Frequently Asked Questions

• European Credit Transfer System is an academic equivalence system that enables a fair recognition of course assessments for students who study at higher institutions in different program countries. 
• The credit values are calculated according to the workload of each course. 
• Course load for undergraduate students per semester is regarded as 30 ECTS and selecting a course list equivalent to the diploma program at Işık University and comprised of a course load of 30 ECTS at the partner institution is one of the fundamental principles of Erasmus+ study mobility program.

For students to be eligible for an Erasmus+ grant, they need to have at least 30 ECTS course load for the mobility semester. Together with courses that have not been completed, courses underachieved with a notation of DC or below can also be accepted as course load. Students who do not meet the requirement of 30 ECTS course load can attend the program without a grant.

For the equivalence of compulsory courses and departmental electives, compatibility of the course content is required. For other elective courses, category compatibility is found sufficient. Since department and program curriculums at partner institutions cannot fully be equivalent to those at Işık University, students are advised to prepare a course list comprised of courses that correspond to their Complementary, HSS and Free Electives.

Semester selection should be made considering the course offers, the compatibility of academic calendars of our institution and the partner institution, the plan of your remaining course load here at Işık and deadlines for scholarship applications etc. For academic matters that can influence your decision, you should consult the Erasmus Departmental Coordinator. Mobility applications are accepted on a term basis and students who plan to extend their mobility to complete one academic year at a partner institution should apply to Fall term. Mobility in Spring cannot be extended to the following academic year.

You should firstly pay attention to the language of instruction at partner institutions as you make your research for your selection. Every year, despite being indicated on the partner institution list, many students organize their selection list with institutions that offer courses in a language they have no prior knowledge of. As a result of this, although they are placed, they cannot attend mobility. In some program countries such as Germany, Spain, Italy and Belgium, proficiency in the native language/s of the country besides English can be preferred.
With some institutions, we may be holding an agreement on the basis of the faculty of your study program or another general study area that can involve your program, instead of directly your study program. For instance, the agreement can be in Social Sciences or Anthropology instead of Psychology. In that case, students place in those institutions can be enrolled at a different department than theirs at their home institution and attend courses that will be equivalent to their Free, HSS or Complementary Elective courses. This distinction regarding the study fields is specified on the agreements list.

The ideal time to attend mobility would be the final years of your study period (3rd or 4th year for undergraduate students) when your course load is generally comprised of your elective courses. However, completing some courses such as term projects or final projects that are scheduled in the last year at the partner institution instead of Işık may not be allowed by some faculties. Timing should always be discussed with Erasmus Departmental Coordinators.

Learning Agreement is the document through which you propose the courses you will attend and claim on your return for the approval of each institution. Courses you plan to attend that are equivalent to 30 ECTS are listed on Table A in the Before the Mobility section. In Table B, the corresponding courses or course categories at Işık University and their credit information are stated. The document is signed by you, your departmental coordinator at Işık and the responsible person at the receiving institution before your mobility period starts. Some institutions expect this document to be completed for the application. Students are advised to make a preliminary research on course offers and their course load at Işık that can be congruent with the offers even before they are asked to prepare this document.

• Online Linguistic Support (OLS) is designed to assist Erasmus+ participants (study, traineeship or European Voluntary Service) in improving their knowledge of and skills in the language they will be instructed or trained in during their mobility period. 
• OLS is made up of 2 language assessments and online courses, which are offered in 12 different languages, namely in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Greek, Polish, Czech, Danish, Swedish and Portuguese.
• If the participant passes the assessment with a grade between A1 and B1, automatically a language course is sent. Logging in to this course program at least once before the date set is obligatory.
• There are two assessments, one for the beginning and one for the end of the mobility, both of which are compulsory to complete according to the principles of the European Commission. Participants do not receive their grants unless they complete the first assessment. If the second assessment is not completed, 20% of the grant received should be returned.
• Assessments are only for determining the proficiency and the result of the assessments would never avoid your participation in the mobility program. It is targeted to observe the improvement of the students’ language skills in the duration of the mobility by these assessments. The results can only be checked by the student and the sending institution. Your host institution will not be informed of your results. 
• Assessment invitation link is sent to students who submit all departure documents through e-mail. For more information about the assessments, you can visit http://erasmusplusols.eu/

The Euro account that your grant will be transferred to should be at Akbank; however it can be opened at any of the bank's branches.

