The Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students
How to apply
The Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students is awarded annually to a Master´s degree holder from a Coimbra Group University, in any academic discipline, who, having previously undertaken an Erasmus exchange with another Coimbra Group University has in the opinion of the selection committee best demonstrated the added value of that exchange to their Master degree work. The Prize awarded is of the value of €5,000.
Eligible candidates will have obtained their Master degree during the twelve months preceding the application submission deadline. Applications should be sent to the Coimbra Group representative of the candidate’s university (see list of representatives below) at the latest by 30 November 2021.
The individual Coimbra Group Universities will forward their choice of candidate (a maximum of three candidates) to the Executive Board of the Coimbra Group by 31 January 2022. The selection committee´s decision to be established by the Executive Board will be communicated in April 2022 and the Prize awarding ceremony will take place at the General Assembly in Padova on 7-10 June 2022.
Below you will find the Regulations governing the Prize, a list of contact persons at individual Coimbra Group Universities, and the template to accompany the applications.
2022 Laureate of the Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students
Award ceremony, 10 June 2022
The 2022 Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus students was officially awarded to Marie Bakken (University of Bergen, Erasmus+ exchange at the University of Salamanca) at the Annual Conference that took place at the University of Padua from 7 to 10 June 2022.
A video message from the Duke of Arenberg and one of Marie Bakken were projected during the General Assembly.
Recommendation 2022
The 2022 Laureate is Ms Marie Bakken from the University of Bergen (Norway). While a final year Master student in Law, she spent a six-month Erasmus study period at the University of Salamanca (Spain). The new courses she attended there, and the vivid intellectual interactions entailed by such academic exchange, directly inspired her for the subject of her Master thesis which European dimension has been very much welcomed by the Prize selection committee.
“I am so grateful for this recognition, and this gives me even more motivation to keep working for the legal protection of human rights across Europe”, Marie said when learning about her award. Of all the nominees, she made the most comprehensive and convincing case for the added value of the Erasmus experience. In her particular situation, this included for example actively engaging with the European Law Students’ Association.
This year there have been nineteen nominations from fourteen Coimbra Group Universities in a wide array of disciplines. The other nominees were commended for providing other excellent examples of the impact an Erasmus mobility experience can have on one’s academic journey.
The selection committee consisted of Professors Lenka Rovná from Charles University in Prague (chair), Cláudia Cavadas from the University of Coimbra, and Dorota Malec from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. You can find their recommendation below:
2021 Laureate of the Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students
Award ceremony, 29 June 2021
The 2021 Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus students was officially awarded to Katharina Wenderott (University of Göttingen, Erasmus+ exchange at the University of Granada) during a virtual ceremony held in presence of the Duke of Arenberg on 29 June 2021.
Recommendation 2021
The Selection Committee established by the Executive Board for the 2021 Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students is pleased to unanimously nominate Ms. Katharina Wenderott from the University of Göttingen (Germany) for this year’s award.
Ms. Katharina Wenderott spent her 5-month Erasmus exchange at the University of Granada in Spain in the academic year 2018-2019. In August 2020 she obtained a Master’s degree with distinction in Psychology from the University of Göttingen.
In her application, Ms. Katharina Wenderott has very well described the multidimensional experiences and benefits of her Erasmus stay.
She has articulated clearly about the transformative impact of the new pedagogical settings she got to know during her studies at the University of Granada: group projects, work in multicultural teams, inspirational young women as lecturers who she now sees as role models, etc
Ms Katharina Wenderott has shown that the value of the Erasmus experience is particularly significant for expanding research interests, reaching academic excellence as well as for gaining linguistic and intercultural skills. During her studies in Spain, she voluntarily selected academic subjects that were not offered at her home university such as community psychology and health psychology. This has eventually led her to write her master’s thesis on the job demands of nurses and particularly the stress that they are exposed to. Such topic has become increasingly relevant in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic.
While studying in Granada, Ms. Katharina Wenderott completed a B2.1 Spanish course and joined the local scout group as a volunteer for full immersion. At the time of her nomination to the Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize, she was volunteering for three months at the World Centre of the World Organisation of the Scout Movement (WOSM) in Kandersteg, Switzerland, while also preparing applications for Ph.D. studies in a field of research that is directly inspiring from her academic experience at the University of Granada: the mental health of people interacting with new technological systems.
The Selection Committee would like to congratulate Ms. Katharina Wenderott on this year’s Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize and wish her a successful career based on her European educational experience.
We should also like to commend the other nominees; the standard was very high and their testimonials also provided excellent examples of the impact of their mobility experience and academic qualities. We are pleased to recognize also the commitment to the Erasmus project of the Coimbra Group Universities where they were awarded their degrees and undertook their exchange periods of study.
Laureate article: