Before the mobility

Here you find information on administrative and other steps that have to be taken before the start of the mobility. Information on OLA = ONLINE LEARNING AGREEMENT in the third tab.

As an ERASMUS student of Goethe-University you had to complete an online registration, thereby creating your applicant's account. After your nomination it has become your participant's account. In this account all administrative matters are taken care of. There is a number of steps you have to take before, during and after your ERASMUS mobility, downloading and uploading documents, applying for an extension and providing information. Please make sure to keep your personal details up to date in order to not cause any delays in the outpayment of your grant and other matters.
After having been selected as an ERASMUS student and nominated by your departmental coordinator at the host institution, you still have to apply there as an incoming ERASMUS student. This is usually done through the host institution's online application system. The application usually consists of an application form, sometimes including a Learning Agreement form and accommodation and language course application forms. 


In case you need it, the ERASMUS code of Goethe-University, your sending institution is: DE FRANKFU01 


The application form may need to be signed and stamped by your departmental coordinator and in some cases by us in the Global Office. Please mail us the form as an email attachment. The application documents and online links are being provided on the website of the host institution. Please be aware that the extent of application materials and the application deadlines may vary from institution to institution and country to country. As a rule Scandinavian universities have earlier deadlines than the Southern European ones. Only with the official acceptance by the host institution you have gained final acceptance into the ERASMUS program.

The ERASMUS program calls for a written agreement between the two partner institutions and the student concerning the study program of the ERASMUS participant. The Learning Agreement/Proposed Study Programme is a binding contract and one of the basic documents for your participation in the program and later on the recognition of the ERASMUS credits. It is your official study plan and lists the courses you will study at the host institution.

According to the ERASMUS Plus guidelines which all participating universities have to follow, the Learning Agreement has to be signed by all three parties before the start of the mobility: 

In the last years the OLA = Online Learning Agreement was introduced. Please read our OLA-Guidelines (Leitfaden in German) carefully, it should help you with the OLA process, which has to be completed outside your participant's account. Please make sure to upload the document into your participant's account shortly after its completion incl. your signature, the signature of your departmental coordinator at Goethe-University and the responsible person at the host institution. The signature of the Global Office of GU is no longer necessary. The GO of GU will then check if it is formally correct and in case it is not, you will receive an email and have to make the necessary correction before uploading it again. 

If changes have to be made at the start of your ERASMUS study period, please use the Changes to Original Learning Agreement, this too, hast to be completed online as OLA. Only in exceptional cases, in which the OLA-process does not work properly, you can fall back on the old Learning Agreement template, which will be made available for download in the workflow of your participant's account. 

Information valid regardless if OLA or old Learning Agreement process:

Some host universities refuse to sign the Learning Agreement before the start of the mobility. This is clearly against the ERASMUS guidelines and furthermore it delays the next steps in your participant's account. We cannot change this practice of those universities, but we do not sanction the delay in uploading the document, so other than the delay there is no other disadvantage for the participating student.
For the choice of courses please refer to the course catalogues currently available at the webpages of the receiving university and then contact your departmental coordinator for cousel, and if necessary also your examination office with regard to the possible recognition of ERASMUS credits. Unauthorized changes in your study program may most certainly preclude recognition of credits and may even lead to a complete backpayment of the ERASMUS grant. Be advised to choose courses with a workload of 30 ECTS credits per semester and to attend regularly and continuously. According to the EU Commission these 30 ECTS mark the standard semester workload of a home student. As an ERASMUS participant of GU you do not need to take and successfully complete 30 ECTS, but we strongly suggest you do since ERASMUS is an academic exchange program after all.


ERASMUS participants of Goethe University must commit to a workload of at least 15 ECTS. An exemption to this rule is possible only in exceptional cases. These exemptions have to be requested in writing using the additional document Annex R to Learning Agreement. The document has to be signed by the participant and the responsible departmental coordinator. and uploaded into the participant's account.
In the courses chosen for studies all mandatory performances have to be undertaken, be it the signing of attendance lists, home work, reading assignments, class room presentations, tests and if the teacher requires you to sit for the end term examinations, you have to do that, too. You do not necessarily have to pass these exams successfully if you do not seek recognition of credits at GU. In case you fail examinations you parttake in, this does not lead to a backpayment of the ERASMUS grant. If you seek recognition of credits for a course, naturally you have to successfully complete the course.x

The Grant Agreement is another mandatory document provided in your participant's account once the learning agreement has been checked as correct there. Please read and sign your Grant Agreement, upload it into your account and hand in the paper original of this first Grant Agreement with your original signature on it at the Global Office of GU. The Grant Agreement is your ERASMUS participation contract and amongst other things defines the duration of the planned study period and contains a description of the modalities of calculation and outpayment of the ERASMUS grant. With your signature you commit to act according to the ERASMUS rules and regulations. In case you applied for an extension of the ERASMUS study period and the extension was approved, you receive an updated Grant Agreement in your participant's account, which you have to sign and upload. After completion of the ERASMUS study period all participants are provided with the final Grant Agreement which again has to be signed and uploaded into your acount.

