EUPHRATES Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort Period of applications extended until 21st January 2016 Period for applications: From 16 th November 2015 to 07 th January 2016 1. INTRODUCTION... 2 2. GENERAL ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS... 2 3. TARGET GROUPS... 3 4. TYPES OF MOBILITY... 3 5. MOBILITY FLOWS... 4 6. GRANT AMOUNTS... 5 7. APPLICATION PROCEDURE... 5 8. REQUIRED DOCUMENTS... 6 9. SELECTION PROCESS... 8 10. PRE-SELECTION AND SELECTION CRITERIA... 9 11. CRITERIA FOR EXCLUSION... 10 12. CALL FOR APPLICATIONS SCHEDULE... 10 EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 1
1. INTRODUCTION EUPHRATES is a project selected in the framework of the Erasmus Mundus programme, aiming at fostering cooperation in the field of Higher Education between European and Indian Institutions through a mobility scheme addressing student and staff exchanges. The current call for applications covers a unilateral mobility from India to Europe (Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Lithuania, Greece, Slovenia) Applicants are kindly requested to carefully read all the information contained in this document before proceeding to fulfil and submit their online application form. Once you have checked that you are eligible for an EUPHRATES grant, please proceed to fill and upload all needed documents in the online application tool available for that purpose. The application will have to be submitted online by means of this online application tool, no paper versions nor e-mail applications will be accepted. 2. GENERAL ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS In order to apply for a grant within the framework of EUPHRATES project, candidates must comply with the following general requirements: - They must have Indian nationality. - They must have sufficient knowledge of the language of instruction of the host universities they apply to. It is necessary to check the academic offer of the host university the candidate applies for to get further information. - Grants cannot be awarded to those candidates who have lived and carried out their main activities (studies, work etc.) for more than a total of 12 months over the last five years in a European country. This rule is not applicable to Target Group 3 nor to Staff candidates. - Grants cannot be awarded to candidates who had already had an Euphrates grant in the previous cohorts. EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 2
3. TARGET GROUPS EUPHRATES allows participation of candidates belonging to 3 different target groups accurately defined: Target Group 1 (TG1): Indian Students and Academic/Administrative Staff registered in one of the partner universities belonging to the consortium (***visit section Our consortium in the webpage http://www.usc.es/euphrates in order to know which universities are members of the consortium). Target Group 2 (TG2): Candidates need either to be registered in a Higher Education Institution (not included in the partnership) of an Indian Institution or to have obtained a university degree or equivalent from a Higher Education Institution (HEI) in India. Target Group 3 (TG3): Nationals of India consortium in a particularly vulnerable situation due to social and political reasons. Proof of this vulnerable situation is requested from all candidates alleging this status. For instance, the following circumstances will be considered: Scheduled casts and tribes and backward classes Refugees. Ex-prisoners (except those because of criminal reasons). Son/Daughter of prisoners or ex-prisoners (except those because of criminal reasons). Specific documents proving their status must be issued by: The corresponding United Nations Agency. International Committee of the Red Cross. The corresponding Ministry of the country concerned. Depending on the target group concerned, candidates can only submit applications for some academic levels (please, check section 5 entitled Mobility Flows ). 4. TYPES OF MOBILITY EUPHRATES includes 5 types of mobility according to the academic level of the candidates: Undergraduate Master Doctorate (PhD) Post-doctorate Academic/Administrative staff (TS) Taking into account the above mentioned levels, candidates must meet the following specific requirements: EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 3
