Newbie Document

ESN ESTONIA FOR
NEWBIES
2
Erasmus Student Network Eesti
Raatuse 22 Tartu 51009 – ESTONIA
Contents
ESN ESTONIA FOR NEWBIES ................................................................................................................... 1
ESN ESTONIA ....................................................................................................................................... 3
ESN SECTIONS IN ESTONIA ...................................................................................................................... 4
ESN Tartu............................................................................................................................................. 4
ESN Tallinn .......................................................................................................................................... 6
ESN TUT International Club................................................................................................................. 8
ESN TU ............................................................................................................................................... 10
ESN EBS ............................................................................................................................................. 12
ESN INTERNATIONAL............................................................................................................................. 13
FOUNDING OF ESN............................................................................................................................ 13
STRUCTURE OF ESN........................................................................................................................... 14
The International level of ESN consists of......................................................................................... 14
The National level of ESN .................................................................................................................. 15
The Local level of ESN ....................................................................................................................... 16
ESN MEETINGS AND EVENTS ................................................................................................................ 16
Statutory meetings ........................................................................................................................... 16
Non-statutory meetings .................................................................................................................... 17
National and Regional Events ........................................................................................................... 18
ESN INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES .......................................................................................................... 20
PRIME – Problems of Recognition In Making Erasmus ..................................................................... 20
ESNSurvey ......................................................................................................................................... 20
ExchangeAbility ................................................................................................................................. 20
SocialErasmus ................................................................................................................................... 21
ESNcard ............................................................................................................................................. 21
ESN Satellite ...................................................................................................................................... 22
ESN Galaxy ........................................................................................................................................ 22
LOOKING FOR MORE INFORMATION? .................................................................................................. 22
Esn.org .............................................................................................................................................. 22
ESN Newsletter ................................................................................................................................. 23
eXpress .............................................................................................................................................. 23
ABBREVIATIONS IN ESN ........................................................................................................................ 24
Erasmus Student Network Eesti
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ESN ESTONIA
Founding of ESN Estonia: 2011
The board: ESN Estonia has four National Platforms (national get-togethers of ESN Estonia
members) a year. Two of those National Platforms are two-day Annual General Meetings
where things like budgets and board members are voted on. ESN Estonia’s National
Platform (Annual General Meeting) in August elects four board members for the period of
one year. The fifth board member (National Representative) is elected during ESN Estonia’s
National Platform (Annual General Meeting) of ESN for the period of one year.
National Board members, as of September 2013:

President, Vice NR: Jaanika Saarmets, [email protected]

Vice
President,
Alumni
coordinator:
Karoli
Kõiv,
[email protected],
[email protected]

Treasurer: Henri Vennikas, [email protected]

National Representative: Mariin Kärp, [email protected]

Webmaster: Mart Varik, [email protected]
ESN Estonia as a separate body was founded to bring the sections together, to build better
cooperation and to accomplish more on the national level. Before the national board was
established, ESN Estonia only had a National Representative who was in charge of
representing ESN Estonia on the international level of ESN, organizing National Platforms
and keeping Estonian ESN-ers aware of what was going on in ESN in general. Now that there
are four other people working for the wellbeing of ESN in Estonia, the quality of fulfilment of
international projects has increased, the cooperation between sections is better and
stronger than ever and ESN Estonia now has a national event (Estonian Wedding in
Saaremaa, launched in May 2013, takes place once a year and brings together international
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students and ESN-ers from both Tartu and Tallinn) and a training event (ESN Skillbox,
launched in January 2014, to offer our members the skills they need to succeed in both ESNrelated things but also life in general) designed especially for ESN Estonia members.
ESN SECTIONS IN ESTONIA
ESN Tartu
Founding of ESN section: 2000
The board: The board consists of five members: President, Vice President, Treasurer,
Human Resources and Public Relations coordinator, Communication manager.
ESN Tartu board members, as of September 2013:

President: Andres Soop, [email protected]

Vice President: Merilin Tali, [email protected]