In current times it is hard to foresee the situation in a country, region or city at the time of your mobility. You as an ERASMUS participant visit your host country at your own risk. If the country is in an unstable socio-political state, we recommend you register yourself in the crisis precaution list of the Federal Foreign Office of Germany (ELEFAND). This applies also to the current pandemic situation. 
If you need to terminate your ERASMUS mobility due to unforeseeable events in the host country, an individually documented proof of a travel warning (Reisewarnung des Auswärtigen Amtes) of the Federal Foreign Office (screenshot with date) is enough for us to accept this ERASMUS mobility, even if its duration is less than 60 days/2 months.

In order to successfully complete a study abroad period, you need to have good language skills. There are ways to improve your language skills before and during the mobility:

OLS Language test and courses (Online Language Support System of EU-Commission)

To determine the proficiency level of the language of instruction, all participants are obligated to take an online language test.
This first test is not meant to be used in the selection of ERASMUS participants, but only to document their level of language proficiency before the start of the mobility period. The students will be notified by email and will get the link to the test. If a student had declared in his application to have a language proficiency at C2 or mother tongue level, he/she does not have to take the test. If the language of instruction differs from the language of the host country, a test in the language of the host country may be alotted. Please make sure that your description of language proficiency in your application is up to date.

Besides the online language test the EU commission offers tutored online language courses for the languages mentioned above to help you improve your language skills before and during the mobility. These courses are free of cost. Each sending institution receives a limited number of language course licenses, which then are distributed to the respective participants by email invitations. If invited to take such a course, please make use of it, though you are not obliged to participate in it.

You are not obligated, but nevertheless we urge you to take the final online language test at the end of the mobility, so the development of your language skills can be determined.


Language courses at GU and in host country
In addition to the OLS online tests and courses there is the possibility of taking part in language courses at Goethe-University and in the host country.

Language courses at Language center of Goethe University
Please refer to the information specifically for your ERASMUS year for the subject of preparatory language courses at GU and reimbursement of fees. 

Link to Language Center of GU 

Language courses at the host university/in the host country (for language of teaching or language of host country only)
Some host universities offer preparatory or semester long language courses - some free of cost, some with fees. If you have completed such a course successfully, please upload the course certificate into your participant's account. If course fees applied, please include the payment slip in that pdf-file. This is possible only after the start of your mobility.
For the reimbursement of language course fees only limited funds are available in ERASMUS. We reimburse the actual course fee for maximum 2 language courses up to a maximum amount of 100€ in total. Please refer to the information specifically for your ERASMUS year for the subject of reimbursement of fees.

If your host institution allocates ECTS credits to the language courses, these can be included in the 30 ECTS credits per semester.


Please refer to the information specifically for your ERASMUS year for the current information of additional funding for students with disabilities and students with chronic diseases.

Here is just the basic information:

If you are a participant with a disability degree of 20% or more or if you have a chronic disease (doctor's certificate needed), you might be able to receive a Social Top-up of 250€ per month of funding.

Disability Degree of 50% or more:
Apart from that there is the possibility for students with a disability degree of 50% and higher to apply for additional funding for the real additional costs exceeding the group of countries lump sum. But first, depending on the severeness of the disability i
t is very important to communicate your special needs to your departmental coordinator and the Global Office of GU and also to their counterparts at the host institution at a very early stage, so it can be determined if the ERASMUS study period can be made possible, if the additional assistance can be provided there.  

Bear in mind that only additional costs in direct consequence of the ERASMUS mobility can be covered, when not covered by other agencies like the Studentenwerk, health insurance companies, social assistance offices etc. The application has to be filled in in collaboration with and signed by the ERASMUS institutional coordinator of Goethe University, Ms. Uta Brucker, and the respective participant. Additional documents necessary for the application are listed on the application form. The complete application materials should be handed in at the Global Office no later than two months prior to the start of the mobility. The earlier those are reviewed by the GO and by the DAAD, the earlier a decision can be reached. It is not possible to accept an application after the start of the mobility. Please make sure to contact Mr. Purkert at outgoing@uni-frankfurt.de at an early stage.

All this does not apply for mobilities to Switzerland; there a review on a case-by-case basis is done by Swiss administrators.  

If you are a single parent participant and want to take your child(ren) with you during your ERASMUS mobility period, you need to communicate your special needs to your departmental coordinator and the Global Office of GU and also to their counterparts at the host institution at a very early stage, so it can be determined if the ERASMUS study period can be made possible, if the additional assistance needed can be provided there. You will receive an ERASMUS grant in the amount of the monthly lump sum allocated to the group of countries your host country belongs to. Additionally you will receive additional funding called Social Top-up in the amount of 250€ per month of funding.