Undergraduate candidates: they must have successfully completed at least one year of studies at their home institutions. Master candidates: they must have obtained a Bachelor diploma. PhD candidates: they must have obtained a Master diploma. PhD and Post-doctorate candidates: should contact their respective potential supervisors at the hosting institution before applying in order to get a preadmission/ invitation letter. In several host institutions preadmission/acceptance from a supervisor will be the main/priority condition for eligibility of the doctoral and post-doctoral candidates. Academic/Administrative Staff: both academic and administrative staff should contact their respective counterpart at the host university in order to accordingly draw up their teaching/work plan. A preadmission/ invitation letter will also be necessary to apply for this academic level. ** Preadmission/ Invitation letters by the host universities do not imply that the candidate has been already selected. 5. MOBILITY FLOWS Find below the academic levels offered in each target group: TARGET GROUP 1 TARGET GROUP 2 Academic Level Duration in months Bachelor 6, 10 months Master 6, 10 months PHD Postdoc Staff Not available grants 6 months 1 month Academic Level Bachelor Master PHD Postdoc Staff Duration in months Not available grants 10 months 10 months 6 months 1 month EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 4
TARGET GROUP 3 Academic Level Bachelor Master PHD Postdoc Staff Duration in months 10 months 10 months Not available grants Not available grants Not available grants 6. GRANT AMOUNTS EUPHRATES will cover travel and insurance costs of the beneficiaries and monthly allowances whose amount will vary depending on their academic level: 1.000,00 per month for Undergraduate and Master 1.500,00 per month for Doctorate 1.800,00 per month for Post-doctorate 2.500,00 per month for Academic/Administrative Staff 7. APPLICATION PROCEDURE Candidates have to apply online through the EUPHRATES online application form (http://www.usc.es/euphrates/admin), uploading the required supporting documents. Originals of the attached supporting documents may be requested to preselected TG1 candidates for examination by their home universities. Originals of the attached documentation of TG2 and TG3 candidates may be requested for examination once they arrive to the host university. All candidates may apply for a maximum of two host universities. 7.1 Online Application Form The online application form is only available in English. All documents must be submitted in English or translated to English. EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 5
7.2. Deadline The online application tool will be available from 16th November 2015 until 7 th January 2016, both days included. Applications after this deadline are not accepted. 8. REQUIRED DOCUMENTS Candidates must attach to their application the following compulsory documents according to their academic level: Candidates applying for BACHELOR: Passport copy 1 Curriculum Vitae (European CV Europass - ) 2 Language certificate(s) ** it is necessary to check if there are specific language requirements in the academic offer of the prospective host university, available in the webpage. Motivation Letter (maximum 2 pages) Bachelor Transcript of Records Exact name of the study programme you plan to do in the host university (***Please, check the academic offer of the host/european university you apply in order to include this information in the online application tool. Any candidature without this information will be automatically excluded) Official proof of Target Group 3 status, only for candidates applying under TG3 Letter stating Target Group 1 status, only for candidates applying under TG1 (template available in the last page of this document) Candidates applying for MASTER: Passport copy1 Curriculum Vitae (European CV Europass - ) 2 Language certificate(s) ** it is necessary to check if there are specific language requirements in the academic offer of the prospective host university, available in the webpage. Motivation Letter (maximum 2 pages) Bachelor Certificate (if the grantee does not have this certificate at the moment of submitting the application, he/she should submit a letter signed by the home 1 In addition to the Passport copy, any other official document (such as ID Card) giving proof of the candidate s identity will be accepted. 2 The template of the Europass CV can be downloaded here: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/europass/home/hornav/downloads/europasscv/cvtemplate.csp EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 6
university stating that he/she is currently enrolled and he/she will get the diploma by 1 st July 2016). Bachelor Transcript of Records Master Transcript of Records (only if applicable) Exact name of the study programme you plan to do in the host university (***Please, check the academic offer of the host/european university you apply in order to include this information in the online application tool. Any candidature without this information will be automatically excluded) Official proof of Target Group 3 status, only for candidates applying under TG3 Letter stating Target Group 1 status, only for candidates applying under TG1 (template available in the last page of this document) Candidates applying for DOCTORATE: Passport copy1 Curriculum Vitae (European CV Europass - ) 2 Language certificate(s) ** it is necessary to check if there are specific language requirements in the academic offer of the prospective host university, available in the webpage. Motivation Letter (maximum 2 pages) Bachelor Certificate Bachelor Transcript