Andrea’s first Erasmus+ exchange to the University of Maastricht
Last month, I had the unique privilege of kicking off this year’s first episode of the Erasmus Generation Perspective podcast, joined by Erasmus+ legend, Andrea Bittnerova. Originally hailing from Ostrava, an industrial city situated on the eastern border of the Czech Republic, Andrea first became involved with the Erasmus+ programme when she joined her local ESN section in Brno, during her first semester of study at Masaryk University, back in October 2011. However, it was not until Andrea’s exchange to the Netherlands and the University of Maastricht, in the autumn semester of 2012, that her Erasmus+ journey really began to shape her life in a profound way.
Like many of Andrea’s peers, this new international challenge proved to be a daunting prospect for her in the beginning, as it would be the first time that she would live and study abroad. According to Andrea, she felt a potent mixture of ambivalent emotions right before leaving her home country: ‘I was very, very excited, but at the same time I remember being really scared just before I left; wondering whether I had made the right decision. It was the first time I would be away from my mum, and my mum is my best friend, so that was something I was worried about’.
Fortunately, and as is usually the case, these anxious feelings that often precede Erasmus+ exchanges subsided for Andrea once she set foot in her host country: ‘But…I just can't explain it. The moment I got there, everything just felt so right; I knew I was going to have an amazing time, and I did!’. For any anxious students still hesitant about whether to take the Erasmus+ exchange plunge, Andrea advises accepting the fear of the new journey, instead of fighting it: ‘It's okay that it's scary. It would be weird if people didn't feel nervous or scared about it’.
Despite Andrea only spending one semester at the University of Maastricht, life in this new and open international environment left an indelible mark on her: ‘It definitely makes you very open-minded when you're studying with people from all around the world. It made me a better person and gave me a better outlook on life’.
The inevitable return home
Unfortunately for Andrea, however, her magical semester in Maastricht ended all too soon, as is often the case for many Erasmus+ students. But instead of letting the infamous ‘post-Erasmus blues’ haunt the return to her home country, Andrea was inspired to spread the world of Erasmus+ to a new group of people, taking on an even deeper role within her local ESN section in Brno.
But Andrea didn’t stop there. More impressively still, Andrea was appointed as National Representative for Erasmus Student Network Czech Republic in January 2016, which was an incredible personal milestone for her: ‘The following year was one of the best years of my life. I was running around Europe, going to these statutory meetings in Finland, Romania, Malta and Poland. It was amazing’.
Erasmus+ is for life!
In terms of the essential skills that Andrea acquired, she cannot speak highly enough of their long-lasting impact: ‘It was thanks to ESN that I landed my first full-time job in the field of non-formal education and NGOs. I can honestly say that if it wasn’t for ESN, I wouldn’t be able to use the skills that I use now’.
Furthermore, thanks to the enduring social impact of Erasmus+, Andrea is still in touch with friends she made during this period: ‘To this day, I have friends from ESN that are very good ones. Some of them I see maybe once a year, but I know that these will be friends for life because we've gone through something together’.
What we can learn from Andrea’s story
Andrea’s story is another essential reminder of the enduring power of the Erasmus+ programme in transforming the lives of young people in their social and professional worlds. In this ever-uncertain global climate, Andrea advocates for increased pluralism and opportunities for international mobility. Now, arguably more than ever, is a time in which we need Erasmus+ to change the lives of a new generation of young people in search of experience.
To access the complete podcast episode with our special guest Andrea Bittnerova, please head over to the Erasmus Generation Perspective Podcast channel, now playing on Spotify and other streaming platforms worldwide!