Treasurer: Margit Ojaots, [email protected]

Human Resources and PR: Gerta Sarv, [email protected]

Communication manager: Este-Liin Margens, [email protected]
Partner Universities: ESN Tartu is officially a non-governmental organization that works
under University of Tartu and also receives main funding from there. ESN Tartu also
cooperates with Estonian University of Life Sciences, Tartu Art College, Tartu Health Care
College, Estonian Aviation Academy and European College of University of Tartu.
Number of members in fall 2013: 60
Number of international students in fall 2013: 700
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Events organized during the semester:
Throughout the semester, ESN Tartu members organize different cultural events, trips and
parties. The semester starts with a Pub Crawl and Welcome party after the Orientation
Week. During the semester, ESN Tartu comes up with a wide variety of events for all kinds
of different people, for instance Jam Sessions for musicians, hiking trips for adventurers,
Buddy network for those who want to get in touch with Estonians etc. Every month there is
a movie evening in order to introduce classical Estonian movies and once or twice a month
National Evenings are organized and prepared by the exchange students with the aim of
introducing some country or region of the world more profoundly. There are also many
different trips to various places, more popular ones are for instance Lapland, Saaremaa,
South Estonia, Lake Peipus and sometimes also Tallinn or Riga.
Besides the bigger events, there is a possibility to play football twice a week, volleyball once
a week and participate in the SocialErasmus program, which gives international students a
chance to be involved in social and volunteering activities.
ESN Tartu tries to integrate exchange students into the everyday life of Tartu as much as
possible. ESN Tartu participates in the Student Days program and goes to different local
students' events together with the international students. Most ESN Tartu events are
accessible to local students as well.
At the end of each semester, the ESN Tartu Diary is compiled so that all the exchange
students can leave a mark and also remember their friends and nice experiences in Tartu.
Section development: At the beginning, the board of ESN Tartu had only three members. In
2005, the number of board members was increased to six, in 2007 decreased to four. Since
2008, there have been five members in the board and currently, this seems to be most
reasonable.
In the section development there was a huge step forward in 2008 when the University of
Tartu doubled the budget for ESN Tartu and supported the organizing of the Northern
European Platform in Tartu. In 2008, the section started to use the standard ESN website
template and the ESNCard. Tele2 became a legal partner of ESN Tartu and later, that deal
expanded to ESN Tallinn as well.
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In 2009, ESN Tartu became more active on the international level: some members
participated at the Swedish National Platform and also helped organize ESN Sea Battle (ESN
Sweden’s national event). From 2009 till 2010, Veeli Oeselg, a former president of ESN
Tartu, was the Vice President of ESN International.
At the moment, ESN Tartu has a record number of members, but this is very welcomed as
there are more and more international students coming to Tartu.
ESN Tallinn
Founding of ESN section: 2003
The board: ESN Tallinn Annual Members Meeting elects four to eight board members for
the period of one year.
Board members as of February 2014:

