IMC Fachhochschule Krems GmbH

Storytelling: Erasmus+ University of Applied Sciences internship abroad studying midwifery with two small children

Family mobility needs to be tried out - Erasmus+ inclusion support makes it possible.

Objectives

Enabling students with caring responsibilities or families to spend time abroad. In the academic year 2022/23, a student completed an almost three-month internship in Germany (Heidelberg University Hospital) as part of her Bachelor's degree in midwifery, together with her two children (aged 5 and 3) and her partner as an accompanying person.

Background

In the past, the student has already completed several stays abroad for educational purposes - during her time at school. At the beginning of her studies, her goal was to complete a stay abroad as part of her midwifery degree programme, even though her personal circumstances have changed since then. When she enquired about internships abroad and Erasmus funding at IMC Krems, the university's Erasmus+ coordinator proactively drew her attention to the possibility of inclusion support. By definition, the student is considered part of the underrepresented student group in the area of mobility: 1. because students from health science degree programmes only have limited mobility opportunities (strict professional law, studying in German language, etc.). 2. because students with families/small children (obstacle to organisation, financial implementation, etc.). For IMC Krems, both can be seen as promoting the mobility of underrepresented student groups, as mobility is generally more difficult to implement in health science degree programmes.

(Implemented) Activities

With the Erasmus+ program, the student applied for inclusion support (https://erasmusplus.at/de/hochschulbildung/mobilitaet/inklusion) through IMC Krems because her partner and two children accompanied her during the internship abroad. The partner was primarily responsible for childcare during the time abroad and could therefore be supported as a accompanying person. As a result, Erasmus+ fully covered his costs for the arrival and departure as well as accommodation through inclusion support.

Results

For the student, the support from Erasmus+ represented a significant financial relief as she had to find suitable accommodation for four people. The student learnt a lot for her future career during her internship - her family and especially her two children will have fond memories of her time abroad. With her experiences, the student would also like to motivate other students who are considering completing an internship abroad to seize this unique opportunity and would like to act as a mobility ambassador, particularly for students on healthcare degree programmes.

Lessons learned

The Erasmus+ inclusion support offered a student with a double burden (a health sciences degree programme with a relatively highly regulated curriculum and family commitments) the opportunity to organise a stay abroad according to her ideas and wishes.

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