Erasmus+ KA1 · Job shadowing
Erasmus+ job shadowing, explained
Job shadowing lets a teacher spend 2 to 60 days in a school abroad, watching a colleague at work. Here are the rules, what it pays and how it compares with a course, all taken from the Programme Guide 2026.
What job shadowing is
The participant spends time in a host organisation in another country to learn new practices and gather ideas by observing and interacting with the people who work there. The Programme Guide asks for one thing in particular: a named tutor at the host, the person the participant observes. No more than 2 participants can learn from the same tutor at the same time.
The rules in one table
| Job shadowing | Course | |
|---|---|---|
| Duration | 2–60 days | 2–10 days |
| Where | A school or organisation abroad | A course provider abroad |
| Who guides you | A named tutor at the host | Qualified trainers, set programme |
| Group | Up to 2 per tutor | Teachers from several countries |
| Course fee | None | 80 € per day |
| Organisational support | 350 € per participant, shared with the host | 100 € per participant |
| Travel and daily allowance | The same for both: by distance band and by destination. Daily rates by agency. | |
Programme Guide 2026, school education, staff mobility.
How to organise it
- Find a host school whose practice matches a need in your Erasmus Plan or project. Partner schools from eTwinning are the usual route.
- Agree the programme and the tutor in writing before you travel: what the participant will observe, with whom, and on which days.
- Agree how to share the organisational support (350 € per participant). The Guide leaves the split to the two organisations.
- Record what was learned. Europass Mobility is the usual document to certify the period.
- Share the results in your school. Dissemination is part of every mobility project: our dissemination kit helps.
Course or job shadowing? Courses can take at most 50 % of a project's grant, so most projects need another activity alongside them. Job shadowing is the natural pair: a course for method and colleagues from several countries, job shadowing to see it working in a real school.
Where we fit
We run structured courses in Spain; we do not sell job shadowing placements. If you are building a project with both, our courses cover the course side, and the open catalogue lists dated sessions from many providers.
Frequent questions
How long can Erasmus+ job shadowing last?
For school staff, between 2 and 60 days, not counting travel days.
How many people can shadow the same teacher?
At most 2 participants can learn from the same tutor at the same time. The host must name the tutor: the person the participant observes.
Is there a fee for job shadowing?
No. The course fee (80 EUR per day) exists only for courses and training. Job shadowing is funded with travel, individual support and organisational support of 350 EUR per participant, which the sending and host organisations share.
Is job shadowing better than a course?
Neither is better in general. Job shadowing shows you how one school really works; a course gives a structured programme, trainers and colleagues from several countries. Many projects combine both — and courses are capped at half of the grant anyway.