This year is marked by extensive
celebrations all across Europe for the 20th anniversary of the Commission’s flagship programme in the field of education, the Erasmus programme. A recent Commission press release observes that
the biggest impact of the scheme has been felt in the Central and Eastern European countries. According to data collected by the Commission, some highlights of the Erasmus programme over the years are:
most of the 31 participating countries in the Erasmus programme experienced a growth of incoming mobility;
since the last academic year, Spain remained the most popular destination for students welcoming 26 629 over the year, with France in second place (21 424), followed by Germany (17 886) and the United Kingdom (16 365);
The academic year 2005-2006 was the second year in which Turkish universities successfully participated in the Erasmus programme: 2 852 Turkish students benefited.
For a more accurate idea of the programme’s success,
the Erasmus Student Network (ESN) launched a survey measuring student’s satisfaction with their stay abroad. During three months, ESNSurvey received more than 12000 replies with some of the following key results:
most of the students (98%) declared that they would recommend going abroad to their friends. Students felt more positive about their stay than about their studies;
the two most important reasons for students to go abroad were to have new experiences and to practice a foreign language. Nearly 80% of respondents said these two reasons were very important.
Press releaseESN survey 
