Intern Abroad

International Mobility

Intern Abroad

In today’s ever-changing society, employers know that student mobility has a tremendous impact on students’ language and social skills to autonomy and self-esteem.

International experiences positively impact careers and open people’s minds to a world that is increasingly going global.

Erasmus+ Programme

Erasmus+ can help you gain valuable work experience by supporting traineeships (work placements, internships, etc.) abroad. The cultural understanding and language skills you’ll learn from working in another country can make it easier to find a job after your studies.

Working at a relevant organisation opens up job prospects that seminars and workshops may not provide.

These opportunities are open to current students and recent graduates. Traineeships can be carried out in any relevant organisation. This is a new possibility that the Erasmus+ programme offers to recent graduates.

However, you must be selected by your higher education institution during your last year of study and you must carry out and complete your traineeship abroad within one year of graduating.


FAQs

In any of the countries of the EU that is part of the program or, in certain situations, in a partner country. During the 1st or 2nd cycle or within one year once you’ve concluded either cycle (both cycles) – curricular and extracurricular – and in companies or in higher education institutions depending on whether you are looking for a professional traineeship in a company or doing research or project for your final thesis.

any public or private organisation active in the labour market or in the fields of education, training and youth. Such an organisation can be:

  • a public or private, a small, medium or large enterprise (including social enterprises);
  • a public body at local, regional or national level;
  • a social partner or other representative of working life, including chambers of commerce, craft/professional associations and trade unions;
  • a research institute;
  • a foundation;
  • a school/institute/educational centre (at any level, from pre-school to upper secondary education, and including vocational education and adult education);
  • a non-profit organisation, association, NGO;
  • a body providing career guidance, professional counseling and information services.

To study/train abroad, you must be registered in a higher education institution and you must be following studies leading to a recognized degree or other recognized tertiary level qualification, such as a Bachelor, a Master or a Doctorate. Your institution must be located in one of the countries participating in Erasmus+ mobility for higher education (see question 5). 

In addition, if your institution is located in a programme country, it must have been awarded the Erasmus Charter for Higher Education (ECHE). This Charter is part of an accreditation procedure established to guarantee a quality framework for all participants in mobility activities.

Check your institution’s website to know if it is an ECHE holder or has a look at the full list of institutions.

The selection criteria to study or intern abroad with Erasmus+ are defined by your higher education institution.

Your traineeship abroad can last from a minimum of 2 months to a maximum of 12 months.


You can benefit from an exchange abroad with Erasmus+ multiple times, either as a student or as a trainee, but your total time abroad (study abroad periods included) may not exceed 12 months within one cycle of studies.
“Cycle” refers to the level of study as defined by the European Qualifications Framework (EQF):
1. First cycle (Bachelor or equivalent) EQF 5/6
2. Second cycle (Master or equivalent) EQF 7
3. Third cycle (Doctoral or equivalent) EQF 8


You can also go for a traineeship abroad as a recent graduate. In this case, your traineeship must occur within one year of your graduation and you must apply while still being enrolled in your higher education institution.
So, the duration of a traineeship period is a minimum of 2 months to a maximum of 12 months. In case of a combined study and traineeship, the minimum duration is 3 months and the maximum duration is 12 months, no matter how the time is shared between studies and traineeship. Nevertheless taking part in a Consortium, gives our Institution extra obligations – so Politécnico de Leiria allows only traineeships until 3 months in the case of a CETESP, 4/5 months for 1st Cycle (Bachelor) and 6 months for 2nd Cycle (Master).

You can find the destination for your placement by:

  1. choosing from the offers published on this site;
  2. asking the help of your course coordination;
  3. doing a research by yourself in the internet

In any of the above situations, you should work on your CV and on a motivation letter in English (or any other language needed) to be sent to the institution that you will end up choosing.

Have you received a positive reply from a company or higher education institution? Congratulations!

Now you and your tutor need to complete and sign the traineeship programme.

Traineeship Programme

If you have any questions about filling the document, ask your programme coordinator to help you.

You can apply through the international or Erasmus+ office of your school:

 A person with special needs is a potential participant whose individual physical, mental, health-related situation or economic condition are such that his/her participation in the project/mobility action would not be possible without extra financial support. Higher education institutions that have selected students and/or staff with special needs can apply for additional grant support to the National Agency in order to cover the supplementary costs for their participation in the mobility activities. For those with special needs, the grant support may therefore be higher than the set maximum individual grants. Higher education institutions describe on their websites how students and staff with special needs can request such additional grant support. This grant normally takes a little longer to be processed than the mobility grant.

If you decide to drop the traineeship, you need to communicate your decision immediately to the GMCI and before the mobility program starts. If the mobility program has already started and your reasons are personal, you must return any grant money that you have received up to that date.

If it is duly justified to the National Agency, you may be able to keep the part of the grant corresponding to the mobility period that you have undertaken.


Internship options

Paid internships in the United Kingdom

Internships abroad

Erasplus

André Lagos – Business Development Assistant Contact:  andre@erasplus.com


ETN agencies

UN Volunteers

CEDEFOP


European Health Insurance Card

The European Health Insurance Card is a free card that gives you access to medically necessary, state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in any of the 27 EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland under the same conditions and at the same cost (free in some countries) as people insured in that country.

The benefits covered include, for example, benefits provided in conjunction with chronic or existing illnesses as well as in conjunction with pregnancy and childbirth.

Cards are issued by your national health insurance provider.

Find out more about the European Health Insurance Card.

The European Health Insurance Card:

  • is not an alternative to travel insurance. It does not cover any private healthcare or costs such as a return flight to your home country or lost/stolen property,
  • does not cover your costs if you are travelling for the express purpose of obtaining medical treatment,
  • does not guarantee free services. As each country’s healthcare system is different services that cost nothing at home might not be free in another country.

International Student Identity Card

É a única prova internacional do estatuto de estudante a tempo inteiro aceite em todo o mundo e reconhecida pela UNESCO. Com este cartão, pode aceder a um grande conjunto de descontos em Portugal e no estrangeiro.

Quando viajar, seja por motivo de estudos seja em lazer, vai poder usufruir de várias vantagens em transportes, alojamento, museus, espectáculos e muitas outras actividades para os quais é indispensável ter o cartão ISIC.

For more information, visit ISIC’s website.


Academic and scientific opportunities abroad
Study and Research Abroad

Leonet
Mobility opportunities in Belgium, the UK, Hungary, and Northern Ireland.
Leonet

European Youth Portal
European Youth Portal

PLOTEUS
PLOTEUS

Travel documents for EU nationals
Travel documents for EU nationals

Europass CV
Europass CV

Europass Certificate Supplement
Europass Certificate Supplement

Europass Diploma Supplement
Europass Diploma Supplement


contact us

International Mobility and Cooperation Office

Email: ana.boaventura@ipleiria.pt
Tel: (+351) 244 860 448