Yes: in the European Solidarity Corps, participants must have reached 18 and must not be older than 30 at the start date of the activity. To join Individual Volunteering or Volunteering Teams, you must be between 18 and 30 years, legally residing in an EU Member State, a third country associated to the Programme or in a third country not associated to the Programme, and registered in the European Solidarity Corps Portal. Your level of education is not a barrier: someone who has only finished middle school can also take part in the projects. In an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange, the eligible participants are young people aged between 13 and 30 residing in the countries of their sending and receiving organisations. Our guide on who can apply to Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) goes through the conditions, and our guide on Erasmus+ and ESC age limits lists every age rule.
Last updated: November 2026.
Can you join the European Solidarity Corps after graduating?
Yes: European Solidarity Corps volunteering is a full-time unpaid activity of up to 12 months, and your level of education is not a barrier. During a long-term project you cannot continue formal education (university, master's, doctorate) in the host country, and you cannot do paid work during the project, even in your free time. Our guide on ESC project lengths lists the durations, and our guide on going from volunteer to professional covers the career side.
Can you do a traineeship as a recent graduate?
Yes: in higher education, recent graduates may participate in a mobility for traineeships. You must be selected by your HEI (higher education institution) during your last year of study and must carry out and complete your traineeship abroad within one year of obtaining your graduation. An organisation may opt out of recent graduate traineeships. Recent graduates (including former apprentices) of eligible initial and continuing vocational education and training programmes are eligible to participate up to 12 months after their graduation. If you have been fulfilling obligatory civil or military service after graduation, the period of eligibility will be extended by the duration of the service. Our guide on paid internships abroad covers the details.
Can you join while you are working?
Yes: Volunteering Teams are shorter in duration, so they can suit those youngsters who cannot commit for a long period of time because of their studies or jobs. Volunteering Teams are particularly suitable for a first experience in volunteering. The short formats are:
🎒 Youth Exchanges: under the minimum requirements, the duration of activity is from 5 to 21 days, excluding travel days.
👥 Volunteering Teams: from 2 weeks to 2 months, excluding travel time.
🗓️ Short term individual volunteering: between 14 and 59 days, excluding travel days.
Volunteering activities must not replace traineeships or jobs, so that any adverse effect on potential or existing paid employment is avoided. ESC is not a temporary or part-time job, an internship or paid work, only fun, a tourist trip or a language course, cheap labour, or university study abroad. Our guide on ESC Volunteering Teams and our guide on what a Youth Exchange is explain the two group formats.
What if you work with young people?
In mobility projects for youth workers, participants must be a minimum of 16 years old and must be resident in the country of their sending or receiving organisation. Many training courses, seminars and study visits published on the SALTO European Training Calendar are Training and Cooperation Activities: participants must be at least 18, and priority goes to young people active in organisations and to youth workers. Our guide on mobility of youth workers and our guide on training courses explain both routes.
What about a master's degree abroad?
Our guide on Erasmus Mundus explains the joint master's programmes and their scholarships.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a degree to join ESC?
No: your level of education is not a barrier, and someone who has only finished middle school can also take part in the projects. Our guide on who can apply goes through the conditions.
Can I do paid work during ESC?
No: during a long-term project you cannot do paid work, even in your free time. Our guide on common myths about ESC clears up what the programme is not.
Is there an age limit after graduation?
Yes: in the European Solidarity Corps, participants must have reached 18 and must not be older than 30 at the start date of the activity, and in humanitarian aid related solidarity activities the upper age limit at the start of the activity is 35 years old. Our guide on Erasmus+ and ESC age limits lists every age rule.
What can you do with a gap year?
Our guide on funded gap year options explains what you can do with a year out.
Where do you go from here?
Volunteering Teams are particularly suitable for a first experience in volunteering. Our guide on the options if you are over 30 covers what stays open after the youth age limits. The Youth Works Hub pages below cover the next steps.
Related pages: who can apply · Erasmus+ and ESC age limits · paid internships abroad · ESC volunteering in teams
👉 ESC projects: youthworkshub.org/?tab=esc-projects
👉 Erasmus+ projects: youthworkshub.org/?tab=erasmus-projects
