Britain’s youth will suffer another blow if we leave the Erasmus scheme

I was one of the 17,000 British students who took part in the Erasmus programme last year – to deny others that opportunity would be another blow to the young.

When I decided to study French and Italian at university, the biggest draw was the year abroad in Europe. Lecturers and older students raved about the programme, promising a year of intense linguistic immersion, as well as an opportunity to travel to new places, make friends across Europe and “find yourself”.

Since 1987, the Erasmus programme has allowed students to make the most of Europe, breaking down cultural and linguistic barriers between countries. Amid worrying reports of growing levels of racism in the UK since Brexit, I fear ending the Erasmus exchange could make Britain more insular.

I was lucky to benefit from the scheme just before the disruption of Brexit and Covid-19 kicked in. For six months I worked as a presenter at Euradio in France, a radio station which focuses upon European culture, music, and news. The association trains interns from across Europe on how to present, produce, interview, and write news stories in French, while paying them a salary. I was one of a team of interns from more than six different countries, all united by a love of Europe.

After an intense term in France, I travelled to Naples to study at the city’s ancient University of Naples Federico II. Before the pandemic sent Italy into lockdown in March, I was able to study the country’s rich history, attending lectures on legendary artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio before meandering five minutes across a piazza to see his monumental paintings in the flesh, usually enjoying a gelato en route.

Living and breathing Italian and French culture over the course of a year improved my linguistic abilities enormously, more than any amount of academic study could have achieved. When studying languages at university, you’re expected to have a near fluent level of language after the year abroad. If students can no longer participate in Erasmus exchanges, how will they ever reach this level of proficiency? The consequences could be devastating for grades and devalue our language degrees, and in turn impact upon a graduates’ employability.

Many employers value applicants who have worked abroad, as it shows that they do not shy away from a challenge. I owe my French employer Euradio a great deal. It gave me radio skills, the ability to present in French, a taste for the world of broadcast, and a confidence in my professional abilities. It would be shameful for the government to deny others the possibility to broaden their horizons by taking part in such schemes, all under the illusion of “taking back control”.

The popular cry of Brexiteers is that Erasmus simply allows middle class students to travel and party for free, like an extended “gap yah”. While this may be true in some cases, those students will still be able to afford the experience, without Erasmus funding. The real victims of this decision will be less affluent students, those without the savings to move abroad. 

The European Union founded the Erasmus programme to increase mobility for young Europeans, and that is exactly what it has done for the last 33 years. Participants are given a grant of up to €400 (£360) a month, plus transport subsidies and reduced university fees for the year. How can we justify taking this opportunity away from those who couldn’t otherwise afford it?

We cannot forget the 31,000 EU nationals who come to the UK as part of the Erasmus scheme each year. For many, it is a dream to live here, to explore British culture, and to improve their English skills. Universities are supposed to be hubs of cultural and intellectual exchange, and European students are central to that. Many of these EU students go on to become our teachers, lecturers, friends, nurses, doctors, partners, and the parents of our future generations, they are part of the fabric of our country, we cannot turn them away.

Letting go of the Erasmus scheme would be a tragedy for the young. This government has repeatedly shown that it does not care about our future. We face a barren job market, increasing piles of debt, and growing pressure on our mental health. Now it is willing to strip away another opportunity, making European travel a luxury that only the rich can afford.

Isabella Jewel is a final year French and Italian student at the University of Manchester and a freelance journalist