Blog | Travel Edventures

When Is the Best Time to Study Abroad on an Erasmus+ or Turing Scheme Mobility?

Written by Emma Crossick | September 3, 2024

You’ve made one of the best decisions of your life and you’re going abroad to study on an Erasmus+ (or Turing Scheme programme if you’re a British citizen) but when will you go? If you’re wondering if you should travel over the summer, or winter semester, but you’re undecided, we can give you some indication of what might work for you. At TravelEdventures, we specialise in putting together the very best Erasmus+ or Turing Scheme placements, so read on to find out more.

What Should You Think About When Deciding When to Study Overseas

First things first, you need to ask yourself some very important questions!

  • When does the school year begin and end for the school, college, university or other where you want to study?
  • Would you rather do your semester during the spring or the autumn?
  • Do you have any obligations back home that you can’t miss, such as a sporting event, or a family occasion such as a wedding etc?
  • Look at your academic plan, when is the best time for you to travel to fit around it as well as possible?
  • How long do you want to travel for? One semester? Two weeks Three months?
  • What do you need to do regarding your academic course back home that you have to finish before you go on a placement abroad?
  • Could going abroad at a certain point in the year affect your graduation?

Once you’ve answered the above questions, you’ll have a clearer picture already.

Winter or Summer Semester?

If the above questions don’t really throw much light on the time of year you want to travel, let’s delve deeper and look at the pros and cons of a placement in the winter and summer.

Summer

Firstly, this option might not be available to your course, so you need to check that. If you can’t study abroad over the summer, then the decision will be made for you! If you want a placement that lasts anything from weeks to 3 months, then the summer semester is a great option as most placements don’t last more than 3 months. If you want to spend time on vacation after your course and stay in the same country, then summer is also a good choice.

There are some more advantages, you’ll get the best of both worlds because you’ll enjoy campus life back home during the springtime and autumn. Summer courses are also best for small classes, so you’ll get more focus from your teachers and as summer weather is better than winter weather (in Europe), you’ll get the opportunity to do lots of outdoor activities and trips.

There are some negatives though, for example, as summer trips are usually shorter compared to winter trips, it will quickly be time to go home (just as you’ve settled in!). Also, the summer in Europe can be extremely hot, so it might feel very uncomfortable in the heat. Of course, while you no doubt want to visit lots of cultural and historical sites in your destination country, remember that summer is the busiest time of year for tourists so these places will also be packed with people.

Winter

If you choose the winter, you can opt for programmes that last anything from one week to four weeks (and beyond). This is the ideal time if you’re a nervous traveller or you’ve never been away without family or friends before, as it’s a short period of time so you won’t be homesick! Plus, if you want to do a short, winter programme, you can always do an extended mobility later on in your university or college career.

Winter is quieter in terms of tourists – so the places you want to visit won’t be packed with people, but some places do close when it gets really cold. Another pro is that if you’re a sportsperson and like to do events over the warmer months, travelling in winter means you won’t miss out.

Of course, the negative is that most winter semesters are quite short and if you were hoping for a long placement, this might not work for you. One of the biggest disadvantages is you might not earn as many credits as you would participating in a summer placement.

Some Final Words

We hope the above information helps you to plan your perfect Erasmus+ or Turing Scheme placement abroad. Don’t forget that we can help too and arrange the ideal mobility for you and your school/college or university. Chat to one of our team by clicking on this link.