You should mark the courses you will drop as "Deleted" and the new courses you will attend as "Added" on the table. For your new course list at the receiving institution and their equivalence, you need to consult your departmental coordinator. The courses in the Before the Mobility tables which will be proceeded with do not need to be included in the During the Mobility tables. Sign under the During the Mobility page first and then request a signature from the receiving institution. Later, send your scanned Learning Agreement to your Departmental Coordinator at Işık for approval. If your new course list is approved, prepare a new Course Transfer Table with the same content and send it to your Departmental Coordinator after you sign it. Documents for your course changes should be prepared within the first month of your mobility period.

Extensions can only be made from the Fall semester to the Spring semester in the same academic year.

In case that our institution is entitled to supplementary funding, students who extend their mobility period for another term with a course load of 30 ECTS, return succeeding in 20 ECTS and submit and complete their return documents and procedures can be funded. Students who do not request funding can extend their mobility with the condition of a minimum course load of 20 ECTS. If the course offers at the partner institution are announced, their compatibility with the remaining courses at Işık should be discussed with the departmental coordinator. For the approval of extension, the following documents should be submitted to the International Office:

• An official Letter of Acceptance from the host institution for the new semester.
• A copy of the fully signed Learning Agreement Before the Mobility
• A copy of the fully signed Credit Transfer Table

The total amount of Erasmus+ grant that will be provided to higher education institutions is determined by the Turkish National Agency.
The monthly grant amount given in the table below is a unit of measure; however, it does not reflect the monthly payment you will receive for the whole duration of your stay. By our institution, students are partially granted for Monthly Study/Traineeship Grant x 3 before their mobility and benefit from supplementary grant depending on the budget as well as their academic performance.

YCourses completed with notes with DC and below can be referred to as part of your course load and be repeated during the mobility; however, as it is the case for all courses to be attended and transferred, the final decision of compliance of repetition and the corresponding courses will be given by the Faculty board.

You can search for traineeship announcement on the following web sites:
http://erasmusintern.org/
http://www.iagora.com
http://www.globalplacement.com
http://www.praxisnetwork.eu/
https://leonet.joeplus.org

Our office also shares some announcements that might attract our students on its Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/isikinternational/

In addition to the announcements, you can also refer to your departmental coordinator and academicians that are responsible for student apprenticeships in your department and request suggestions for your country and enterprise selection.

Students need to find the place of traineeship individually. Through our website and Facebook page, you can be informed about some traineeship opportunities that we are notified of. The duration of activity is from 2 to 12 months for undergraduate and graduate students. Hosting organizations can be enterprises, companies, training and research centers.

Organizations below are not eligible for Erasmus+ traineeship mobility:

• European Union organizations and agencies
• Organizations that run and that are funded in the scope of EU programs
• National diplomatic missions of Türkiye at program countries

If you need to complete a traineeship as part of your curriculum and if your traineeship mobility is approved as equivalent to that module by the Faculty board, it can be transferred as your compulsory traineeship and it is recorded in your diploma supplement.

If your proposed traineeship mobility program does not fulfill the requirements of your compulsory traineeship, or if you have already realized or do not have a traineeship as part of your study program, mobility can be transferred as a Free Elective or Complementary Elective course worth 5 ECTS, with a Pass (P) notation.

In the case that the mobility is planned to be transferred as part of your curriculum, you need to prepare your Learning Agreement and Credit Transfer Table documents accordingly and these documents will be submitted to the International Office, to be eventually submitted to the approval of the Faculty board.

Accommodation is not in the responsibility of the National Agency or the sending institution. However, International Offices at the receiving institutions can inform students about housing facilities provided by their institution and assist them in their housing applications.

Beneficiary students are personally responsible for the visa procedures. It is crucial that students complete the documents requested by the country's consulate / embassy for their applications. In order to facilitate that visa procedures for mobility students, our office can issue an official grant letter upon the request of the students.