The EU4EU Programme is evolving to make international traineeships increasingly valuable for both students and Host Organisations.

Over the years, EU4EU has built a European network connecting students and young graduates with organisations willing to offer high-quality international traineeships. The next step is to make these connections even more effective, moving beyond matching based primarily on professional fields and traineeship opportunities towards a model that also takes into account specific skills, organisational expertise and shared priorities.

For the 2026/2027 edition, the EU4EU Portal will therefore introduce three new badges, focusing on two areas that EuGen is currently developing across the Programme: European Project Design and Management and Diversity & Inclusion.

The new EU Projects Host badge will identify Host Organisations that are currently involved in EU-funded projects, have previous experience or are preparing to apply for European funding, and are interested in involving trainees in the design, implementation or management of European projects.

Students will therefore be able to identify more easily those organisations where a traineeship may also represent an opportunity to gain practical experience in European project activities.

On the other side of the matching process, the EU Projects Skills badge will highlight students who have already developed relevant knowledge or experience in this field.

The badge will be assigned to students who have completed or are attending specific training in European project design and management, or who have already participated in the design, writing, implementation or management of European projects.

Host Organisations will therefore be able to identify candidates who may bring relevant skills and knowledge to their teams from the very beginning of the traineeship.

Together, the two badges create a two-way matching mechanism: organisations can make their European project experience and opportunities visible, while students can highlight relevant skills and training.

The second area of development concerns one of the key priorities of the Erasmus+ Programme and of EU4EU: making international mobility accessible to a wider and more diverse range of students.

Through IN-KEY – Inclusive worK Experiences for Young Professionals, the Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnership coordinated by EuGen, we are working with European partners to better understand the barriers faced by students with fewer opportunities and to develop tools and approaches that can make international traineeships more inclusive.

This work is now progressively being integrated into the EU4EU ecosystem.

The new Diversity & Inclusion Committed Host badge will identify organisations that are willing to host trainees with fewer opportunities and demonstrate a concrete commitment to Diversity & Inclusion through relevant support measures, policies, practices or previous experience. As the IN-KEY project is currently midway through its implementation, this badge represents a preliminary step towards mapping inclusive organisations within the EU4EU network and laying the groundwork for the tools and approaches that will be developed during the next phases of the project.

The badge is intended to make this commitment visible to students when exploring traineeship opportunities and does not constitute a formal certification.
It is also an opportunity for the EU4EU network to recognise and encourage organisations that are actively contributing to making international mobility more accessible and inclusive.

The introduction of the new badges is part of a broader evolution of the EU4EU Portal.

The three badges will not simply appear on profiles: they will progressively become part of the search and matching system, allowing students and Host Organisations to identify each other according to specific characteristics.

Students will be able to search for organisations committed to Diversity & Inclusion or offering opportunities related to European projects. Host Organisations, in turn, will be able to identify students with European project design and management skills.

The objective is simple: to improve the quality of the match by making relevant skills, opportunities and commitments visible before the traineeship even begins.

For EU4EU, this means moving towards a more qualitative approach to international traineeships, where mobility is not only about connecting a student with an organisation abroad, but about creating the conditions for a meaningful professional experience for both sides.

The new features will be introduced on the EU4EU Portal for the 2026/2027 edition.

Before the next Matching Phase opens on 29 October 2026, registered Host Organisations will be invited to update their profiles and provide additional information. Based on this information, eligible badges will be automatically displayed on their EU4EU profiles.

Students will also be able to provide information about their training and experience in European project design and management during registration.
With these developments, EU4EU continues to strengthen its European network and its ambition to make Erasmus+ traineeships more targeted, more inclusive and more valuable for students and organisations across Europe.