The Vigo Music Conservatory is the first professional conservatory of music in Galicia to achieve this Erasmus+ distinction.

On 11 February, the Spanish Service for the Internationalisation of Education (SEPIE), the National Agency of the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme in Spain and a body attached to the Ministry of Universities, published the Final Resolution of the Erasmus Accreditation of the call for proposals of the Erasmus+ 2021 programme for the different education sectors, including Vocational Training (KA120 VET), an area in which professional conservatories participate.

The Vigo Music Conservatory is congratulated, not only has it obtained the Erasmus Accreditation, but it has done so positioning itself in first place, after beating a total of more than 220 applications, of which only 104 have been awarded in this call throughout the national territory. In this way, it becomes the first professional conservatory of music in Galicia to obtain this distinction and becomes part of the small group of Spanish conservatories that have one (in this call there are only two conservatories that have received it).

The Erasmus Accreditation call is part of the new European Union programme for education, training, youth and sport for the period 2021-2027. The award of this Erasmus Accreditation confirms that the selected organisations, in this case the Conservatorio Profesional de Música de Vigo, have established an ‘Erasmus Plan’ to carry out high quality mobility activities in the framework of a wider organisational development initiative.

Having the Erasmus Accreditation guarantees the implementation of international mobility activities on a regular basis. In addition, it offers the possibility to carry out mobilities to third countries not associated to the programme, i.e. countries of any continent, an exclusive option and limited only to the centres that have this Accreditation. It will also allow the conservatoire to invite different experts in the field of music to the centre to give master classes to which both students and teachers will have access.

As Sara Peral Hernández, the Erasmus+ Coordinator of the Conservatorio Profesional de Vigo, points out: “having received the Erasmus+ Accreditation obtaining the first position is not only a great boost to continue consolidating the Erasmus+ programme in our centre and advancing in our internationalisation strategy, but it also allows us to give visibility to our teaching”. She adds: “We are very excited, it is a great opportunity. We can’t wait to start working in this new phase”. Carrying out international mobility projects is a great added value both for the conservatory and for the entire educational community. She points out that this achievement, the result of hard work, would not have been possible without the help of the people who make up the Erasmus+ Team and is especially grateful for the support received from the management team, who have made a firm commitment to the internationalisation of the centre.