How to apply

We recommend that you attend one of the LST Departmental Erasmus Office information sessions a year before you plan to go abroad. These sessions provide information on the application and nomination processes. They also are a great opportunity to ask questions. Please inform us well in advance if you plan to go abroad under the Erasmus+ mobility programme so that we can nominate you for a place at one of our partner universities. Before you are nominated, you must inform Saarland University and the LST Departmental Erasmus Office of your intention to study abroad before the deadlines below.
 

Deadline to declare intention to study abroad

Students normally apply to their future host university after being nominated by the LST Departmental Erasmus Office, which usually takes place in April, May or June. Your host university will then contact you regarding the application process. Application deadlines vary depending on the university.

The timeline is as follows.

1.   1 March | 1 September – Inform the LST Departmental Erasmus Office of your intention to study abroad and indicate your preferred university as well as your planned period abroad.
2. April–June  – Nomination by the LST Departmental Erasmus Office
3. Confirmation from the host university
4. Application deadline depending on host university – your application at the host university
    

To apply to the host university after you have been nominated by the Erasmus Office, the following documents are required:

• Application form, completed and legible
• CV
• Personal statement / letter of motivation in German or English
• Transcript of records (listing grades achieved so far in your degree programme)
• List of courses you are currently enrolled in
• List of courses you plan to enrol in next semester

Learning agreement (please refer to the information on learning agreements on our website)

If there are more applications than available places at a partner university, we will select applicants based on the following criteria:

• Motivation
• Degree programme (students in our department are given priority; however, it is possible to receive a place as a student from another department. Students from other departments are therefore welcome to apply.)
• Semester of study (students who are closer to completing their degree are given priority)
• Language proficiency (e.g. first language, second language)

The LST Departmental Erasmus Office will contact the partner university and give the partner university the names and addresses of successful applicants. The partner university will then contact you and provide the forms you will need to fill in as well as important information on language courses, degree-related courses, key dates and deadlines, housing, etc. You are registered as an incoming student.

At this time, you will also need to complete the Erasmus mobility acceptance form. Please complete the acceptance form as soon as you have received confirmation from your host university. You will also receive a trilingual certificate stating you are an Erasmus student. The certificate will be signed by staff from the LST Departmental Erasmus Office. You do not need to submit this certificate anywhere, but it serves to identify you as an exchange student when you are abroad.

Once you have arrived in your host country, you will need to get your certificate of arrival signed by your host university's international office and send it to Saarland University Erasmus Team. You will not receive your first Erasmus scholarship payment until you have submitted this document! After completing your stay abroad, please ensure your certificate of attendance is signed by your host university and then forward it to your home university’s Erasmus office so that you can receive the second instalment of your scholarship payment. 

If you do not yet have sufficient proficiency in the language of your host country, improve your skills using Online Language Support, an online language learning platform provided by Erasmus+. More detailed information is available in German here.