DAADeuroletter Fokus Tschechien And of these, slightly less than a third focus on the higher education sector alone, which in turn makes it the biggest area of responsibility. there is a desirable synergy between Erasmus and other international ed- ucation initiatives. A widely known programme An instrument for internationalisation As for the impact and added value of Erasmus+ on Czech higher education, Vavroušková, an Erasmus alumna herself, leaves just as little doubt about its relevance. The programme «is absolutely crucial. It is the only exchange programme that enables thousands of Czech students to gain experience abroad every year.» At the same time, she adds, «it is inclusive enough to provide opportunities to students who face various limitations and, therefore, makes international- isation more accessible.» An – insti- tutional – consequence is that «the general quality of higher education has improved. Czech universities could follow trends and develop new methods and thus become more com- petitive in an international context». Besides the relatively low cost of living compared to many oth- er Erasmus programme countries, particularly in Northern and West- ern Europe, the good quality of its higher education sector is an impor- tant reason why more students and trainees are coming to the Czech Republic than are going abroad, argues Michal Uhl, the director of DZS. Over the last couple of years, Czech universities have proved to be particularly attractive destinations for Spanish, French, and Slovakian partners are «schools and other educational institutions, non-profit organisations and companies, local government bodies, and individuals – generally students, teachers, people from the management of all types of schools, youth workers, adult educa- tors, and other professionals in the field».1 A broad range of tasks From its headquarters in the Petr- ská district in the northern part of Prague’s New Town, the Czech National Agency for International Education and Research runs and administers over 20 programmes and networks in the field of inter- national education and research. It is responsible for the European Solidarity Corps and CEEPUS (Cen- tral European Exchange Programme for University Studies) but also eTwinning, Euroguidance, Eurydice, Eurodesk, EPALE, and last but not least Erasmus+, whose predecessor programme Czechia joined alongside Cyprus, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia in 1998. Over the last two and half dec- ades that the Czech Republic has been participating in Erasmus, «the programme has gained great pop- ularity», says Radka Vavroušková of DZS’s Communication and Market- ing Unit. «Nowadays, all university students are familiar with Erasmus and if they do not participate them- selves, they know someone who has.» Surveys conducted by the agency regularly and clearly demonstrate that Erasmus+ is also well known in the Czech Republic and that aware- ness of the programme has been rising over the years. They also show that Czech society generally sees experience abroad as a good thing, and the vast majority agrees that international studies or internships are highly beneficial for pupils and students and improve their employ- ability. There can be little doubt that the European Union’s flagship pro- gramme for education, training, youth, and sports plays a very im- portant role in the activities of DZS. A look at the number of employees working on Erasmus+ makes that perfectly clear. About 40 percent of its staff – approximately 100 of nearly 250 people – work on one aspect or other covered by Erasmus+. The popularity of Erasmus+ is prob- ably explained by the fact that it enjoys a relatively privileged posi- tion compared to other exchange programmes, mainly because of its wide reach. However, it is not in competition with other initiatives. On the contrary, the Erasmus experi- ence often opens the door to further international programmes and activ- ities. It can therefore be argued that 1 Czech National Agency for International Education and Research, History and mission of the organisation, https://www.dzs.cz/en/about- dzs [29.04.2022]. 46