President: Meelis Reha

Vice President: Merilin Näär

Event Manager: Heleri Saarvelt

Information Manager: Martin Veltmann
Partner Universities: Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn University, Estonian Business
School, Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, University of Applied Sciences, Tallinn
Health Care College, Estonian Maritime Academy, Estonian Information Technology College,
Estonian Academy of Security Sciences, Euroacademy.
Number of members in spring 2014: around 25 active members
Number of international students in spring 2014: ~400
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Events organized during the semester: ESN Tallinn kicks the semester off with an
Orientation Week at the beginning of the semester with Meet and Mix Party, City Game,
Bus Tour, Movie Night, and Welcome Party. ESN Tallinn provides a variety of social events
for the international students throughout the semester. Several of them have become
traditional monthly events, among them the ESN Movie Night dedicated to Estonian cinema,
the ESN Quiz Tournament meant for both local and international students and ESN Parties
with different themes. During the semester they have many cultural events (Opera and
Ballet Visits etc.), sports events (Bicycle Trip, Salsa lessons, Football Tournament etc.), trips
(Lapland and St. Petersburg) and different competitions (Photo Competition, Travel
Writers). For their members, ESN Tallinn offers trainings and motivational events, and also
the possibility to take part in international youth exchanges.
Section development: The first activities of ESN Tallinn started in 2002 and in January 2003
ESN Tallinn was officially founded. ESN Tallinn had its very first experience with Erasmus
students at Tallinn Pedagogical University (currently Tallinn University). As the popularity of
exchange programs and numbers of incoming international students increased, ESN Tallinn
decided to take care of exchange students also in other higher education institutions. Today,
ESN Tallinn is a partner to ten higher education institutions in Tallinn. Due to the increasing
amount of arriving exchange students throughout the years, ESN Tallinn has gathered more
manpower on a voluntary basis in order to successfully cope with incoming students. This
has also affected the range of organized activities in a very positive way. The offered
activities range from quizzes to movie nights, from trips to sports events. ESN Tallinn and its
active members’ contributions have definitely had a huge positive effect on the
development of ESN in Estonia.
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ESN TUT International Club
Founding of ESN section: 2009
Founding of International Club: 21.10.2003
Board members as of June 2014:

President: Sandra Viira

Events manager: Aleksandr Shevtsov

Webmaster & Communication manager: Guillaume Speurt

HR responsible: Helena Lissenko
General contact address of the board: [email protected]
Partner Universities: Tallinn University of Technology
Number of members in fall 2014: 56
Number of international students in fall 2014: number of incoming students 615 (including
213 Erasmus students) + degree students from previous years.
Events organized during the semester:
The semester for exchange students and their tutors begins with Orientation Days as ESN
TUT IC cooperates with TUT International Relations Office (IRO) to make the first days for
new incoming students in the university as smooth and memorable as possible. The week is
highlighted with the Estonian Evening and Pub Crawl as one of the first (as well as favourite)
events for students the whole semester!
ESN TUT IC organizes a variety of events and trips chosen by members’ preferences i.e.
Saaremaa, Survival and the most legendary event for students as well as the tutors trip to
South-Estonia. In addition, there are presentations of national foods and culture in a series
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of parties - Estonian Evening, International Dinner. The IC takes the students to different
organizations - Parliament, Fazer chocolate factory, Saku Brewery etc. Obviously, the IC
introduces local student life through Tallinn Student Days and shows the Estonian student
spirit through participation in the Independence Day Parade. The section also keeps TUT
foreign students active with sports (curling, laser tag, carting, Nõmme Adventure Park, etc),
and takes them to sauna. The IC organizes SocialErasmus events such as visits to dog
shelters and orphanages.
Section development:
Tallinn University of Technology joined the Erasmus Program in 1998. Until autumn 2003,
International Relationship Office (IRO) and the Student Council International Relations (IR)
Committee were taking care of all international students. 21. October 2003 is known as the
birthday of TUT International Club. In the autumn semester of 2004, around 30 international
students arrived to TUT (exchange and degree students). Every student got a tutor from the
IC who helped them starting from their arrival.
In 2005, the first logo was created for the IC, the survival guide for international students
was compiled and a number of events, which have become so-called standard events of the
International Club, were organized. In 2008, the first version of the IC webpage was
launched. In 2009, students studying in TUT Kohtla-Järve branch also got tutors.
TUT IC became an ESN section in 2009 and thus got the new name it carries today: ESN TUT
IC. Due to the increased number of foreign students, 2 additional board members were
elected to the IC board.
In January 2010, the IC helped to re-found IAESTE Estonia and has been cooperating with it
ever since. During spring 2010 semester, the new IC website was installed and new logo
created. Since autumn 2011, ESN TUT IC has a new office (I-225) in the newly built Student
House of TUT.
The IC has developed rapidly in the past few years, and as the university is becoming more
international and the number of incoming students is rising, the members’ list is much
longer than 13 names that it was in 2004. Also, the event calendar is becoming more diverse
to offer degree students entertainment during their degree studies in TUT.
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Starting from fall semester 2013, ESN TUT IC also started supporting all incoming degree
students. Thanks to ESN TUT IC wonderful members they have a new logo (seen above),
their own flag and a club mascot - Tutik.
ESN TU
Founding of ESN section: 2009
Founding of International Club: 2006
Board members as of January 2014:

