Erasmus+ Traineeships

What is an Erasmus+ Traineeship?

Traineeships are defined as spending a period of time in an enterprise or organisation in another country, with a view to:

• Acquiring specific competences that are required by the labour market
• Carrying out work experience, and
• Improving the understanding of the economic and social culture of that country

Erasmus activities are carried out with the support of the European Commission within the framework of the Erasmus+ Programme. For further information, please see the European Commission webpages:

European Commission – Erasmus+ Traineeships

What is the duration of a traineeship at the University of Edinburgh?

The minimum length of a traineeship is two months. At the University of Edinburgh, we currently welcome trainees for a maximum of three months. 

Who can apply?

Erasmus+ supports traineeships (work placements, internships, etc) abroad for students currently enrolled in higher education institutions in Erasmus programme countries at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. The University of Edinburgh will only consider traineeship applications from individuals who will be matriculated students at the time of their traineeship. Students who will have graduated at the point of undertaking their traineeship would not be eligible candidates. Please speak to your home university for further information on eligibility.

If you are a non-EU national interested in arranging a traineeship at the University of Edinburgh, you will need to liaise with our Student Immigration Service to discuss if this is possible from an immigration perspective.

Contact Student Immigration Service at the University of Edinburgh

What types of traineeships are available at the University of Edinburgh?

College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences

The following Schools may consider traineeship applications on a case-by-case basis:

To apply for a traineeship in one of these areas, please complete the application form below and return it to the relevant email address listed above.

(First of all, you may wish to send a speculative email with an overview of your research proposal and an indication of the dates that you would like to undertake your traineeship.)

College of Science and Engineering

The College of Science and Engineering will review enquiries and traineeship applications on a case-by-case basis. If you have a particular area of research interest then please contact an academic member of staff in the relevant department with your research proposal and an indication of the dates that you would like to undertake your traineeship. Please note that our schools are under no obligation to accept traineeship students.

You can find the contact details for the different departments on our College and Schools webpage.

Colleges and Schools

College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine

For information for students coming to Edinburgh Medical School on electives and Visiting Students coming on other placements please visit the College information at:

Visiting Students | The University of Edinburgh

Administrative placements

Unfortunately, we do not currently offer traineeships within our administrative support teams/professional services.

Traineeship entry requirements

Each School within the university has slightly different academic and English language entry requirements for traineeship students. You will be advised of the relevant entry criteria for your School at the time of application.