of Records Master Certificate (if the grantee does not have this certificate at the moment of submitting the application, he/she should submit a letter signed by the home university stating that he/she is currently enrolled and he/she will get the diploma by 1 st July 2016). Master Transcript of Records Research proposal: title and short description (maximum 2 pages) A pre-admission/ invitation letter by the host university (compulsory). Please, upload it in section Other documents. Official proof of Target Group 3 status, only for candidates applying under TG3 Letter stating Target Group 1 status, only for candidates applying under TG1 (template available in the last page of this document) Candidates applying for POSTDOCTORATE: Passport copy1 Curriculum Vitae (European CV Europass - ) 2 Language certificate(s) ** it is necessary to check if there are specific language requirements in the academic offer of the prospective host university, available in the webpage. Motivation Letter (maximum 2 pages) PhD Certificate (if the grantee does not have this certificate at the moment of submitting the application, he/she should submit a letter signed by the home EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 7
university stating that he/she is currently enrolled and he/she will get the diploma by 1 st July 2016). Thesis Summary (maximum 2 pages) Research proposal: title and short description (maximum 2 pages) A pre-admission/ invitation letter by the host university (compulsory). Please, upload it in section Other documents. Official proof of Target Group 3 status, only for candidates applying under TG3 Letter stating Target Group 1 status, only for candidates applying under TG1 (template available in the last page of this document) Candidates applying for ACADEMIC/ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF: Passport copy 1 Curriculum Vitae (European CV Europass - ) 2 Language certificate(s) ** it is necessary to check if there are specific language requirements in the academic offer of the prospective host university, available in the webpage. 1 Recommendation letter duly signed Motivation Letter (maximum 2 pages) Teaching/Working plan A pre-admission/ invitation letter by the host university /European university (compulsory). Please, upload it in section Other documents. Letter stating Target Group 1 status, only for candidates applying under TG1 (template available in the last page of this document) 9. SELECTION PROCESS Phase 1: Pre-selection by home and host universities Each partner university will set up a pre-selection committee in charge of examining and grading all home and host candidates. As a result, a list of pre-selected candidates will be drawn up according to the pre-selection criteria shown in section below of this document. Phase 2: Final selection A Selection Committee made up of one representative of the coordinating institution (USC), one representative of each partner university and an External Evaluator will examine and grade the ranking of pre-selected candidates according to the selection criteria shown in section below, in order to draw up the final list of beneficiaries as EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 8
well as the reserve list. The final list of beneficiaries must be validated by all host universities. Phase 3: Notification of selection All selected candidates will be informed of the award decision and they will have one week to accept or reject the grant. Candidates rejected and those in the reserve list will also be duly informed through an e-mail notification. Phase 4: Invitation and visa procedures Beneficiaries will receive an invitation letter from the host institutions in order to start their visa arrangements. It is the responsibility of the selected candidates to provide all necessary documents requested by the Embassies/Consulates of the host universities. Local coordinators from host institutions may provide them with assistance and information about the visa procedure. 10. PRE-SELECTION AND SELECTION CRITERIA Pre-selection criteria(to be applied by host universities during the pre-selection phase) CONCEPT MARK Academic records 55 Language skills 30 Academic suitability and relevance of the application 10 Motivation 05 TOTAL 100 The Selection Committee will agree the final list of selected candidates on the basis of the ranking of pre-selected candidates. In case of candidates with the same mark as well as in order to meet the project principles, the following additional criteria can be applied by the Selection Committee: Gender balance Priority of disadvantaged and vulnerable groups Geographical balance Language skills Impact of the project proposal (applicable to Doctorate, Post-doc and Staff) EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 9
