Magali Ballatore

The Erasmus Programme in France, Italy and the United Kingdom: student mobility as a signal of distinction and privilege

With three million participants since 1987, Erasmus promotes educational and crosscultural exchange. It claims to be the worlds most successful student exchange scheme. The pertinent question is, successful for whom? This mixed-methods study of 758 survey respondents and over 100 interviews of Erasmus participants and non-participants in France, Italy and the UK finds that participation differs by social class. Compared with sedentary students, Erasmus students engaged in more academic and leisurely travel and have higher socio-economic status (SES). The authors argue that in the age of increased education access, an Erasmus year may be used to signal distinction and privilege. Participants are also more open to international opportunities, increasing their employment chances and further reinforcing their advantages.

Vers un enseignement supérieur européen concurrentiel

Le programme Erasmus est considere comme l’une des reussites les plus notables de la politique sociale europeenne. Les echanges d’etudiants en Europe faciliteraient la convergence des systemes et la reconnaissance mutuelle des diplomes europeens. A partir d’une enquete comparative par etude de cas dans trois pays europeens, cet article analyse l’orientation des flux de la mobilite etudiante institutionnalisee et ses liens avec les nouveaux mouvements migratoires des jeunes diplomes en Europe. Il decrit ainsi les premices de la construction d’un espace europeen de l’enseignement superieur, concurrentiel.