What Markus Bichler, TravelEdventures’ CEO really loves the most about getting Erasmus+ or Turing applications approved is that it helps large areas in a country really lift their game when it comes to education! Here’s a great example.
The poorest state in Austria is Burgenland. The Minister of Education for the state approached TravelEdventures, asking us for help in creating an Erasmus+ funding application for students in the area. It was just recently that TravelEdventures had a massive breakthrough when we heard that Burgenland received accreditation for the coming seven years. This means that they will be able to send students from the area to visit incredible destinations, for the coming seven years because they know they will receive Erasmus+ funding.
That is an incredible achievement! The feedback we received was tremendous, but that feedback is just one of many positive comments that we receive at TravelEdventures. We often have students come to us to tell us that they were a student of marketing, or tourism for example and they completed an Erasmus+ mobility somewhere through our company. They tell us that they went on to apply for a job, (with lots of competition from other students) and they were successful. They tell us that was because they had completed an Erasmus+ internship which put themselves ahead of other candidates who had not done the same. That’s why they got the job. Additionally, lots of students without the opportunity of Erasmus+ would never have otherwise got to go abroad, let alone go on holiday outside of their own state. That’s really rewarding for us. Here’s another shining example.
We had some construction workers from a poor area in Eastern Europe that were sent to Spain on an Erasmus+ internship, through our company. Those workers had never seen the ocean. Upon arrival at the airport, our team took the workers to their accommodation, dropped off their luggage and then headed straight for the beach. We were told that the workers had tears in their eyes when they saw the ocean for the first time in their lives! When we witness this type of excitement, it’s very moving. When they do actually get to work, they see how a construction company works in another country and there’s enormous exchange of knowledge too – where they see things that could work for their own companies back home.
TravelEdventures gives those young people opportunities they’ve never experienced before. We put them on a plane, take them somewhere new and exciting where they get to try different food, experience a new culture, a new environment – all for no cost to them. It’s a remarkable opportunity that isn’t just good for their careers and broadening their horizons, it’s also excellent for their own wellbeing. Don’t miss hearing our CEO, Markus Bichler, discuss this topic passionately in this video.
If you want, read more about some personal internship stories from our TravelEdventures Team: