SEMP programme: news for the call 2021-22

On 9 February, the National Agency Movetia organized a virtual meeting to present what’s new in the framework of the SEMP programme 2021-22.

First and foremost, it is worth mentioning that the SEMP programme has been extended for one additional year with the same legal basis. In December 2020, the Swiss Parliament has increased the financial contributions for the plan 2022-2024, in relation to a possible affiliation of Switzerland to the Erasmus+ programme, and adopted in parallel a negotiating mandate with a view to concluding an agreement for participation in the next generation of the Erasmus programme 2021-2027.

Three new initiatives are worth highlighting.

Financial support for mobility outside of Europe

For the first time, funds have been allocated to the financial support of mobility outside of Europe. Students enrolling for a mobility in the framework of bilateral agreements may now benefit from a grant of CHF 500/month. Only 20% of the overall budget (study and traineeship mobility) can be assigned to international mobility, but this will give us the opportunity to support some of our students and their mobility outside of Europe.

Green Mobility: universities’ contribution to reducing the carbon footprint. 

It goes without saying that sustainability is nowadays a key topic and a crucial matter for the future of our planet. Reducing one’s carbon footprint is a priority for both organizations and common citizens. It could not be otherwise for universities, where mobility of academics, staff and students plays a relevant role for research, training and study experience. Several Swiss higher education institutions have already implemented travel policies to support sustainability goals.

To support these efforts, the National Agency Movetia has published a document (”Greener Mobility best practices: let’s get inspired”) providing guidelines and best practices to higher education institutions with the goal of encouraging sustainable means of transport and raising awareness.

Movetia also offers a Greener Mobility Kit to help IRO office promote greener mobility. 

Last but not least, funding has also been allocated to support green mobility. A lump sum of CHF 100 is planned for those outgoing mobility students traveling to the host country with a greener means of transport.

At USI, the International Relations and Study Abroad Service is currently carrying out a project to raise awareness among the students on opportunities enabled by Movetia.

A third change is the increase of the monthly grant for students who go to study in Europe.  For 2021-2022 SEMP grants will be:

• Outgoing mobility for study: CHF 380/month.
• Outgoing mobility for traineeship: CHF 440/month.
• Incoming mobility for study: amount varies depending on the country of origin.

The meeting was also the occasion to discuss certain topics more in-depth, such as the consequence of Brexit on student mobility, the question of the potential Swiss involvement in the Erasmus+ programme, the Movetia strategy to strengthen its exchange, mobility and cooperation activities after the COVID-19 crisis and the annual Movetia activities plan for the HEI.