This does not apply for mobilities to Switzerland, there a review on a case-by-case basis is done by Swiss administrators.  

Please make sure to contact Mr. Purkert at outgoing@uni-frankfurt.de at an early stage.

Link to the Information of National Agency DAAD on additional funding for students studying abroad with children (in German)

Also participants working in a job subject to social insurance contributions and participants with non-academic parents may receive a Social Top-up of 250€ per month of funding.

Please refer to the information specifically for your ERASMUS year for the current information Social Top-ups.

Sufficient insurance coverage while studying abroad? The participation in the ERASMUS program does NOT provide you any insurance coverage. Neither the EU Commission nor the DAAD as the national agency nor Goethe University as your home university are liable for damages resulting from illness, death, accident, injury of persons or loss or damage of property in connection with ERASMUS mobilities.  


You yourself are responsible to receive sufficient insurance coverage (health insurance, liability) and to collect all necessary information about the laws and requirements in the host country. Please contact your own insurance concerning coverage regualtions and additional insurance for time periods spend in foreign countries. Depending on the insurance company eisting tarifs may be valid within EU countries.

The Studierendenwerk Frankfurt signed up for group insurance (Gruppenhaftpflicht- und -unfallversicherung) for all students of Goethe University which is also valid while studying abroad. Please check closely if the coverage is sufficient for your purposes.  

All participants in the ERASMUS program (mobilities for studying, placements and teaching) may possibly be accepted into the group insurance of the DAAD, which provides extensive coverage. Further information on this at Gruppenversicherung des DAAD .

YOU HAVE TO BE AND STAY ENROLLED AT GOETHE UNIVERSITY DURING YOUR ERASMUS MOBILITY. Otherwise you will lose your ERASMUS status and funding. If your mobility period exceeds one semester, please make sure to complete your re-enrolment at Goethe-University by paying the semester fees in due time.
Information on re-enrollment deadlines
 here.
You are not required to take a holiday semester when participating in the ERASMUS program. If you take a holiday semester the number of study semesters (Fachsemester) stagnates, without a holiday semester the number rises by one. Please keep this in mind with regard to the planning of your study program and consult with your examination office or departmental coordinator in case of doubt. If you plan to attend and complete classes and examinations at Goethe-University during a semester, do NOT take a holiday semester!
If you have come to the desicion to take a holiday semester, please submit your proposal at the registrar's office 
Studienservicecenter SSC and include your ERASMUS participation certificate available in your participant's account. 
According to the registrar's office you are not automatically entitled to the continuation of child benefits during a holiday semester. To keep receiving child benefits it should be sufficient though to supply the respective agency with a matriculation certificate of the host university or the ERASMUS participation certificate. These state that you are a regular student at the host institution and that your credits may transfer to your study program at the home institution. Please make sure to double-check this information since we cannot guarantee to be up to date with this information at all times.
It is possible to receive a reimbursement of the costs for the Goethe-University semester ticket if you request this from the Härtefondsstelle des Studierendenwerks regardless of if you take a holiday semester or not. You have to prove to be absent for at least 3 months or 90 days during the Frankfurt semester though. It is sufficient to provide the ERASMUS participation certificate if that shows the duration of absence. You have to calculate for yourself if the reimbursement makes sense in your case.
Students entitled to BAföG should also apply for Auslands-BAföG prior to their ERASMUS mobility. According to § 21 Abs. 3 Nr. 2 merit- and vocation-related grants such as ERASMUS have to be valued as income, if they exceed 300€ per month, which the ERASMUS grant does exceed at least in the first group of countries. By reason of high additional costs the chances for funding of ERASMUS mobilities through Auslands-BAföG are higher than for domestic BAföG. Please contact the BAföG agency responsible for your host country after referring to this BAföG-Webpage and hand in your application at least 6 months before the start of your mobility in order to receive the BAföG funding in time.


A certificate including the amount of your ERASMUS grant is provided in your ERASMUS participant's account once the calculation of the grants has been completed. You are welcome to send us additional documents from the BAföG agency as an email attachment, so we can sign and stamp it and send it back to you.
Notice for participants who receive domestic BAföG: The application of Auslands-BAföG is only possible if you take a holiday semester, because otherwise domestic BAföG will be continued and your mobility period will reduce the number of semesters of domestic BAföG. Auslands-BAföG can be received in addition to and independently from domestic BAföG, so it does not reduce the number of available domestic BAföG semesters.

You find the testimonials of your predecessors here . Most of them are written in German though.


Kontakt

Goethe-Universität Frankfurt
Global Office
Eschersheimer Landstraße 155
c/o House of Labor
3rd floor
60323 Frankfurt am Main