President: Kelli Kiipus, [email protected], [email protected]

Board member, SocialErasmus coordinator: Siiri Sommer, [email protected]

Board member, Language Café: Triinu Pärnapuu, [email protected]

EiS coordinator: Triin Laumets, [email protected]
Partner University: Tallinn University
Number of members in spring 2014: 28
Number of international students in spring 2014: 128 (autumn semester there were 179)
Events organized during the semester: The biggest events of the semester are Estonian
Evening and International Express. The Estonian Evening is an event where ESN TU
introduces Estonian culture and food to foreign students. International Express is for foreign
students to introduce their country and food.
Every semester there is one theme trip to Viljandi and Pärnu (autumn semester) and Otepää
(spring semester). Every trip introduces Estonia in different ways: nature, culture and winter
sport.
ESN TU IC goes hiking as well. In autumn semester there is mushroom picking. It is a nice
way to show real Estonian culture and spend time in nature. In spring semester, there is a
one-day trip to the coast, Paldiski.
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There is also Language Café where local students and exchange students gather together.
Exchange students can introduce their culture and teach basic language trough games. Local
students can practice languages and make foreign friends.
During the semester, a series of events called Museum Muse is also organized which means
that there are different excursions: Parliament, Skype, KUMU, Seaplane Harbour, etc.
Tutors are motivated through sauna evenings and dinners together.
ESN TU also organizes SocialErasmus events and Erasmus in Schools visits.
Section development:
ESN TU was founded as TLU International Club in the summer of 2006 as part of Tallinn
University Student Union. The first semester, there were 12 tutors and the board consisted
of one member. During 2006/2007, there were 161 international students in Tallinn
University. In 2007, the board of IC became bigger, consisting of three members – President
and Managers for Culture and Advising. In 2008/2009, there were 309 foreign students, who
were tutored by 25 tutors. In spring 2009, TLU International Club became an ESN section
(ESN TU), at the same time remaining also under the Student Union of the university.
In 2010, there were changes in the board which continued with two members – President
and Culture Manager. The tasks of the Advising Manager were taken over by the President.
The same year, a new tutoring system (based on a tutors’ training in Helsinki) was
introduced – ESN TU tutors started to work in pairs. In 2009/2010, there were 31 tutors and
196 foreign students. In autumn semester 2010, there were 137 incoming foreign students
and the biggest number of members so far – 44. TLU IC was named ESN TU in 2011. In
2010/2011, there were 348 international students. In, 2011/2012, there were 406
international. In, 2012/2013, there were 554 international students. In, 2013/2014, there
are 307 international students and 28 tutors.
From 2014, ESN TU has three board members: President: Kelli Kiipus, [email protected],
[email protected], SocialErasmus coordinator: Siiri Sommer, [email protected],
Language Café: Triinu Pärnapuu, [email protected],.
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ESN EBS
Founding of ESN section: 2009
Founding of International Club: 2003
Board as of January 2014:

President: Elina Goman, [email protected]
Partner University: Estonian Business School
Number of members in spring 2014: 16
Number of international students in spring 2014: 36
Events organized during the semester:
Throughout the semester, EBS International Club organizes different cultural events, trips
and parties. For exchange students and their tutors, the semester begins with an
Orientation Day to make the first day memorable and melt the ice as quickly as possible.
This is followed by a Pub Tour which is one of the students’ most favourite events of the
whole semester! The biggest event of the semester is International Dinner. International
Dinner is an event where foreign students introduce their country and food and ESN EBS
introduces Estonian culture and food to foreign students. Furthermore, foreign students are
integrated to local students’ life through Tallinn Student Days and shown the Estonian
student spirit through participation in the Independence Day Parade.
The section also keeps EBS foreign students active with sports. There's a possibility to play
volleyball, football or basketball once a week and of course, they are taken to sauna, a SPA,
Paintball, etc. As soon as winter arrives, there is a Winter Week which includes winter sports
like skiing, ice-skating and snowboarding.
Section development:
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Today, more than 40% of the student body of EBS is made up of international students. EBS
has expanded their activities and since 2011 has successfully opened a branch in Helsinki,
where currently about 150 students are studying. EBS has more than 70 partner universities
all over the world. With a wide number of exchange students and lecturers, the school has
grown into one of the biggest private universities in the Baltic region. At EBS, international
entrepreneurship and business administration are taught at bachelor, master and doctor
levels. EBS is also the only private university in Estonia. EBS has ranked among Top 300
business schools in the world by Eduniversal for 6 years in a row, even reaching the top 3%.
Most of all, EBS is proud of its alumni for their exceptional work success. The official
activities of alumni started in 1997 and continue with regular activities and annual agenda
to this day. The success of EBS strongly lies in the hand of its alumni and their standing
support thanks to better communication between the tutors and the international students,
by which they can continue their cooperation already in other fields of life like work. Over
time, the International Club has become more and more popular at EBS – many more active
tutors have joined the IC. Compared to previous years many new events have been added
to the program. Also, nowadays there is much more communication between the tutors and
the international students. ESN EBS is still the smallest ESN section in Estonia, but as long as
they have the motivation to carry on, they will survive and be very successful in the future,
we are sure.
ESN INTERNATIONAL
FOUNDING OF ESN
In 1989, the Erasmus Bureau invited 32 former Erasmus Students for an evaluation meeting
in Gent, Belgium. This meeting was a starting point for Erasmus Student Network. The
problems that became obvious in the evaluation were the main tasks for the founders of
ESN to work on. Behind all this stood the idea "students helping students", which is still the
most important motto of ESN volunteers.
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On 16th of October 1989, the first section using the name Erasmus Student Network, was
founded in Utrecht, The Netherlands. Following that, ESN sections were founded in various
European universities, and with financial support from the European Commission, in
October 1990 the meeting for the official founding of ESN International was organized in
Copenhagen, Denmark with 49 participants from almost all member states of the EC. ESN
International became a legal association. Desiree Majoor from Utrecht, Netherlands was the
first president in ESN history.
STRUCTURE OF ESN
ESN operates on three structural levels: International, National and Local, which are
naturally connected to each other. The communication and information-flow between the
different levels is secured thanks to different channels, but mainly thanks to ESN meetings
throughout the year on the National, Regional and International level.
The International level of ESN consists of
• Annual General Meeting (AGM) is the highest decision-making body of ESN International.
It is composed of all the official ESN section representatives of our member countries. The
AGM meets once a year.
• International Board (IB), also known as the Board, is the executive Body of ESN. It consists
of five members: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Communication Manager and Web
Projects Administrator (WPA) who are elected for a one year mandate at the AGM. The
Board members are working full-time on a voluntary basis at the ESN headquarters in
Brussels.
• Council of National Representatives (CNR) is composed of all National Representatives
(NRs) of the ESN countries and acts as the primary facilitator for communication between
the Board and the sections. The CNR represents AGM during the ESN year and is one of the
main strategic bodies of ESN International by collaborating with and advising the Board.
• Committees are the implementing bodies of ESN and composed of ESN-ers from all levels.
