Students enrolled as undergraduates in the School of Economics and Management (SEM) have the opportunity to obtain scholarships to attend courses or prepare their theses at foreign universities in Europe and beyond.
The main funding tool for these opportunities is Erasmus for studies, a European Union programme geared towards facilitating international mobility that allows students to spend a 3- to 12-month study period (attending classes, taking exams and/or preparing a thesis) at one or more European universities. The SEM has always had a markedly international approach which has contributed to its participation in a particularly large number of Erasmus agreements. In disciplinary areas of interest for SEM students (in particular management, economics, law, tourism and finance), agreements are currently in place with more than 120 European universities, for a total of 148 scholarships.
Within the sphere of the Erasmus programme, students also have the opportunity to do a 2- to 6-month traineeship or internship (Erasmus for Traineeship) in a company/organization/institution in Europe. The host structure can be chosen by the student, and the internship may be recognized as CFU credits obtained abroad. Each student may make use of a total of 12 months of Erasmus programmes per degree.
The University of Siena also offers exchanges of particular relevance to SEM students, namely:
- international mobility agreements stipulated with a number of universities in Latin America, Australia, Canada China, Korea, the Russian Federation, Japan and the United States;
- a study and/or traineeship program in the Swiss Federation called SEMP “Swiss -European Mobility Programme”;
- summer scholarships to attend English language courses at King’s College in Cambridge.
Another very interesting opportunity is provided by the availability of Double degree programmes, which allow students to earn degrees at the University of Siena and at a foreign partner university. At the beginning of each year, a call for applications for selection for admission to the programmes is issued, for the following masters courses and destinations:
- Economics: University of Ljubljana (Slovenia); University of Uppsala (Sweden)
- Economics and management of financial institutions: Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod (Russian Federation); Vilnius University (Lithuania); Siberian Federal University (Russian Federation)
- Finance: University of Ljubljana (Slovenia); Romanian American University Bucharest (Romania)
Management e Governance, curriculum Accounting and Management: Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod (Russian Federation)
The decision to complete one’s education with a period of study and/or research abroad allows students not only to enhance their language, technical/scientific and professional skills, but also to take advantage of an important opportunity for personal growth. The capacity to interact with a different educational system and, more generally, with a different socio-cultural context from one’s own, as well as the opportunity to develop connections and friendships abroad, are in fact important components of the soft skills that prove increasingly useful in quickly obtaining gainful and rewarding work.
Three-year and masters degree students in the SEM can apply for scholarships for the above-listed mobility programmes. Selections are made annually. For the Erasmus for studies programme, the application deadline is mid-February. For the Erasmus for Traineeship program, students may apply at several times during the year, as indicated in the call for applications accessible through the link below.
More detailed information is available on the University’s International Relations Division site:https://www.unisi.it/internazionale/studio-e-stage-allestero/studio-e-ricerca-allestero
