Seit 2006 nimmt die Helmut-Schmidt-Universität / Universität der Bundeswehr Hamburg aktiv am Programm ERASMUS/ERASMUS+ teil. Sie hat mittlerweile 34 aktive Partnerschaften im Europäischen Hochschulraum, die im Rahmen von ERASMUS+ geschlossen wurden. Für die europäische Dimension von Studium, Lehre und Forschung hat sich für uns dieses Programm als solide Grundlage und unverzichtbare Referenz erwiesen. Die Förderung der Mobilität ist sich lange Zeit fast nur von Studierenden genutzt worden, die Partizipation der Dozierenden war nur schwach, hat sich nach zögerlichen Anfängen 2018-20 positiv entwickelt, während die Teilnahme von Angehörigen der Verwaltung auf bisher nur wenige Einzelfälle beschränkte.Die Teilnahme an ERASMUS+ hat für die HSU/UniBw Hamburg die Chance für die gewünschte Modernisierung und Internationalisierung bewahrt, die nunmehr aufgegriffen werden soll. Der Akademische Senat der Universität hat 2019 ein neues Leitbild beschlossen (SV XXIV/ 481/ 30) und ausdrücklich festgehalten, dass sich die Universität als Teil der internationalen Forschungslandschaft versteht, sich insbesondere im Rahmen der europäischen Integration gezielt weiter öffnen will und sich dem Ideal einer Vielfalt der Disziplinen und Wissenschaftskulturen sowie der internationalen Wissenschaftskooperation verpflichtet sieht. Der Akademische Senat der HSU/UniBw Hamburg richtete in seiner 490. Sitzung (03/20) am 12. März 2020 das Amt Vizepräsidentschaft Internationales ein und berief einen Senatssauschuss Internationales ein, um Fakultäten und Professuren systematisch und damit aktiver in die Internationalisierung der Universität einzubeziehen. Die Absicht ist dabei, im Sinne von ERASMUS+ in allen Bereichen der Universität die existierenden Partnerschaften besser zu nutzen und auszubauen. Diese Entscheidung des Akademischen Senats erfolgte in der Absicht:a) Internationalisierung als Leitungsaufgabe zu verstehen und die Chancen und Instrumente von ERASMUS+ gezielt für die Modernisierung und Internationalisierung zu nutzen;b) die Interessen der HSU/UniBw Hamburg europäisch zu vertreten;c) das wissenschaftliche Engagement in Europa zu festigen;d) ausgewählte europäische Partner für strategische Allianzen und Netzwerke zu gewinnen;e) die rechtlichen und finanziellen Rahmenbedingungen zu verbessern;f) Studium und Lehre zu internationalisieren;g) Forschung und Wandel zu europäisieren;h) Internationalisierung als Querschnittsaufgabe aller Bereiche zu verstehen und eine Willkommenskultur zu etablieren und zu pflegen;i) Studium, Promotion und Forschung grundsätzlich europäisch zu konzipieren;j) Standards und Prozesse zur internationalen Qualitätssicherung zu definieren, die den ERASMUS + entsprechen.Als Universität der Bundeswehr ist sie an einer Schnittstelle von zivilen und militärischen Hochschuleinrichtungen. Die Studiengänge sind alle zivil, aber die Studierenden der Universität sind alle Soldaten und werden bei ihren Auslandsstudienaufenthalten nach dem nationalen Bundesreisekostengesetz abgefunden. Eine finanzielle Förderung durch ERASMUS+ benötigten diese Studierenden deshalb nicht und alle Vorhaben wurden als „zero-grant“ vereinbart. Unverzichtbar waren aber die ideelle Förderung und die Befolgung der Standards, die ERASMUS+ setzt, bei der Vorbereitung, Durchführung und Anerkennung von Studienleistungen bei studentischen Mobilitäten zusammen mit den Partnerhochschulen. Die Universität will von ihren vielfältigen Partnerschaften, die sowohl etablierte zivile Hochschulen als auch militärische Hochschulen und Akademien umfassen, zukünftig besser profitieren. Die Grundlagen sind dafür mit ERASMUS+ gelegt.

This action supports physical and blended mobility of higher education students and staff from EU Member States and third countries associated to Erasmus+ to any country in the world. Students in all study fields and cycles can take part in a study period or traineeship abroad. Higher education teaching and administrative staff can take part in professional development activities abroad, as well as staff from the field of work in order to teach and train students or staff at higher education institutions.

