On October 15, the “Erasmus+4ME” event was held at the National Library of Armenia in the frames of the “Erasmus Days 2024“. The event was organised by the National Erasmus+ Office in Armenia and the “Erasmus Student Network Armenia”.

The purpose of the event was to present the opportunities available through Erasmus+ to Armenian stakeholders, while showcasing the success stories of beneficiaries to inspire young people to apply and transform their lives.

About 130 young people and distinguished guests participated in the event – the head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia Vassilis Maragos, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Armenia Marieke Monroy-Winter, the attaché of the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Armenia Maria Kardzović, representatives of RA Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports were present.

The event began with a greeting from the Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia, Ambassador Vasilis Maragos. In his speech, he noted that significant progress has been made in Armenia through the Erasmus+ program, but much work is yet to be done. The ambassador emphasised the importance of expanding opportunities to provide quality education for young people and assured that the EU will continue to contribute to the development of education, sports, and youth in Armenia through various projects and events.

The attendees were also welcomed by Anna Chulyan, Director of the National Library of Armenia; Lana Karlova, Coordinator of the National Erasmus+ Office in Armenia; and Arpine Babayan, President of the Erasmus Student Network Armenia. The event was moderated by Nane Bejanyan, a member of the Erasmus Student Network Armenia.

At the beginning of the event, Arpine Babayan presented the activities of Erasmus Student Network Armenia and introduced the idea of creating “Erasmus Park,” which is planned to be realised in connection with the 40th anniversary of the Erasmus+ program.

Next, Lana Karlova, Coordinator of the National Erasmus+ Office in Armenia, spoke about the Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility programs, explaining how to apply, the prerequisites, and the available funding opportunities.

Graduates of the program, Sergey Sirunyan (Armenian State University of Economics) and Gayane Aznavuryan (Yerevan State University), shared their experiences. They talked about their university life, academic and research achievements, and travels in Poland and Italy, respectively.

Following them, Arpine Jraghatspanyan, the Program Manager of the National Erasmus+ Office in Armenia, presented the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s programs, explaining the application procedures and financing conditions.

Anna Nahapetyan, a 2022-2024 graduate of the DYCLAM+ Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s program and the representative of the Erasmus Mundus Association in Armenia, shared her experience with the participants. She provided a great amount of motivation by discussing her academic and extracurricular experiences, professional internships, challenges, and how she overcame them.

The second part of the event focused on the presentation of Erasmus+ informal programs. It began with Mariam Hovsepyan and Nona Hovhannisyan, representatives of the “Uniting Bridge” NGO, who discussed the Erasmus+ “Youth” short-term programs. Mane Tsaturyan, Vice President of Erasmus Student Network Armenia, followed by presenting the European Solidarity Corps programs and sharing her experience in Portugal.

The event concluded with representatives of the “Young European Ambassadors” initiative, who introduced the participants to their initiative and the membership opportunities it offers.

Throughout the event, participants had the opportunity to ask numerous questions and received comprehensive answers from the speakers.

Overall, the event thoroughly addressed all the opportunities offered to individuals by the Erasmus+ program and inspired attendees to apply for these programs in the near future.