Theatre SPACEs is the first Erasmus Mundus Joint Master programme focusing on theatre in social, participatory art, community and educational contexts, and its most outstanding candidates receive a scholarship of €1,400 per month for 24 months. The programme is offered by universities in Norway, Ireland, Romania, Germany and Czechia, lasts four semesters (120 ECTS) and ends with a joint degree. Applications for the 2027 intake are open to candidates from any country in the world until 1 December 2026 at 23:59 CET. At Youth Works Hub, we went through the programme and admission pages and set out every requirement, document, selection step and condition below.
Programme at a Glance
🎭 Programme: Theatre SPACEs, Erasmus Mundus Joint Master in Theatre in Social, Participatory Art, Community and Educational contexts
🎓 Degree: joint degree awarded by the partner universities
⏱️ Length: four semesters, 120 ECTS, 24 months, full-time only
🌍 Mobility: you study in at least three countries
💶 Scholarship: €1,400 per month for 24 months
🆓 Tuition: scholarship and self-financing students are both exempt from tuition fees, thanks to the support of the European Union
🗓️ Intake: 2027
🌐 Open to: candidates from any country in the world
A Cultural Journey Across Five Universities
Theatre SPACEs offers much more than a Master degree: it is an extensive cultural journey in which you study in at least three countries. Each university brings its own unique expertise to the collaboration. The programme relies on the close collaboration of five universities:
🇳🇴 Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL), coordinator
🇮🇪 Trinity College Dublin
🇷🇴 University of Arts Targu Mures
🇩🇪 University of Hamburg, associated partner
🇨🇿 The Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, associated partner
What Is Theatre in Contexts?
Theatre in Contexts is a recent term used to describe a variety of performative practices that aim to contribute to societal, pedagogical or community change. Such practices usually:
👥 Involve non-professionals, for example citizens, pupils, community members, substance users and activists
🏥 Occur in non-conventional theatre spaces, such as hospitals, schools, public squares, prisons and museums
🌱 Focus on topics relevant to the given community, such as poverty, bullying, inequalities and climate change
🎯 Contain a specific changemaking objective, for example communicating with decision-makers, developing competencies, including minorities or sharing personal stories with the wider community
What You Will Learn and How
As well as covering a wide range of European approaches and methods, the programme focuses on adapting and implementing the methods learned within different cultures and contexts. It includes:
🤝 Participatory learning
🚌 Field visits
🧩 Group projects
📚 Elective courses
🎨 Artistic research
🌐 Longer periods of fieldwork with labour market partners worldwide
The programme also has a strong academic and theoretical component, qualifying dedicated students to enrol on a PhD programme and continue their academic career in research.
Career Paths After Theatre SPACEs
🏫 Educational contexts: work in schools, youth theatres or nonformal education centres, facilitating creative learning for children, young people and diverse communities
🖼️ Cultural contexts: create participatory and educational programmes in theatres, museums, libraries or galleries, or design community-focused performances in public spaces
🩺 Social and health contexts: work in hospitals, refugee centres, care homes or NGOs as a practitioner using theatre for wellbeing, rehabilitation or inclusion
🏘️ Community contexts: collaborate with youth groups, women's organisations, charities or environmental associations, using applied theatre to inspire dialogue and change
Scholarship Amount and Payment Rules
💶 Selected scholarship holders receive an EMJM scholarship of €1,400 per month for 24 months to help cover travel, visa and living expenses.
⚠️ The scholarship may not fully cover visa fees, travel expenses, accommodation and/or living costs; the student accepts responsibility for securing additional personal resources if necessary.
🏦 Instalments are transferred only to a EUR bank account, in EUR, after your arrival in Norway, once the Coordinating Institution confirms your arrival and receives your EUR account details.
✈️ You are responsible for covering or pre-financing all costs incurred before your arrival in Norway.
📅 Payments cannot be disbursed before the official start of the programme and cannot be transferred to non-EUR bank accounts.
🚫 Students who have benefited from an EMJM scholarship before cannot apply for a scholarship.
Self-Financing Places Without Tuition Fees
You can also join Theatre SPACEs as a self-financing student without paying tuition fees. Being willing to join as a self-financing student increases your chances of admission, since not all applicants receive a scholarship.
🔁 Students who benefited from an EMJM scholarship before can still apply as self-financing students.
🧾 Self-financing students are fully responsible for all costs related to the programme, including travel, visa, accommodation, subsistence, insurance and living expenses, as well as travel and accommodation for mandatory field visits.
🤲 The Consortium does not provide any financial support beyond the benefits expressly stated in the Student Agreement.