It is an opportunity for local ESN-ers to get involved on the international level and
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contribute directly to international projects. Joining a Committee can benefit you from a
personal development perspective. For example, being chair of a committee can be a good
practice for your future working life; or when you are studying statistics – why not to use
the data or work on one of ESN research projects like ESNSurvey for your university projects
or homework? In general, the Committees are an advisory and implementing body of ESN.
They are composed of a Chair, maximum number of two Vice Chairs and additional
members working on different tasks.
The Committees and their working fields are (respective Board member):
• International Committee for Education (President): long-term strategy for educational
policy, research related projects (e.g. ESNSurvey and PRIME), active participation in
international education initiatives, etc.
• Network and Events Committee (Vice President): network cooperation, network
development, knowledge management, coordinating the statutory and non-statutory
meetings, etc.
• Finance Committee (Treasurer): advising management and auditing of the budget,
partnership development, marketing and financial strategy.
• Communication Committee (Communication Manager): communication strategy, press &
media, social networks, ESN Newsletter, eXpress, PR material, Corporate Identity.
• IT Committee (Web Project Administrator): external IT tools as websites, internal IT tools
as Info-Centre, Satellite, Galaxy, etc.
Info: committee.esn.org
The National level of ESN
On the National level (e.g. ESN Estonia), ESN members are active in National Boards (NB).
They are the binding force between the sections, but are also acting as a link between the
Local and International level of ESN. The sections meet on a National level several times a
year at the National Platforms (NP), where the issues relevant for the country are discussed.
The Estonian sections gather four times a year (usually in February, May, August and
November) and the NPs are organized in rotation bases between the sections.
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The Local level of ESN
The Local level is the core of ESN because it consists of the local sections (e.g. ESN EBS).
They work directly for the well-being of international students, who are also the main target
group of ESN. Through the sections ESN International has the opportunity to work on the
development of student mobility. In Estonia, we have five sections: ESN Tallinn, ESN EBS,
ESN TUT International Club, ESN TU and ESN Tartu.
ESN MEETINGS AND EVENTS
ESN International organizes many international events throughout the year which can be
divided to statutory meetings and non-statutory meetings. The events are organized by the
local sections with the coordination, help and support from the International Board.
Statutory meetings
• Annual General Meeting (AGM) is our general assembly, where all official ESN sections of
our member countries are invited to make decisions for the future and strategy of the
network. As the AGM is a perfect opportunity to exchange information between all the
sections, a lot of time is dedicated to different plenary sessions and workshops concerning
Local, National and International level of ESN.
• Council of National Representatives (CNR) takes place five times a year, when the NR-s of
ESN countries and the International Board come together to discuss all important issues and
make decisions which concern the current situation and future of the network.
• Council of National Delegates (CND) is constituted of NR-s and two additional delegates
(ND) from each country. It is an annual meeting, which takes place in December. The main
aim of the event is to integrate all the ESN levels better and to show to all the ND-s the work
of the CNR and International Board.
• Board Meetings (BM) take place on a monthly basis. The IB members discuss during these
two-day meetings all relevant issues and focus on the planning of further actions in the
whole network.
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Non-statutory meetings
• National Boards Meeting (NBM) is an informal meeting for the National Board members
of countries belonging to ESN. The goal of the meeting is to create an opportunity for
National Boards to get to know each other, communicate and cooperate, share experience
and best practices and involve them in the activities of the international level of ESN.
• Cultural Medley (CM) is an annual event, taking place in the summer time in which a
section, a city or a country presents itself culturally to the rest of ESN through many exciting
activities and lectures about the local culture, history and traditions.
• CoMeet is the meeting of all the committees, giving the committee members the
opportunity to exchange information between committees, work in the committees on the
different projects and fields.
• Regional Platforms (RP) give section members from a certain region the opportunity to
come together to share knowledge, establish partnerships, learn about new developments
within the network and talk about the matters which concern their sections on the Local
and National level. The member countries of ESN are divided into 5 regions, where the RP-s
take place:
• Northern European Platform (NEP): Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Norway,
Sweden
