Jubilant Gen Zers are looking forward to ‘having the time of their lives’ again after plans for the UK to rejoin Erasmus were revealed.
An agreement to rejoin the EU’s student exchange programme is expected to be announced on Wednesday.
British students will reportedly be let back in to the scheme, which funds students to study, train, or gain work experience in Europe, from January 2027.
Students and recent graduates celebrated the announcement in chats with Metro but regretted the fact they were shut out of the £23bn programme just as they wanted to explore the continent.
Political science student Joe Cogan, who spent two semesters studying in Germany after Brexit, said his year abroad made him ‘a completely different person.’
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However while he was out making new friends from across Europe, his experience was held back by funding issues that came with the UK’s exclusion from Erasmus.
He told Metro: ‘Some of my closest friends remain the people I met during that year.
‘However, had I not spent the previous two years working every hour I wasn’t in uni, there was no way I could have afforded it, and lots of my time was spent stressed about the lack of funding and support offered by both my university and the Government.
‘I’m happy for future students as the return of Erasmus means they can focus on the experience.’
The UK government replaced the Erasmus funding after Brexit with the so-called Turing scheme.
But a 2024 analysis found that four out of five universities (79%) had difficulties with the application process.
One current Erasmus student, Will Milne, told Metro he didn’t get any Turing funding from his university for his year in Paris.
While he is able to support himself financially, he fears these funding issues could have excluded more disadvantaged students.
The 20-year-old said he is ‘having the best time of my entire life’ in the EU and is relieved that future generations of Brits will now get easier access to the continent once the UK is back in Erasmus.
The History and French student added: ‘I genuinely would say I’m having the best time of my entire life.
‘I think the opportunity to live somewhere else and appreciate how other people live has been really eye-opening.
‘At the end of the day we are all students across Europe and should benefit from equal opportunities and by being part of Erasmus students can be sure that this is the case.’
The announcement is bittersweet for those who were held back by Britain’s exclusion from the programme.
For recent Durham University graduate James Bamford, Brexit and the exit from Erasmus stopped him from having a year of exploration in Europe.
He told Metro: ‘I would have loved to do a year abroad with my French A-Level skills and my History degree but it was not worth it with visas to spend some time away from Durham.
‘I would have loved to go abroad but it just wasn’t feasible with prices and visas.
‘I think it’s great that they’re rejoining to give students the opportunity to choose to see more of the world as well as get a more rounded education.’
Erasmus also promotes opportunities for staff exchanges, partnerships between institutions, and projects that promote innovation, inclusion, and cultural exchange across Europe.
Rejoining the programme was a key tenet of demand from EU member nations to allow ‘reset’ talks with the UK to move forward.
The agreement was reportedly struck when EU relations minister, Nick Thomas-Symonds, met his EU counterpart, Maroš Šefčovič, in Brussels last Wednesday.
Keir Starmer said the UK does ‘need to get closer’ to the EU.
But former comms director to Boris Johnson, Guto Harri, said the U-turn on Erasmus was a ‘desperate attempt’ to get back in with the EU.
He told LBC: ‘Why should we be looking for our students only to go to European universities? I don’t want to be Eurocentric about this.
‘I would like to see young people go to Latin America, Africa and the Far East.
‘I’m a little bit anxious of this attempt to get back in through the back door. Nothing ever ends well if you go grovelling back to someone you had a bad break-up with.’
Speaking a few days before the announcement, arch-Brexiteer John Redwood warned: ‘The government’s wish to spend money on Erasmus and opening our borders to more young people from the EU fails to target our tax money and efforts on our own young people.
‘Instead they face more difficulty in finding a job and a home.’
However Brendan Donnelley, former Conservative MEP and now leader of The Rejoin EU party, said leaving Erasmus ‘destroyed and undermined’ key relationships in the academic world.
He told Metro: ‘It was a ridiculous thing that we opted out of Erasmus and I am glad we will rejoining it. I hope people will be happy to have us back in the system.
(Picture: REJOIN EU PARTY)
‘If you think that studying foreign cultures is something that enriches the life of British people then that is something that you can only welcome.
‘The immediate economic impact won’t be enormous. I think it is symbolically very important.
Leigh Middleton, OBE, CEO, National Youth Agency, said that leaving Erasmus ‘closed off vital opportunities for many, especially those from vulnerable and disadvantaged backgrounds.’
She added: ‘The decision to rejoin is significant. Young people of the UK deserve access to the same life-changing opportunities as their peers across the globe, whether through education, youth exchanges, or international collaboration on issues that matter to them.
‘This new deal is a commitment to equity and ambition. Every young person, regardless of background, now has access to experiences that inspire confidence, build skills, and connect them to the world.’
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