🏛️ Partner institutions may still require registration, administrative or other minor fees according to their general regulations.
💳 Only for self-financing students from outside the EU/EFTA: when applying for a visa, you must document your ability to finance your stay in Norway by transferring a deposit that covers living expenses for one year, currently NOK 166,859, as required by the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration. This is not requested from EU/EFTA citizens, nor from scholarship holders from outside the EU/EFTA, for whom proof of the scholarship is sufficient.
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Educational Requirements
You need a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent, minimum 180 ECTS credits) in one of the following fields according to the ISCED 2013 classification:
📘 01 Education (all areas)
🎨 02 Arts and Humanities (all areas)
🏛️ 0312 Political Sciences and Civics
🧠 0313 Psychology
🌐 0314 Sociology and Cultural Studies
📰 0321 Journalism and Reporting
♿ 0915 Therapy and Rehabilitation
👵 0921 Care of Elderly and Disabled Adults
🧸 0922 Childcare and Youth Services
💬 0923 Social Work and Counselling
Grades and English Proficiency
📊 Grading requirement: a minimum average grade of C ("Good"). Only applicants with a minimum average grade equivalent to C meet the academic requirement for admission.
🗣️ English proficiency: proof of English language proficiency according to HVL standards, uploaded before the application deadline.
You normally do not have to provide evidence of English skills if you have:
🇬🇧 Completed at least one year of university studies in academic subjects taught in English in Great Britain, Ireland, the USA, Canada, New Zealand or Australia (branch campuses, validated, franchised and distance learning programmes are not exempt)
❄️ A Bachelor's degree or at least one year of Master's studies (60 ECTS) taught in English in one of the Nordic countries
📖 A university degree in English language and/or literature (a degree in other disciplines taught in English does not meet this requirement)
Studying in English outside these countries, or having lived or worked in an English-speaking environment, does not satisfy the requirement.
How to Apply Through HVL's Søknadsweb
1️⃣ Submit your application through HVL's official website. When the portal is open, a large red "Application Form" button appears on the programme's page at HVL.
2️⃣ Log in to Søknadsweb (the application portal) using the relevant login method. International applicants choose "Register new international applicant" under "Login International Applicant".
3️⃣ After registering, select the admission called "Erasmus Mundus Joint Master" and choose "Theatre SPACEs" from the list.
4️⃣ Click "Add", then "Submit application".
5️⃣ Upload your documents in the "My documents" tab.
6️⃣ Click "Done" and complete the submission of the application.
The application portal opens on 1 October and closes automatically on 1 December 2026 at 23:59 CET; after that, it is no longer possible to apply. Read the admission page carefully, including its Q&A section, before contacting the programme with queries.
Documents You Must Upload
🏫 Secondary school certificate or high school diploma
🎓 University degree certificate or diploma with a grading scale
📊 Transcript of records: an official statement listing all courses/subjects and results completed at university; transfer credits must be documented with a transcript from the institution where they were originally taken
🗣️ Documentation of English language proficiency
🪪 Copy of your passport or picture ID, including full name, date of birth and gender
📝 CV, motivational statement and signed and dated Acknowledgements, using the programme's template (updated 29 September 2026)
🌐 If your documents are not originally in English or a Scandinavian language, officially certified copies of a translation into one of these languages must accompany certified copies of the originals.
❗ Incomplete applications are rejected, so make sure your application contains all the necessary information.
How Competitive Is Theatre SPACEs?
According to Youth Works Hub's review of the admission page, Theatre SPACEs has a highly competitive selection process:
📈 In the previous round, 1,074 candidates applied for 25 places
🎯 Only around 2–3% of applicants are offered a place
⚖️ Half of those admitted are offered a scholarship, and the other half a self-financing place
Selection Criteria and Process
The Admissions Office first checks eligibility against the admission criteria, based on the submitted documents. Eligible applications are then evaluated by the Joint Selection Committee (JSC), composed of members delegated by each partner institution.
Written application assessment:
📄 Previous education, professional experience and competencies, based on your CV and diploma(s): 1–10 points
✍️ Motivation statement: 1–10 points
✅ Minimum total score to proceed: 15 points
Oral interview (with the top candidates, if necessary):
🎭 Motivation to work with theatre in diverse contexts: 1–5 points
🔬 Research interests: 1–5 points
🎨 Artistic interests: 1–5 points
🤝 Pedagogical / social / community interest: 1–5 points
🏁 Maximum oral interview score: 20 points
Final selection:
➕ Scores from the written application and the oral interview are combined.
