The Erasmus Programme registered an 8.5% increase in the 2010-11 academic year – a new record , compared to the previous year. In addition, the three most popular destinations for students in 2010-11 were Spain, France and the United Kingdom. Spain also sent the largest number of students abroad, followed by France and Germany.

The student exchange scheme, the Erasmus Programme registered a new record during the 2010-11 academic year because more than 231,000 students received Erasmus grants to study or train abroad during the 2010-11 academic year, i. e. an 8.5% increase compared to the previous year. With regard to the destinations, the three most popular destinations for students in 2010-11 were Spain, France and the United Kingdom. Spain also sent the largest number of students abroad, followed by France and Germany. Luxembourg sent the largest number of students abroad as a proportion of the national student population. In November 2011, the European Commission presented its proposal for the new Erasmus Programme.

In the 2010-11 academic year, around 190,000 of the total chose to spend up to 12 months of their degree programme abroad at a university or other higher education institution in one of 32 countries then participating in Erasmus (27 Member States, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Turkey), according to statistics. The number of students choosing the study option increased by 7.2% compared with 2009-10. In addition, 40,000 grants were awarded to university staff and teachers to teach or receive training abroad, 13% more than in the previous year.

The 2010-11 Erasmus budget dedicated to student and staff mobility was around €460 million. Since it began in 1987, 25 years ago, the programme has provided more than 2.5 million European students with the opportunity to go abroad to study at a higher education institution or for a job placement in a company.