What is a Bilateral Agreement and How is it Made? 

- Agreement Format to be Used Between 2021-2027 (Program Countries) 

You can use this agreement format for your agreements from 2014-2020. However, this agreement form is only valid for agreements made between institutions in participant countries ( European Union Member States (28) Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, Estonia, Cyprus, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Malta, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, and Iceland, Macedonia, Liechtenstein, Norway). 

- Sample Bilateral Agreement Form 

WHAT IS AN ERASMUS BILATERAL AGREEMENT? 

The Erasmus Bilateral Agreement is an agreement made on a faculty and department basis between two higher education institutions to carry out exchanges of academic staff, students, and personnel. 

Erasmus has embarked on a new path with the motto of 'Digitalization' for the period 2021-2027. In this new period, environmental awareness is one of the most important topics, and in this context, the aim is to transform in to a 'Paperless Erasmus'. In line with this goal, our Erasmus Department Coordinators are expected to make the new agreements through the digital platform called "Erasmus Dashboard". To do this, the first step is to register with an official email to the Dashboard and receive a password: 

Then, the following steps need to be completed to make a new bilateral agreement: 

HOW TO MAKE A NEW BILATERAL AGREEMENT VIA DASHBOARD?   

There are two ways to make a pre-agreement for Erasmus; face-to-face agreement and agreement via email. 

1- Making a Face-to-Face Erasmus Bilateral Agreement   

Through the Erasmus Staff Training Mobility it is possible to make preliminary agreements to enable our staff, especially our academic personnel, to visit European universities to make bilateral agreements. Our efforts to increase the quotas for the training mobility are ongoing. Our office desires to increase our bilateral agreement count while our academic and administrative staff benefit from the Erasmus Program. The more bilateral agreements we have, the more students and staff can benefit from mobility, and our quotas will increase accordingly in the years following. 

Therefore, it is important for our academic and administrative staff who will apply for Erasmus Staff Training Mobility to apply to programs to go to universities in European countries (ECHE holders) with which we do not have agreements. 

You should meet with the Erasmus Coordinator of the department you want to make an agreement with at the university you will visit and reach an agreement on the preliminary agreement for Erasmus. Then, either you or the authorized person from the counterpart institution can create an agreement proposal via the Dashboard. 

2- Making an Erasmus Bilateral Agreement via Email 

  First, you should find a contact email address from the counterpart institution. The coordinator of the department you will make an agreement with would be the most suitable contact. The Erasmus+ Coordinator or Erasmus Coordination Office of the counterpart institution would also be suitable alternatives. 

  After reaching mutual agreement on the bilateral agreement text, either you or the authorized person from the counterpart institution can create an agreement proposal via the Dashboard. 

  Finally, inform our Erasmus Coordination by sending an email to [email protected] for archiving and announcement purposes. 

  You can use the email template below when sending the draft of the bilateral agreement or create a new proposal email. 

  Subject: Erasmus+ Bilateral Agreement Proposal/OTU/Ankara/Türkiye 

Dear Colleague, 

It is my privilege to correspond with you on behalf of OSTİM Technical University (OTU), Türkiye. Our institution is currently in the process of seeking new Erasmus partners for academic cooperation as ALKU. After thorough examination of your website, we found out that <<Name of the University>> has suitable academic departments with which we wish to initiate an Erasmus based cooperation. 

We are open to broader cooperation that includes other suitable departments as well.   

Please find our course catalogue and additional information on our website.   

Our institution's website can be accessed at the following link: https://www.ostimteknik.edu.tr/.   

We would greatly appreciate any assistance, advice, or suggestions you may offer.   

Best Regards, 

  Erasmus Departmental Coordinator  

<<Your Title, Name and Surname>>   

OSTİM Technical University 

Ankara, TÜRKİYE 

Attachments that can be added to the email 

  - OSTİM Technical University Brochure 

Points to Consider When Making a Bilateral Agreement 

When making a bilateral agreement, it is important that the agreement is clear and detailed in terms of its conditions, as this will eliminate any potential issues that may arise during the implementation process. Therefore, attention should be paid to the following points when making an agreement: 

• The Coordinator making the Bilateral Agreement must clearly specify the language of education for both our University and the partner university in the agreement. 
• It is important for the Unit Coordinator to examine the academic calendar of the partner university to be informed about the subject. 
• The exchange level (associate degree, undergraduate, graduate, doctoral) must be clearly stated in the agreement. 
• The course contents of the partner university must be examined before the agreement is made, and the agreement must be finalized with no possibility of equivalence problems occurring. Once the agreement is concluded, it is implicit that our Unit will consider all courses taken by the student at the partner university to be equivalent to the total ECTS credit value of the courses at our university.  
• Candidate students should be informed by the Unit Coordinators about the existing Bilateral Agreements before the application dates (language of instruction, valid semester/semesters, the partner university's academic calendar, etc.). 
• Other academic staff should inform the Unit Coordinator and the department head when making bilateral agreements. They should also seek support from the Unit Coordinator during the finalization and signing of the agreement. 

Erasmus Coordination Office