For over 35 years, the European Union has promoted the Erasmus programme, which promotes education, training and sport for young people throughout the region. And to strengthen this initiative, beneficiaries can also count on financial support from Banco Santander. As part of its commitment to higher education, the organization offers a package of assistance to promote overseas experience and employability among university students: the Santander Erasmus Scholarships.

Interested students can access these grants through the Santander Open Academy platform and register until March 27, 2024. The purpose of the scholarship program is recognize academic achievements Erasmus+ program participants, promote educational inclusion and equal opportunity with financial support of up to 1000 euros for studying at European universities.

The bank also offers a training and placement plan before, during and after your stay abroad to promote professional development. This initiative plays a fundamental role in the careers of many young people every year. Banco Santander has already committed €10.5 million to this program since 2018, which will benefit more than 21,500 university students when the 2024-2025 academic year ends.

The Santander Erasmus Scholarships program will provide a total of 3,000 scholarships following its expansion last year to Germany, Portugal and Poland. In the case of Spain, thanks to an agreement between Santander, the Ministry of Universities and the Spanish Crue Universities, 1,875 scholarships will be awarded to Erasmus students from Spanish universities for the next academic year.

According to Angel Rivera, CEO of Santander Spain, the bank’s main goal in providing these scholarships is: “add features” because “There is nothing more unfair and exclusionary than barriers to education.” Rivera recalled that Erasmus students “also build Europe, create a European identity and, in addition, return with better job opportunities after graduation.”

Recently, when signing the agreement, the Minister of Universities, Joan Subirats, emphasized that “the mobility of our students is fundamental to their learning processes and knowledge acquisition. ERASMUS+ is the program that has made the greatest contribution to European construction in more than 35 years of existence and shows us the way forward.” In turn, President of Crue Spanish Universities Eva Alkon emphasized that “Employers are looking for professionals who are highly adaptable and willing to work in multidisciplinary teams. and diverse, and the Santander Erasmus Scholarships help us as universities to ensure that this training, skills and competencies are accessible to those who deserve it most and need it most.”

More than 12 million people took part in this European exchange program.

The universities themselves will select the scholarship recipients. Among the requirements for participation (it is not necessary to be a bank client), candidates must be provided with assistance within the framework of the Erasmus+ study mobility program in Europe and/or an internship. Academic institutions may give priority in providing assistance to students who received a general (socio-economic) scholarship from the Ministry in the previous year, as well as those who have a disability equal to or greater than 33%.

The European Union’s Erasmus+ has been running for over three decades, and more than 12 million people have participated in this European exchange program. According to Santander, for the period 2021-2027, the initiative focuses on social inclusion, environmental and digital transition, as well as promoting the participation of young people in democratic life, supporting the priorities and activities set in the European Education Area, Digital Education Action Plan. and the European Skills Programme.

Focus on education

Banco Santander has an innovative and consolidated commitment to education, employment and entrepreneurship, which it has been developing for over 27 years through the Santander Universities. Since then, the bank has committed more than €2.2 billion and supported more than a million students, professionals and entrepreneurial projects through agreements with more than 1,300 universities. The company will commit $400 million through 2026 to education, employment and entrepreneurship. One of the latest bets is the evolution of the Santander scholarship platform into the new Santander Open Academy project, the essence of which remains the value of learning and lifelong learning as the best path to developing professional skills.

This platform has proven itself to be learning space where millions of people from all over the world and all ages can find not only scholarships, but also free courses and content to develop the skills most in demand in the job market. It’s a much larger place, but a much simpler, more complete and intuitive place to find everything you need to progress and access better job opportunities.

The Cantabrian group was recognized this year as one of the companies making the greatest difference in changing the world, according to Fortune magazine’s 2023 Change the World list, which annually highlights 50 companies that are helping solve some of society’s most important challenges. This award highlights the bank’s support of education, employment and entrepreneurship through the university program. one of the largest education initiatives in the world, driven by the private sector.