So you think you can write it

A significant number of project applications under the frame of Erasmus+ are submitted every year to the National Agencies aiming at fostering among others youth mobility within Europe, developing competencies of youth and addressing various needs and challenges that youth face nowadays. Examining the topic themes of those projects as they are publicly announced and promoted on various online sources, as well as observing their implementation phase if you are a participant, one can sensibly ask the question whether these youth projects are in fact written by youth workers or youth leaders. The answer is indeed disappointing as, according to surveys within NGOs, lots of youth workers or youth leaders can hardly prepare and write an Erasmus+ project for different reasons which include among other the following: they have little or no knowledge regarding the project application (e.g. the different sections that comprise the application), they have difficulty in understanding key words of the application (e.g. dissemination, impact, visibility), they have a misconception regarding the language they need to use in the completion of the application, they have difficulties identifying the needs of their youth community and engage youth in the actual writing of the project. The Training Course “So you think you can write it” aims to give the opportunity to youth workers, youth leaders, teachers and educators to experience the fascinating magic behind the writing of Erasmus+ projects and break down the stereotype according to which the preparation and writing of such a project is a significantly difficult and time consuming task. The Training Course aims to bring together 7 European NGOs and 28 youth workers, youth leaders, educators and teachers in total who share the desire to improve or gain their knowledge regarding the writing of Erasmus+ projects. By the end of the Training Course, the 28 participants will: 1. Acquire and improve their knowledge regarding the preparation and writing of an Erasmus+ project as well as gain practical training regarding the questions of the proposal; they will additionally understand complex concepts such as impact, dissemination and visibility of the project 2. Develop their skills that will enable them to identify the needs and problems of young people in their community and then involve them in the preparation and writing of the project 3. Develop their self-confidence which is needed in order (a) to realize that they are capable of writing an Erasmus+ project and (b) to face and overcome failure in case the project is not approved; they will then be more motivated to write projects and involve young people in the process 4. Build partnerships in order to collaborate in the writing and submission of Erasmus+ projects and thus utilize the skills and knowledge gained in the TC; we are expecting a minimum of 3 projects to be submitted in the next 6 months after the project based on partnerships started in this TC