• Central European Platform (CEP): Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania,
Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia
• South-Eastern European Platform (SEEP): Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria,
Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Italy*, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Turkey
• South-Western European Platform (SWEP): France, Italy*, Malta, Portugal, Spain
• Western European Platform (WEP): Belgium, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands,
Switzerland, United Kingdom
*Italy belongs to both the South-Eastern European Platform and the South-Western
European Platform.
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• Section Meetings (SM) were established thanks to the growing cooperation between
sections from different ESN countries. It is an informal meeting with the goal to share ideas
and knowledge, develop common projects and new activities and enhance their mutual
understanding and cooperation.
National and Regional Events
ESN Ibiza: ESN Spain is organizing annually an amazing ESN Ibiza event that will rock your
socks off! In 2010, around 2000 exchange students and 100 ESN-ers from all over Europe
enjoyed this annual event, where 12 Spanish ESN sections were involved. Four crazy nights
and five amazing days. There are activities planned for every day (and every night), so there
is always something interesting to do! This is a perfect opportunity to get to know the island
of Ibiza, visit the Formentera island, sunbathe at different beaches, have a water party, a
club party, a foam party and many more!
ESN Sea Battle: ESN Sweden’s National event. International students from Sweden, Norway,
Denmark, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania participate. In a triangular cruise between Tallinn
and Stockholm (or Riga and Stockholm as is the case in spring 2014), around 1800 exchange
students and some international participants get the chance to party during the night and
see beautiful Baltic Sea cities during the day.
Hel(l) Surfin’: sport event taking place in Poland. The participants have an opportunity to
learn the basics of windsurfing taught by professionals. It is an international event which
aims to promote values such as unity, equality and mutual understanding. Besides
windsurfing, there are some extra attractions like volleyball tournament, swimming on
pontoon, sailing lessons, integration parties and debates about the cultural differences.
Estonian Wedding in Saaremaa: With the creation of ESN Estonia as a separate body, the
idea to start organizing our own national event started growing. The idea for a traditional
Estonian wedding came up and never left our minds. It is a tradition in Estonia to make a
mock-wedding as a part of your senior year in high school where a bride and groom are
elected in the class and everyone else also gets specific roles: mother and father of the
bride, the couple’s best friends, etc. And we decided that the event needed to take place at
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one of the most beautiful places in Estonia: on our biggest island, Saaremaa. And so, our
national event Estonian Wedding in Saaremaa was born and held for the first time in May,
2013. There were about 100 participants: international students, local ESN’ers plus even
two international guests and everyone enjoyed it. There was sightseeing, traditional evening
activities and parties and a wedding ceremony near a castle. It takes place once a year in
May.
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ESN INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES
Through the years, ESN International has launched different short- and long-term projects,
which you should know and where you also have the opportunity to participate.
PRIME – Problems of Recognition In Making Erasmus
Students in Europe enjoy great opportunities of mobility through exchange programs such
as the Erasmus Programme. However, they still have to face various barriers and obstacles
and among them, recognition is a continuous problem. For this reason, ESN is conducting an
in-depth qualitative research to point out the true causes of the above mentioned obstacles
and to provide suggestions for improvements. The first research was launched in 2009 and
concluded in January 2010. Also, Estonian universities were participating in the research.
Additionally, ESN Tallinn organized a PRIME conference to introduce the results of the
European-wide study. The conference took place in December 2009 and Tallinn was one out
of eleven cities to host a conference. The second edition of PRIME was carried out in 2011.
Info: www.esn.org
ESNSurvey
Every year, ESN launches a survey that explores the current issues connected to academic
and non-academic mobility. This is one of the biggest and most successful projects of ESN.
The topic of the ESNSurvey 2014 is “International experience and language learning”.
Through the gathered opinions of students, ESN gets a better insight into the issues and is
able to represent the students’ real needs. ESN passes the results on to the main
stakeholders in higher education and mobility programmes, higher education institutions
and all associations concerned with the topic. Info: www.esn.org
ExchangeAbility
The main aim of the project is to make ESN an association accessible for students with
disabilities on all the levels of its activities. This means that ESN wants to provide students
