Around 4 200 students from Austria spent time abroad during the university year 2004/05 thanks to the European mobility programmes. As many balloons were released today, Thursday, by Federal Minister Elisabeth Gehrer together with Education Commissioner Ján Figel’ at the start of a two-day Conference of Education Ministers in Vienna. Gehrer, current President of the Education Council, and Commissioner Figel’ agreed: “We have set the target in this anniversary year 2006 for the figure of 1.7 million young people who have taken part in the scheme since it began to rise to 3 million mobile Europeans by 2010”.
One of the European Union’s most successful initiatives is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Since 1976 a total of almost 1.7 million people have taken part in the European mobility programmes and spent a period of vocational training or a study term abroad. In Austria alone, more than 75 000 people have taken advantage of the opportunity to advance their education in other EU countries.
“These figures speak for themselves. It is therefore very important to make enough resources available for the European mobility programmes in future”, Federal Minister Elisabeth Gehrer said at the beginning of the Conference. Austria is showing an example. "By doubling the EU funding for students, we give Austrian students a strong incentive to undertake studies abroad”, she continued.
But apprentices and school students, too, make enthusiastic use of the European programmes. “Every year 1 600 young people from Austria embark on a Leonardo da Vinci scheme abroad”, Gehrer concluded.
Contact:
Thomas Schmid
Spokesperson
Office of the Minister
Federal Ministry for Education, Science and Culture
Minoritenplatz 5, A-1014 Vienna
Tel.: ++43-1/531 20-5021
Fax: ++43-1/533 77 97
Mail: anita.kloiber@bmbwk.gv.at
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