Dear Erasmus Student!
The School of Biology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH) (www.bio.auth.gr) has a long standing tradition (more than 40 years) of successful Erasmus agreements and exchanges with Academic Institutes in Europe. This guarantees that your time in Thessaloniki and your studies at AUTH will be pleasant and fruitful.
Following are some key points of what you can expect and what will be expected of you before and during your studies at AUTH, taking into consideration the Erasmus Student Charter (http://ec.europa.eu/education/erasmus/erasmus-student-charter_en.htm)
A. As an Erasmus student:
1. You will be treated and served by the School of Biology, AUTH, in the same way as home students.
2. You will not have to pay fees to AUTH for tuition, registration, examinations and access to laboratory and library facilities during your Erasmus study period.
3. You will be entitled to the same medical and food services as Greek students (for more information check https://www.auth.gr/en/units/8177)
4. You will have a Student ID (“paso”) for reduced fares on public transport and other concessions.
5. You will have an Aristotle University account email, which will allow you to have access to Blackboard courses. You can combine your personal email account to the AUTH one.
6. Theoretical courses: within the first two weeks of the semester the teaching staff will provide you with appropriate material (papers, books, notes, powerpoint presentations – in English).
7. Practicals (obligatory) and/or field work: The teaching staff will make the best possible arrangements for your participation (in English).
8. You will have two exam periods for each course. The first is at the end of each semester (February or June) and the second is in September, as an additional opportunity to pass if you fail the first time. If you need to take the September exam, arrangements will have to be made with your home Institute to attend the exam(s) at your home country. Examination is usually through answering questions in English or through submission of a written essay in English, or a combination of these, or any other form of assessment the course teacher finds most appropriate. During written examinations you may have an English dictionary with you.
9. At the end of your studies at AUTH, you will be given a transcript of records, with the grades achieved for each course, the ECTS and the ECTS grading.
B. As an Erasmus student, you will be expected to:
1. Respect the Erasmus Grant Agreement and the host institute Rules and Regulations.
2. Choose the courses you want to attend from the same semester that you are visiting AUTH. The semester that each course is taught is identified from its code. The first number of the code (e.g BO.01.04) denotes the semester, whereas the second is the serial number; odd semester numbers correspond to winter semester and even to spring semester. The courses offered are analytically described in our English web page, where the ECTS credits and other useful information are also given.
3. Before coming, send your Learning Agreement (written in English) through your local Erasmus Office to the Department of European Educational Programs (http://www.eurep.auth.gr/index.php?lang=en) in order to be checked and signed.
4. As soon as you arrive, visit one of the School of Biology Professors responsible for Erasmus academic matters (see below) who will check your Learning Agreement. After that, submit a copy of the Learning Agreement and any changes to it, immediately, to the Secretariat of the School of Biology, AUTH.
5. Ensure that any changes to the Learning Agreement are made in writing and are approved by both the home and the host institution as soon as they occur. Changes can be made only during the first two weeks of each semester.
6. Participate in all laboratory practicals and field work (which are both obligatory) of the course(s) you have chosen. Failure to do so will result in not being able to participate in the final exams, which will lead to failure in the respective course(s).
7. Spend the full study/placement period as agreed at AUTH; if you arrive later or leave earlier than agreed, you may not be accepted to the course or take the exams, respectively.
8. Inform the Greek Erasmus Agreement coordinator and the secretariat of the School of Biology, AUTH, before you return to the country of your home institute.
9. Have a good knowledge of English (or Greek) (at least B2 level), that will allow you to attend courses, write essays and take exams; inability to communicate adequately in this language will have consequences on your performance.
C. If you have a problem:
Identify the problem clearly and contact your Greek Departmental Erasmus coordinator. Use the formal appeals procedure of your home university, if necessary.
In the School of Biology, the Committee of ERASMUS+, ECTS and International Exchanges is dealing with ERASMUS+ academic issues. In particular for ERASMUS+ Studies, please get in touch with the following members of the Committee:
1. Andreas Drouzas, Assistant Professor, ECTS coordinator of the School of Biology, drouzas@bio.auth.gr
2. Athanasios Kallimanis, Associate Professor, Alternate ECTS coordinator of the School of Biology, kalliman@bio.auth.gr
3. Alexandros Triantafyllidis, Associate Professor, School of Biology, atriant@bio.auth.gr
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