with disabilities the conditions and opportunities to actively participate in student life.
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Through participation and involvement in the activities of an ESN section, students with
disabilities will be given an opportunity to experience the international and intercultural
atmosphere associated with the exchange programmes. The long term vision of the project
aims to encourage the increase of the number of exchange students with disabilities and to
create the best conditions for them during their stay abroad. ESN Tallinn has tried to adjust
its activities in order to be more accessible for students with disabilities. For example, most
ESN Tallinn meetings take place in wheelchair accessible spaces. Also, accessibility is
considered when choosing venues for events. Also, there is a database regarding the study
conditions
for
students
with
disabilities
in
universities
in
Tallinn.
Info:
http://www.esn.ee/tallinn/content/mapping-accessibility-universities
SocialErasmus
SocialErasmus is a project created by ESN Poland aiming at involving Exchange students
actively in local communities under three main fields: Environment, Education and Charity.
On the international level, another project was launched under the Education pillar of
SocialErasmus called Erasmus in Schools where international students are taken to local
schools where they can teach children about their home country, language or simply tell
them about their experience abroad. Erasmus in Schools really took off in Estonia in fall
2013 and both the schools and international have loved the experience. Under
SocialErasmus, ESN Estonia has also organized visits to homeless animal shelters, a Charity
Bachelor Auction, Flea Market, and Playdates for international students and children from
difficult backgrounds. Every year, ESN Estonia also participates in the Let’s do it! Clean-up
action. These events have received very positive feedback from every side. Info:
socialerasmus.esn.org
ESNcard
ESNcard was created with the principle idea to be used as a membership card, but
depending on the section/country it may also be used to offer discounts. The validity of the
ESNcard is 12 months; it is invalid without a photo and correct personal data. In Estonia, we
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use the card mostly as a membership card - to give discounts and to give a priority in
participating in ESN events - but we are really glad to offer also discounts all over Estonia.
Currently we offer more than 50 discounts in Estonia for the card holders. Both
international students and ESN members can get their very own ESNcard. Info:
www.esn.org and http://esncard.org/
ESN Satellite
Satellite is the free website template for ESN sections, developed and maintained by ESN
International and Youth Agora. The latest version, Satellite 4, was launched in 2013. The aim
of the ESN Satellite is to provide sections a free and easy-to-use webpage solution. In
Estonia, ESN Estonia, ESN Tallinn and ESN Tartu are using the Satellite. Info:
http://galaxy.esn.org
ESN Galaxy
Galaxy is the intraweb of ESN, where all the members can sign up. On Galaxy it is possible to
find all the contacts of the ESN sections around Europe, see events organized by them and
download ESN-related materials. Importantly for sections boards, the Section Questionnaire
can only be filled in Galaxy. ESN Galaxy is located at galaxy.esn.org
LOOKING FOR MORE INFORMATION?
Still do not know enough about ESN International? Great, we have some good hints for you
through which communication channels of ESN you can find more information.
Esn.org
On the official homepage of ESN International you can find all the important information
about ESN and its activities beginning with our vision, mission, values and statutes;
activities, projects and upcoming events and additionally special information for students
about exchange programmes and for sections about their benefits for being in the network.
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ESN Newsletter
Our newsletter is released every 1st and 15th of the month and can be read on the ESN
website www.esn.org/newsletter as well as it is distributed to the ESN members via mailing
lists for subscribed readers. In the Newsletter you can find subjects as Reminder, Topic of
the month, Get involved, ESNews, ESN Events and also EU connected issues.
eXpress
Three times a year, ESN publishes an informative and quality magazine about issues
concerning ESN work, exchange and mobility. The articles are written by ESN volunteers all
around Europe. eXpress magazine is then distributed to all the ESN local sections and
through them to all their international and local students. Info: esn.org/magazine.
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ABBREVIATIONS IN ESN
The abbreviations you should know to understand the “ESN language”
AGM
Annual General Meeting
BM
Board Meeting
CEP
Central European Platform
CM
Cultural Medley
CND
Council of National Delegates
CNR
Council of National Representatives
IB
International Board
NB
National Board
NBM
National Boards’ Meeting
ND
National Delegate
NEP
Northern European Platform
NP
National Platform
NR
National Representative
OC
Organizing Committee
RP
Regional Platform
SEEP
South Eastern European Platform
SM
Sections’ Meeting
SWEP
South Western European Platform
WEP
Western European Platform
CoMeet
All Committees Meeting
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