Finding and arranging
An internship or research project abroad is not only a fun and educational experience, it's also a great asset to your CV. As job markets are becoming increasingly international, employers tend to view international experience as a big advantage. Read more about how to arrange an internship or project abroad.
Register in the Study Abroad portal
All students who are going abroad as part of, or in relation to their Leiden University studies, must register in the study abroad portal. By doing so, you enable the university to contact you in case of an emergency abroad. Register in the study abroad portal as soon as you have approval for your activity from your study programme.
Take a look under your faculty or study programme tab for information about the options available for international internships or research projects and how to arrange approval and registration.
You can also find information on international activities that you can do as part of or alongside your studies on the study abroad website.
Going abroad during your Astronomy bachelor's
As an Astronomy bachelor student, you have several opportunities for going abroad. You can either do this as part of your Astronomy bachelor's curriculum, or as an extracurricular activity.
As part of your Astronomy study programme
The most common option is to spend the free elective phase of your third year abroad at one of our partner universities. Be aware that this requires you to meet specific conditions, including approval from the Astronomy Board of Examiners.
Bachelor Research Project
Although highly uncommon so far, performing your Bachelor Research Project abroad might be an option. Please find more details on this in the dropdown box below.
The Astronomy bachelor's programme is concluded with the Bachelor Research Project (BRP). During this internship, you work on your own research project within a research group. The BRP is usually performed at Leiden Observatory and all procedures and timelines are optimized for this scenario. However, if you have a strong wish to perform your BRP abroad, you can discuss this with the Astronomy study advisor.
The most important aspect to doing your BRP abroad is to plan this very well in advance (rather think in years than in months). Furthermore, be aware that no arrangements are in place for this. This means you have to arrange many things yourself, including but not limited to: approval of your research project by the Astronomy Board of Examiners, arrangement of two supervisors (one in Leiden and one at your target university), arranging formal agreements with your target university for approval of the EC's and agreement with the BRP teacher considering the required elements of the BRP that are usually performed locally (e.g. progress presentations). However, when there's a will, there's a way and the Astronomy study advisor is happy to support you in realising your plans within all reasonableness.
Procedures and requirements
If you are planning to study abroad during your Astronomy bachelor's, make sure that your are aware of all requirements and procedures.
Extracurricular activities
Extracurricular activities such as a Summer School will not result in any EC's for your Astronomy bachelor's, but can nonetheless be highly valuable experiences for both your professional als well as your personal life.
Questions?
If you have any questions about going abroad as an Astronomy bachelor´s student, always contact the Astronomy study advisor.