"HSU/UniBw Hamburg (D HAMBURG08) has some 30 ERASMUS+ partnerships with universites of the European Area of Higher Education. Some three more bilateral agreements are in process of being arranged. Unfortunately, in the Academic Year 2016/17 only four student mobilities could be realized. In addition three teaching staff mobilties and two administrative staff mobilities were supported by ERASMUS+. For the next Academic Year 2017/18 24 student mobilties were planned and quite a few further interests in staff mobilties have been realized. No obvious reasons explain the manifest discrepancy in numbers of student mobilities. But we expect that the staff mobilities of the last academic year will be an incentive to generate further interest amnong academic and administrative staff. The students of HSU/UniBw Hamburg are almost all of military status and future officers of the German Armed Forces. Their status is based on a contract of a service employee (""Beamter auf Zeit""). The students receive a regular monthly salary according to their military rank. And these students are entitled for reimbursement for any foreign sojourn according to the Federal Law of Travel Cost Reembursement. As soldiers the students are issued their military marching orders (""Kommandierung"") for going abroad that safeguards their insurance status and it brings along cover of their travel expenses and additional financial support, different in regard to the country of destination. So, these students are in no need of additional financial support by ERASMUS+, yet the ideationally promotion by ERASMUS+ is indispensable. On the other side the financial support of academic and administrative staff is highly welcome, because here no independent funding is offered by the university.The recognition of credit and grades earned while studying abroad is with HSU/UniBw Hamburg in pratical terms at 100%. The effort we make is due to the requirement set by the Federal Ministry of Defence that a foreign study project shall not endanger the successful graduation within the official time frame of four years. One student who went on foreign study to our Swedish partner university in 2017/18 regrettably failed to complete his learning agreement. Upon his return he could not prove that he had achieved the required credits and grades to complete his Master's programme and the examination board had to relieve him as a student."

This is a higher education student and staff mobility project, please consult the website of the organisation to obtain additional details.

For HSU/UniBw Hamburg the program ERASMUS+ has become the evident framework for concluding, fostering, and developing the academic cooperation within the European Area of Higher Education. The university has by now some 21 bilateral ERASMUS+ accords. Three new agreements are being negotiated. The new English taught study program “B.Sc. Defense Systems” that will start with the academic year 2016/17 will certainly offer further new likelihoods for establishing ERASMUS+ accords. The framework of ERASMUS+ has been proven to be the first and foremost condition for initiating new partnerships and has, thus, become an instrument of strategic value for HSU/UniBw Hamburg in its continuing development. The interested prospective partners are primarily military institutions of higher learning and research in Europe. In how far this advance can be adjusted with the initiative EMILYO – Exchange of Military Young Officers (inspired by ERASMUS), that is supported by the European Security and Defense College (ESDC), is still an open question.The students of HSU/UniBw Hamburg are all service personnel of the German Federal Armed Forces, and, thus, the university proves to be a special case within ERASMUS+. All students are officer cadets or junior officers who receive a monthly salary according to their military rank. While being send abroad they all are entitled to receive additional financial support stipulated by the German Federal Travel Expenditure Law and are fully compensated. For these students there is no need for further financial support, yet, the ideationally support by ERASMUS+ is indispensable. The German Federal Armed Forces place special emphasis on acquiring English as a second language in the officer cadet training. During their military training before attending university the cadets are taking English language classes and this education will be continued during their studies at the university aiming at assuring an English proficiency level of SLP 3332.In contrast to the comparable comfortable financial situation of the students, financial support for the teaching and administrative staff is very welcome. This support is the precondition to make exchanges possible. But, where it has been proven to be rather simple to arouse the interest for going abroad among students, it has been over the years rather difficult to attract the interest of academic and administrative personnel for using actively the options and possibilities ERAMUS+ is offering. The program phase 2014-16 was successful in getting a number of academic teachers using the scheme and hopefully these will serve from now on as examples of best practice raising substantially the number of participants. For administrative staff, in particular for the military staff of the student regiment, the new program in Defense System will offer additional and attractive opportunities for joining. Our partner universities use actively the ERASMUS+ scheme and its financial provisions are essential for them to be able to enter into exchanges with HSU/UniBw Hamburg. Unfortunately, at HSU/UniBw Hamburg no student has shown an interest in going to France in the last three years. This trend may be explained by the special focus of the German Federal Armed Forces on acquiring English language proficiency. In contrast the French partner universities of HSU/UniBw Hamburg use actively the chances and opportunities ERAMSUS+ is offering for sending students and staff to Hamburg. It was a conscious gesture by the French officer school École Speciale Militaire St. Cyr Coëtquidan to institute a bilateral ERASMUS+ accord with HSU/UniBw Hamburg in 2016 the commemorative year of “100 Years of the Battle of Verdun”. The necessary endeavor for the coming years is to foster a better understanding within HSU/UniBw Hamburg of the qualitative aspects the program ERASMUS+ is offering to bring the university forward strategically. The opportunities by structuring the cooperation of student exchanges and cooperation in academic teaching to achieve strategic partnerships und to place HSU/UniBw Hamburg within a European network is generally not very well appreciated within the university. The introduction of the new English taught program “B.Sc. Defense Systems” will start a development of a strategic quality pushing the university into this direction. Another challenge will be to adjust the academic Master programs better for opening opportunities for studying abroad under the ERASMUS+ scheme. Especially in the field of business administration and economics this requirement is very well obvious already today. Another wish would be to add Spanish universities to the partner portfolio of HSU/UniBw Hamburg.