On June 28th, two training events were held under the umbrella of the EDSSI project. With approximately 400 registered participants in total, the trainings dealt with two of the three main components of the European Digital Student Service Infrastructure: 

• The interoperability component which ensures that all information related to Erasmus+ study mobility management can be retrieved with the assistance of the network (also known as EWP Network); 
• and the WebService component which integrates one of the main innovations of the project, the Student Service Providers’ Erasmus Dashboard module.

Student services more visible with the SSP module

The training on the Student Service Providers’ (SSP) module introduced to International Relations Officers (IRO) the different models of SSPs currently existing in Europe.

During the training, participants had the chance to hear from representatives of two student service providers based in Italy, EDUCatt and In-Domus. The experiences shared confirmed how fragmented the reality on the ground is when looking at the relations between SSPs and the services offered to international/Erasmus+ students. Notwithstanding the high fragmentation, trainers emphasised how the module created in the framework of the EDSSI project can be used irrespective of the place or the nature of the SSP. 

Following a short Q&A session, IROs received a walk-through of the SSP Erasmus Dashboard module by one of the developers from the University of Porto. The SSP module on the Erasmus Dashboard will allow Student Service Providers to share the plethora of services offered with the local Higher Education Institutions and more importantly with international students currently on Erasmus in a safe and comprehensive way.

Finally, throughout the training it was highlighted how it is of paramount importance to establish good communication among all the stakeholders involved, namely the service providers, the universities and the students. 

A message to the new IROs: you are not alone!

Regarding the training about the EWP Network, the intended goal was to lay down basic yet essential information about the Erasmus Without Paper Network as well as its interaction with the EDSSI architecture, particularly for those International Relations Officers (IRO) or Erasmus coordinators with less than 1 year of working experience.

After a brief overview of the Erasmus+ programme where some interesting facts were shared about the programme, the presentation explained how the EDSSI Infrastructure has been acting as the missing link, connecting the existing services/tools with one another and ensuring that there is generalised quality in the management of the digital tools of the Erasmus programme at European level. 

Moreover, considerable time was given to answering questions raised following the consultation of the preliminary materials shared with registered participants ahead of the training. 

Through a participative and interactive exercise, IROs were asked to answer questions specifically crafted to build up a basic flow of an Erasmus+ mobility project with the objective of helping attendees to pinpoint moments when EWP Network supports Erasmus+ digital administration and coordination. 

On average, participants gave a rating of 4.9 out of 10 to the loneliness they feel when dealing with the coordination of Erasmus+ project and issues related to digitalisation in Erasmus+ in their institution. Additionally, approximately 50% of the participants revealed as feeling completely alone when dealing with these issues. In response to the poll, trainers reiterated the message that IROs are not necessarily alone. Many potential allies were listed as key contact points when dealing with different aspects of project implementation such as IT/Finance/Communication departments within HEI, National Agencies at national level, university networks and organisations and the entire Erasmus+ community at European level. The ESCI help desk is also there to support IROs with questions about EWP Network operations.

If you are interested in exploring the training materials, please visit the Support page. More training events will be organised under the EDSSI L2 and the EWP+ projects in Autumn 2022. Would like to be the first to know about them? Subscribe to the Erasmus Without Paper LinkedIn group and follow the European University Foundation on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook.