Project background: Changes in the regional employment marketplace always go hand in hand with changes in the pan-European employment marketplace. As a result of those changes, the requirements of our students and obviously our school have changed as well. Our vocational school “Berufsbildende Schule Gesundheit und Soziales der Grafschaft Bentheim” wants to prepare its students for the regional as well as the European employment marketplace and in order to be able to do so, wants to put a larger emphasis on the attainment of intercultural and project-management competences of its teacher-staff. In addition, the intercultural competences of our students need to be trained and extended. Therefore, interdisciplinary competency is an integral part of our open, Europe-orientated school. The required level of competences in those fields are to be attained and eventually maintained through, among other things, intercultural competency and practical trainings. It is of utter importance that our teachers attend these training seminars together with teachers from other European countries so that the intercultural learning experience can be extended to before and after the actual seminars themselves. International seminars also provide our teachers with an opportunity to find potential international partners for student exchanges, “E-Twinning” partnerships or “job-shadowing” programs. The different competences required can be attained through job placements abroad and intercultural meet-ups. It is especially important that students get the chance to travel within Europe to gather experiences in businesses abroad and experience family life in host families to get a better understanding of life in different cultures within the European Union, while the teachers are provided with the opportunity to find potential international partners for student exchanges, “E-Twinning” partnerships or “job-shadowing” programs. Project goals: One of the project goals is the improvement of intercultural competences as well as an enhanced knowledge of Information technology. The attendees must be: - willing to attend seminars abroad, - equipped with the required language skills, - willing to spread the European idea amongst the other students, - open to integrate the European idea into school lessons, - flexible and able to attend to extracurricular projects in addition to their regular schedule. Description of requirements: Attendance of a work-placement abroad. Method of execution: During the work-placement the teachers and especially the students will get an insight into different businesses and deepen their acquaintance with current technologies such as satellite controlled methods of operation. They also learn that internet technology is not only part of today’s social- but also work-life, as it is an integral part of most businesses in the 21st century. Through the stays abroad, intercultural competencies and experiences will find their way into the classrooms and with the help of the project management competences attained by the accompanying teachers, European projects will become institutionalized at our school. Description of aspired goals and potential long-term benefits: The seminar experience will improve knowledge and motivation to more efficiently partake in different European projects and help advance the idea of intercultural learning at our school. Attending teachers will also be able to pass on learned knowledge, skills and the exciting opportunities created through intercultural learning programsbto colleagues back home and create a greater interest in supporting similar enterprises. Through the attained knowledge during the time abroad, our teachers will be able to further strengthen the intercultural, social and last but not least language competencies from students and staff alike. Through the extension of the competences students will be better prepared for the perils of the pan-European and global employment marketplace.