Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters

Erasmus Mundus is not a single scholarship with a single deadline. Each Joint Master is designed by a consortium of at least three higher education institutions from three different countries, at least two of them in EU member states or countries associated to Erasmus+, often with other academic and non-academic partners. The EU funds a consortium for six academic years and at least four editions of its master's, with a grant of up to 5 million euros.

EACEA publishes the Erasmus Mundus Catalogue, which lists every funded programme with a link to its own website; there were 218 when we checked. You apply on that website, to that consortium, under its rules. The catalogue warns that not every listed programme offers scholarships in every intake, and that some are near the end of their EU funding, so the programme's own page is the place to confirm what is on offer this year.

Graduates receive either a joint degree, one certificate issued by several universities together, or a set of degrees from the universities they studied at. The Commission recommends the joint degree.

The EU scholarship is 1,400 euros a month for the full length of the master's: 12, 18 or 24 months depending on whether the programme is 60, 90 or 120 ECTS. It is meant as a contribution to travel, visa, settling-in and living costs.

On top of that, a consortium may not charge a scholarship holder tuition fees or any other compulsory cost of taking part, and it must make sure every student has full insurance cover. EU-funded programmes may not charge application fees at all. Students who are admitted without a scholarship pay whatever fees the consortium sets for them.

If a scholar leaves the programme early, the EU contribution is recalculated to the day, so the scholarship is tied to actual time on the programme.

Every student, with or without a scholarship, must physically study in at least two countries, for at least one semester (30 ECTS) in each, and at least one of them must be an EU member state or a country associated to Erasmus+. Neither of those two countries may be the country where the student is resident when they enrol. These compulsory periods cannot be replaced by online study, and they must take place at full partner universities or under their direct supervision.

In practice this means that a student living in, say, Belgium cannot count a semester in Belgium towards the two required study periods. EACEA gives worked examples in its guidance to consortia: the same programme can offer a track that is valid for everyone and another that is not valid for residents of the countries on it. Check the tracks against your own residence before you apply.

The consortium alone selects its students, and the Programme Guide requires the process to be transparent, impartial and fair. EACEA's guidance to coordinators asks for one selection list with one ranking based on excellence, published criteria on the programme website, and an appeal procedure. The consortium decides where the lines fall between scholarship holders, admitted students without a scholarship, and the reserve list.

Scholarships are open to students from anywhere, but no more than 10 percent of the scholarships a consortium awards over the life of its grant may go to people of the same nationality. Anyone who has already held an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master scholarship cannot receive a second one.

After enrolling, each student signs a Student Agreement with the consortium, setting out the academic, administrative and financial terms of the programme and how complaints are handled. Consortia help selected students with practical arrangements, visas and insurance.

The Erasmus Mundus Association, founded in 2006 and registered as a non-profit in Brussels, is the students and alumni network. It has about 7,000 members and around 300 volunteers, organised as programme representatives and country representatives, and it answers questions from applicants as well as running events, mentoring and awards for members. The Commission points applicants to it for course contacts and first-hand accounts.