportunities for participation, age adequacy to the proposed activities, among other factors.
- If you are selected, you can make your fee payments. The travel expenses depend on the exchange, but usually the participants cover the whole cost of the international trip (which will be reimbursed after the exchange). Don’t worry, Spin will help you in the purchase of the ticket. You can also do it by yourself, but before buying it, contact us!
- Participate in a briefing to get to know the other participants and receive all the details and information about the exchange.
* Countries Participating in the programme: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Island, Italia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and United Kingdom
** Can be hosts: non-government organizations (NGO) or non-profit organisations, regional or local public bodies, informal groups of young people or bodies active at European level in the youth field.
*** This procedure is not a rule for all exchanges, since it all depends on the hosting of the exchange and the “Youth in Action” Programme rules. Specific information concerning each exchange will be sent to all those interested.
For additional information
Call us or write to intercambios@a-spin.pt.
