The project Bridge is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Servicio Espanol para la Internacionalizacion de la Educacion (SEPIE). Neither the European Union nor the National Agency SEPIE can be held responsible for them. -- Number: 2025-1-ES01-KA220-HED-000359236 --
The BRIDGE Digital Museum brings together good practices, educational proposals and images that inspire reflection and action
Social Challenges
Analyse social challenges to intercultural dialogue, social inclusion and democratic cohesion
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Discover experiences that generate social impact
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Access teaching guides, activities and materials for the classroom
Documentary Photography
Explore the social challenges in a visual, reflective and educational way
BRIDGE Main Challenge: A.1. Structural and intersectional inequalities that shape inclusion and social cohesion
Erasmus+ names inclusion as a horizontal priority, yet universities lack the tools to deliver it. Students with low socio-economic status, disabilities or a migrant background face cumulative barriers to mobility: delayed grant payments, fragmented information and support that depends on short-term project funding. A lack of comparable, disaggregated data prevents evidence-based inclusion policies.
A transnational Long-Term Activity coordinated by the Erasmus+ National Agency at the DAAD with 13 National Agencies, ACA and the Erasmus Student Network. Three working subgroups produced an open information platform (inclusivemobility.eu), a database of inclusion questionnaires and guidelines on combining Erasmus+ funding streams, validated with 120 practitioners at a Berlin workshop in 2023.
The Long-Term Activity (LTA) Social Inclusion in Higher Education (2021-2024) is a transnational governance initiative coordinated by the Erasmus+ National Agency at the DAAD. Thirteen National Agencies, ACA and the Erasmus Student Network worked in three subgroups on information access, data and funding synergies. Outputs include the redesigned inclusivemobility.eu platform, an open database of inclusion questionnaires and guidelines for universities, validated with 120 participants at a Berlin workshop in November 2023.
Equitable access to international mobility remains blocked by systemic barriers. Socio-economic disadvantage, disability and migrant background act as cumulative filters; delayed grant payments exclude students without family support. Universities manage inclusion through fragmented, project-based measures and lack disaggregated data to design evidence-based policies.
Erasmus+ 2021-2027 declares inclusion and diversity a horizontal priority, but without tools, data and stable structures this mandate is not met. Disadvantages accumulated before university are reproduced throughout the academic career, so the gap between mandate and practice weakens social cohesion in higher education.
The practice addresses Challenge A1 (structural and intersectional inequalities) by treating exclusion as an institutional service failure and equipping agencies and universities with data, guidance and a shared platform. It also tackles the 'projectisation' of inclusion discussed under Challenge A2.
Three subgroups each address a diagnosed gap: Subgroup 1 compiled national strategies into the inclusivemobility.eu platform; Subgroup 2 built an open database of questionnaires and a template for comparable data; Subgroup 3 wrote guidelines on combining KA1, KA2 and KA3 funding. Outputs were validated with 120 practitioners and students at a Berlin TCA in 2023 using World Cafe and Gallery Walk formats.
inclusivemobility.eu: European portal on support services for inclusive mobility
Interactive digital resource
The inclusivemobility.eu platform was redesigned by Subgroup 1 (Inclusion Reader), co-led by the Erasmus Student Network. It compiles the national inclusion strategies of the 13 participating National Agencies and presents the range of support services available to students with disabilities or facing socio-economic barriers across Europe, including geolocated information and student testimonials. It is built as an interactive resource and aims to reduce the information gap that disadvantages students without social capital or existing support networks. The platform is open access and is planned to be updated annually. It serves students preparing a mobility period, advisers, and teachers introducing inclusive internationalisation.
Teaching staff, Students, Professionals, General Public
Guidelines on Synergies Reinforcing Inclusion in Erasmus+ (2023)
Manual
A technical handbook produced by Subgroup 3 (Bridging Actions) that explains how universities can apply sequential or parallel funding, combining Erasmus+ mobility grants (KA1) with cooperation projects (KA2) and policy support (KA3) to maximise the social impact of inclusion measures. This synergy logic is the most innovative element of the practice at management level. It offers a route out of the 'projectisation' of inclusion, in which actions depend on temporary funding, by embedding inclusion in ordinary governance and internationalisation strategies. The guidelines were validated through World Cafe and Gallery Walk sessions with 120 participants at the Training and Cooperation Activity in Berlin in November 2023. The handbook is in English and free to use; the DAAD project page is the official repository of the LTA.
Teaching staff, Professionals, Policy Makers
Guidelines for Erasmus+ Coordinators on 'Inclusion' within Key Action 2 (2023)
Teaching guide
A practical guide for Erasmus+ coordinators and international project managers at higher education institutions on how to integrate the horizontal priority of inclusion into cooperation projects (KA2). It translates the policy mandate of the Erasmus+ programme 2021-2027 into operational steps for project design and management and is intended to move institutional staff from reactive to proactive inclusion management. Together with the Guidelines on Synergies, it forms the core of the technical toolkit the LTA offers to universities and serves as a directly transferable roadmap for any European university. The guide is in English and is freely usable; the DAAD project page is the official repository of the LTA.
Teaching staff, Professionals, Policy Makers
Inclusion in Erasmus+: An ESNsurvey XV breakout report (2024)
Digital publication
A report by the Erasmus Student Network analysing the inclusion-related results of the ESNsurvey XV, collected between May and July 2023 with 23,223 responses (17,855 exchange students and 3,064 non-mobile students). The report provides comparative national data on financial, administrative and information-related barriers to mobility and shows that top-up grants alone are insufficient without reduced precariousness and more transparent administration, since delayed payments exclude students without family support. Within the LTA it served as the main evidence base for recommendations and illustrates how student-generated data can inform European policy. It is useful in teaching as a case study of large-scale survey research on educational inequality and as a source of up-to-date figures.
Teaching staff, Students, Researchers, Policy Makers
https://eu.daad.de/content/uploads/2026/03/esn_report_-_inclusion_in_erasmus.pdf
Open database of inclusion questionnaires and overview sheet (Subgroup 2)
Educational resource
Subgroup 2 (Resources and Data) addressed the lack of disaggregated data on barriers to inclusion by developing an open database of inclusion questionnaires and a standardised overview sheet. These instruments allow universities and National Agencies to collect comparable data on the obstacles faced by 'underserved' students and to base inclusion policies on evidence. The repository is intended for mutual learning in research on inclusion and can be used independently by institutions in the long term; questionnaires may be translated with tools such as DeepL for local use. For teaching, the database offers authentic survey instruments for courses on research methods, educational inequality or higher education management.
Teaching staff, Students, Researchers, Professionals