11. CRITERIA FOR EXCLUSION Candidates that do not meet the general requirements of the call for applications will be automatically excluded. This applies to candidates not submitting the compulsory documents required for applying to each specific academic level and not complying with the specific Target Group requirements. Each host university reserves the right to determine the ineligibility of candidates on the basis of the following reasons: Specific academic programme not available Quality/Inadequacy of academic curriculum Lack of correspondence between home and host studies Insufficient Language skills Additionally, candidates will be excluded if: They apply for an academic level that they have already completed If they apply to different academic levels If the name of the study programme they plan to do at the host university is not indicated. The academic offer of each university is available in the Erasmus Mundus EUPHRATES webpage (http://www.usc.es/euphrates) in Section Mobility Call 13. CALL FOR APPLICATIONS SCHEDULE Publication of the call for applications 16 th November 2015 Deadline for submission of applications and documentation Extended until 21st January 2016 Pre-selection of candidates January February 2016 Selection Committee Meeting April 2016 Publication of results May 2016 Sending of invitation letters to beneficiaries May 2016 Visa applications May August 2016 Start of mobility period End of mobility grants From August 2016 onwards All mobilities should be finished by July 2016 EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 10
ANNEX (Fields of study, to select from the HOST INSTITUTION) ** Applicants for other fields of study will be automatically rejected, except for Teaching-Administrative Staff List of thematic fields of study. APPLICABLE TO UNDERGRADUATE, MASTER, DOCTORAL AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES 01 Agriculture Sciences 01,1 Agriculture 01,2 Agricultural Economics 01,3 Food Science and Technology 01,4 Horticulture 01,5 Fisheries 01,6 Forestry 01,7 Animal Husbandry 01,8 Tropical/Subtropical Agriculture 01,9 Others Agricultural Sciences 06 Engineering, Technology 06,1 Mechanical Engineering 06,2 Electrical Engineering 06,3 Chemical Engineering 06,4 Civil Engineering 06,5 Electronic Engineering, Telecommunications 06,6 Manufacturing Sciences (including CAD, CAM, CAE) 06,7 Materials Science 06,8 Aeronautical Engineering 06,9 Others Engineering, Technology 12 Medical Sciences 12,1 Medicine 12,2 Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology 12,3 Dentistry 12,4 Veterinary Medicine 12,5 Pharmacy 12,6 Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy 12,7 Public Health 12,8 Medical Technology 12,9 Others Medical Sciences 13 Natural Sciences 13,1 Biology 13,2 Physics 13,3 Chemistry 13,4 Microbiology, Biotechnology 13,5 Nuclear and High Energy Physics 13,6 Biochemistry 13,7 Astronomy, Astrophysics 13,8 Oceanography 13,9 Others Natural Sciences EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 11
SOME TEMPLATES (as a reference) YOU WILL FIND IN THE FOLLOWING PAGES: 1. The template of the Europass CV can be downloaded here: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/europass/home/hornav/downloads/europassc V/CVTemplate.csp 2. Invitation letter from home University only for TG1 candidates 3. Invitation / preadmission letter from host university (only for PHD, Postdoc and Staff applicants). 4. Motivation letter EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 12
Home University Support Letter (TG1 Applicants only) I undersigned (First name) (Last name) Enrolled or working at... (Name of University) Intend to apply for a mobility program starting in 2016 under the Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 project EUPHRATES for the following programme(s):.. (name of University).. (name of University).... (course/programme).... (course/programme).. (Date) (Signature of applicant) Home University Contact Person (Target Group 1 Applicants only): Approval of Home University Name (Block Capitals): Signature:.. University Stamp:.. EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 13
HOST ACCEPTANCE LETTER (Only for PHD, Postdoc and Academic-Administrative Staff candidates) [Applicant s name] has contacted our [host university department name] in order to apply for a Erasmus Mundus Action 2 scholarship in [name of the academic programme] at the [name of the host university] in the next academic year 2016/2017. We will be in the position of accepting her/him in case s/he fulfills the requirements of the concerned academic programme and s/he results selected in the final selection process. [Place, date]: Signature: Name: Position: EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 14
MOTIVATION LETTER (Please, write at least one page) Name: Surname: Passport number/ ID Number: Home Institution (in case you are TG1): Host institution chosen: EXPLAIN THE REASONS WHY YOU CHOSE THIS PROGRAMME (your goals, if you expect any improvements for your home as well for your host university, any information that you consider relevant to get this scholarship, etc) EUPHRATES Erasmus Mundus Action 2 Strand 1 Lot 13 Call for applications guidelines 3 rd Cohort 15