Complete guide to studying in Belgium
Everything you need to know about becoming an international student in Belgium
A quick introduction to Belgium
Located in the north west of Europe and sharing borders with the Netherlands, France, Germany and Luxembourg, Belgium is one the founding countries of the European Union.
Belgium is perfect for international students who wish to experience a unique European culture, with excellent living standards, a rich history and three spoken languages, whilst being ideally based for exploring other surrounding European nations.
The city of Brussels in Belgium is considered by many to be the capital of Europe due to its role in the formation of the EU, and its central location within the initial EU member states.
This European influence extends to the country’s higher education system, which follows the Bologna process and is part of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).
Students studying in Belgium will earn ECTS credits that are recognised by universities throughout Europe, whilst students who have earned ECTS credits in other EHEA member countries will have them recognised in Belgian universities.
Universities in Belgium are recognised internationally for providing a high quality education, with a strong emphasis on the quality of their research and innovation.
International students account for around 20% of the 500,000+ tertiary level students in Belgium are international students, and this number is expected to increase due to Belgium’s affordable university tuition fees and central position within Europe.
The communities and regions of Belgium
International students will find it interesting to know that Belgium is one of three federal states in Europe (along with Germany and Austria). The country is divided into three regions, Flanders to the North, Wallonia to the South and the central region of Brussels (the Brussels-Capital Region).
These regions align to the three communities of Belgium, the French speaking community in Wallonia, the Flemish speaking community in Flanders, and the German speaking community in east Wallonia. The region of Brussels is considered to be multilingual as it is part of both the French and Flemish communities.
Belgium’s higher education system
The 76 universities in Belgium can be divided into its three communities, French, Flemish and German.
The French Community
The types of higher education institutions in the French community in Wallonia are similar to that to be found in France:
Universities
Both private and public universities are available in the French community in Belgium, with notable examples of public universities including the University of Liège and the Université libre de Bruxelles. UCLouvain, which is a private university, is the largest French speaking university in Belgium.
Studies in universities tend to be highly focused on theoretical learning, whilst the universities place a large emphasis on the quality of their research output.
University Colleges
Known as Hautes Écoles in French, there are 19 university colleges in the French community of Belgium. The standard of education is just as good at university colleges as it is at Belgian universities, but the method of education at universities tends to be more theoretical than at university colleges.
Art Colleges
Known as Écoles supérieures des Arts, higher arts colleges in Belgium offer world class education in performing arts and fine arts. There are 16 arts colleges in the French community of Belgium to consider.
The Flemish Community
The types of university in the Flemish community in the Flanders are more closely aligned to Dutch higher education institutions:
Universities
The universities in the Flanders region of Belgium offer a wide range of courses at degrees, masters and doctorate levels to students. Education is typically largely theoretical and research orientated. There are 5 universities of this type, including the highly ranked Ghent University and University of Antwerp.
Universities of applied sciences and arts/University colleges
Known as hogescholen, universities of applied sciences in the Flemish community typically offer students a more vocational education, awarding both academic and professional bachelors and masters degrees. These institutions usually offer highly specialised education, such as Antwerp Martime Academy,
Each hogeschool is associated with a university, for example Hogeschool Gent is associated with Ghent University.
Prominent examples include University College Ghent (Hogent) and Howest university of applied sciences.
The German Community
The one higher education institution in the German speaking East of Belgium is the Autonomous University of East Belgium (AHS), which offers 4 bachelors degree programmes.
University rankings
Universities in Belgium are highly ranked from both the Flanders and Wallonia regions, which reflects the high standard of education in the country.
| University | Times Higher Education World University Ranking | Best Global Universities | QS World University Ranking |
| KU Leuven | 45 | 48 | 63 |
| Ghent University | 115 | 109 | 169 |
| University of Antwerp | 161 | 213 | 267 |
| Université Catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) | 168 | 201 | 203 |
| Université Libre de Bruxelles | 201-250 | 260 | 230 |
| Vrije Universiteit Brussel | 201-250 | 306 | 278 |
| University of Liège | 301-350 | 381 | 396 |
| Hasselt University | 351-400 | 761 | 554 |
| University of Mons | 501-600 | 935 | 781-790 |
| University of Namur | 601-800 | 1601 | |
| Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM) | 1386 |