The Erasmus+ program is a European Union initiative that promotes international mobility and cooperation in education, training, youth, and sport. Within this framework, the Erasmus+ Traineeships action allows undergraduate students to undertake professional training placements abroad, lasting from 2 to 12 months, in organizations that are relevant to their field of study. These placements aim to enhance students’ academic, professional, and intercultural skills through international real-world experience. In alignment with this initiative, since the 2016–17 academic year, the School of Industrial Engineering at the University of Vigo has offered students the opportunity to carry out their Bachelor’s thesis (TFG, from the Spanish Trabajo de Fin de Grado ) or Master’s thesis (TFM, from the Spanish Trabajo de Fin de Máster) in international institutions through the Erasmus+ Traineeships program. These projects, hosted by universities or research centers, are integrated into ongoing research activities and are later submitted and defended as the student’s official TFG/TFM at the University of Vigo.

The successful implementation of this initiative relies on coordinated planning between tutors at both the home and host institutions. Prior to departure, students and tutors establish a detailed Learning Agreement, outlining the activities to be undertaken, evaluation methods, and monitoring procedures. A typical agreement includes the following steps:
1. Reviewing the background and current state of the project with the tutor.
2. Defining objectives and hypotheses.
3. Selecting research methodologies for experiments.
4. Choosing measurement and process control equipment.
5. Conducting experiments and collecting data.
6. Analyzing results.
7. Writing a report, which serves as the foundation for the final TFG/TFM document.

Upon returning, students submit and defend their TFG/TFM during one out of five available academic sessions throughout the year, offering flexibility in scheduling.
Erasmus+ provides financial and logistical support, including insurance coverage for the traineeship period. Continuous supervision from the home university tutor is essential, typically involving regular email updates and video calls. Erasmus+ PDI mobility grants also enable tutors to provide on-site guidance. This program offers dual benefits: students gain international experience and language skills while engaging in hands-on research for their TFG/TFM. The traineeships are conducted in research laboratories, often contributing to national or European projects, thereby fostering skills not typically acquired through standard coursework.

To date, students from the Industrial Chemical Engineering degree at the University of Vigo have completed placements at prestigious institutions such as the Denmark Technical University, the University of Minho, the Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory and the ISEP-Porto School of Engineering in Portugal. The application process is straightforward, requiring an acceptance letter from the host institution and a supporting report from the home tutor. Since its inception, 12 students have participated in this initiative, each spending an average of four months abroad and successfully defending their TFG/TFM upon return.

Acknowledgments:
The authors thank the Centro de Posgrao e Formación Permanente da Universidade de Vigo for its support through the “Convocatoria de axudas económicas para as actividades dos GID 2025”.

Keywords: Erasmus+ Traineeships, Bachelor’s thesis, Master’s ThesisProject International Mobility, Engineering Education, Research Training.