🌍 Holistic factors, including geographical balance, gender and diversity, are considered. Under an Erasmus+ stipulation, no more than 10% of all scholarships awarded during the six years of the project can go to candidates of the same nationality.
🏆 Top-ranking candidates are offered admission, and selected candidates are offered the €1,400/month scholarship for 24 months.
🖊️ By applying, you accept that if selected you must sign a Student Agreement, which confirms your acceptance of the study place.
Indicative Timeline
The timeline is indicative and subject to changes:
🟢 1 October: application window opens
⏳ 1 December: application deadline
📩 Early March: invitations for oral interviews
🎙️ First half of March: oral interviews
📢 Late March or early April: notification of results
🖊️ One week after notification: deadline for confirming admission and submitting the signed agreement
Rules Every Applicant Should Know
🕐 You can enrol only as a full-time student and must commit to the programme for 24 months.
🩺 Students from the EU/EFTA must hold a valid European Health Insurance Card for the duration of the programme.
📜 The Student Agreement you sign on accepting your offer is legally binding.
⚖️ Any appeals are handled under HVL's general appeal mechanisms and regulations.
🆓 Theatre SPACEs students are exempt from the government-regulated tuition fees applicable to other studies in Norway.
📌 If any information differs, the information published on HVL's website prevails and is legally binding.
Visa and Residence Permit Risk
🛂 If a selected student's visa application is rejected by the Norwegian authorities, the admission is revoked; it is not possible to attend the programme remotely.
⚠️ Admission, including the award of a scholarship, does not guarantee that the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) will grant a visa or residence permit.
🌐 Applicants from countries affected by conflict should be aware that visa or residence applications may be rejected; apply only if you understand and accept this risk. Reviewing UDI's general guidelines on visa and residence permit applications is recommended.
Deferral of Studies
Deferral may generally be granted under § 7-1 of the Regulations relating to admissions to HVL, only where documented, compelling circumstances apply:
🪖 Military service
👶 Childbirth or adoption
🏥 Long-term illness or hospitalisation
Deferral cannot be granted for reasons such as work, family circumstances or lack of funding, so apply only if you are able to start your studies if admitted.
No Exceptions to the Eligibility Rules
❌ A Bachelor's degree in a different subject from those listed cannot be accepted; Norwegian admissions regulations do not allow it.
🔎 A Master's degree or work experience cannot replace the Bachelor's degree for eligibility; these are considered later, during selection.
🚫 Lower English test scores cannot be exempted, and a new certificate cannot be submitted after the deadline.
🙅 The Programme Coordinator cannot override any eligibility criteria, so do not contact him with such requests.
New to the programme family? Our guide to Erasmus Mundus Joint Master's scholarships explains how these consortia and their funding work. You can also find more funded study offers in the Scholarships section on Youth Works Hub →.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the Theatre SPACEs Erasmus Mundus scholarship?
Selected students receive €1,400 per month for 24 months to help cover travel, visa and living expenses. Payments start after arrival in Norway and go only to a EUR bank account.
Who can apply for Theatre SPACEs?
Candidates from any country in the world can apply if they hold a Bachelor's degree of at least 180 ECTS in one of the listed ISCED fields, with a minimum average grade of C and proof of English proficiency to HVL standards.
When is the deadline for the 2027 intake?
The deadline is 1 December 2026 at 23:59 CET. The portal opens on 1 October and closes automatically after the deadline.
Do I have to pay tuition fees?
No. Both scholarship holders and self-financing students are exempt from tuition fees, although partner institutions may charge registration, administrative or other minor fees.
Can I apply if I already had an Erasmus Mundus scholarship?
You cannot receive another EMJM scholarship, but you can still apply as a self-financing student.
How many places are there?
In the previous round, 1,074 candidates applied for 25 places, so only around 2–3% were offered a place. Half of those admitted received a scholarship and half a self-financing place.
Is there an interview?
Top candidates may be invited to an oral interview in early March, scored on motivation, research, artistic and pedagogical/social/community interests, for a maximum of 20 points.
Can I study remotely if my visa is refused?
No. If the Norwegian authorities reject your visa, your admission is revoked, as distance study is not possible.
Deadline
⏳ 01 December 2026
Links
📝 Apply (programme page at HVL): https://www.hvl.no/en/studies-at-hvl/study-programmes/theatre-in-social-participatory-art-community-and-educational-contexts/
🌐 Theatre SPACEs website: https://www.theatre-spaces.eu/
📋 Admission information: https://www.theatre-spaces.eu/admission
