Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

All information about admission requirements and  application instructions can be found on the following webpages: 

• admission requirements
• online application
• discover our English-language degree programmes

Don't hesitate to contact admissions@ucll.be with your questions.

The 21-22 academic year is  almost finished and exams  are coming up very soon (June 2022).  Therefore we recommend that you start classes in September 2022.

1. Please have a look at our English-language exchange programmes and degree programmes to find classes that you are interested in.

2. If you don't feel confident about your level of English, please look into free English tutorials online  in preparation of your classes.

We expect additional information about intensive English language classes in summer soon.

If you have specific questions, please email admissions@ucll.be

If you are currently a student and wish to use the UCLL campus facilities such as wifi, libraries, student restaurants, study centres  and would like a cheap student bus pass (30 euro/ academic year), you have the option to enrol as a guest student.

For all information, please contact admissions@ucll.be.

Our Admissions Office is here for you! 

Send us an email and we will schedule an appointment or phone call with you: admissions@ucll.be.

As Ukrainian national, or person with a permanent residence in Ukraine, you will be granted temporary protection status in Belgium.

Upon arrival you'll have to register at the Registration Centre in Brussels.

If you have fulfilled all the criteria for temporary protection status you can register with the municipality and you will receive a Belgian A-card valid for 1 year, which allows you to study or work in Belgium.  

More information:

• Belgian Immigration Office
• Ukraine in Belgium
• City Office Leuven: procedure for Ukranian refugees

• Federal Government website about Ukraine
• Belgian Immigration Office
• Red Cross: restoring family links
• European Commission Information for people fleeing the war in Ukraine
• Facebook page Embassy of Ukraine in Belgium
• Help Ukraine, supported by Ukrainian Embassy
• City of Leuven website for Ukrainians

Another valuable source of information:

• Oekraïens Huis Leuven
  Halfmaartstraat 15
  3000 Leuven

1. If you want to re-register as a UCLL-student for 22-23, you will find instructions on the UCLL-intranet after the June exam period.

2. If you graduate in 21-22, you may apply for a job-seeking year in Belgium.

If you are a Ukrainian citizen and neither of the above options are possible and/or you cannot safely return to Ukraine, you may:

• apply for an extension of your authorised stay.
• submit a request for temporary protection.

If you are a Russian citizen and neither of the above options are possible and/or you are not able to travel home, you may:

• apply for an extension of your authorised stay.
• apply for international protection as any other asylum seeker.

You can find an answer on our corona measures webpage and the FAQ 'Covid-19' below.

The Belgian Government has created a 'Corona Barometer', so you can follow in what phase we currently are.

The coronavirus barometer has three phases that reflect the level of pressure on healthcare:

• Code yellow: the epidemiological situation and pressure on hospitals are under control
• Code orange: increasing pressure on healthcare system, intervention needed to reverse this trend
• Code red: high risk of overburdening the healthcare system

On the Corona website you can find out in which phase we currently are  and the corresponding measures.

The upcoming academic year will be organised with regard to the latest corona measures set by the Belgian government. For every programme and course the best possible teaching method is considered and we are ready to flexibly adapt to whatever occurs in the future. Provided that the corona figures keep improving, we therefore anticipate offering a “normal” on-campus educational experience. 

On-campus learning will remain our top priority and at the same time, we will embed the best practices of online learning in our programmes. We have decided to offer a mix of on-campus and off-campus activities: on-campus classes when face-to-face meetings and physical space are required, for practicals and lab work, complemented by a smart and engaging online component in our programme offerings. Hence the term ‘hybrid learning’.

We care about your safety!  Therefore, you will receive regular updates on health and safety measures. Find more information and latest updates on our dedicated webpage.

When planning your journey to Belgium, make sure you have all the necessary documents with you and stay informed about travel requirements that apply at the time.

Please check the travel requirements regularly, and definitely one week before your departure as they may change at any time.

All information about travels to Belgium can be found on the Belgian covid information page and on the Belgian Foreign Affairs website. 

• Ministry for Foreign Affairs (travel advice)
   
• Governmental covid information page (travel requirements)
   
• Federal Public Service Public Health
   
• World Health Organization (global epidemiological information)
   
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (epidemiological information for Europe)
   
• Institute for Tropical Medicine (general information for travellers
   
• Sciensano (guidelines from the Belgian government for handling people suspected of being infected with SARS-CoV-2)
   
• Website of the Belgian government

As a UCLL student, you can get a free PCR-test in the student test centre in Leuven for mild symptoms, after a risk contact or after arrival in Belgium from a red zone.

More information and how to book an appointment can be found here.

Of course, you can always go to a GP for a PCR-test. Find a GP on www.khobra.be/en.

To find a GP in the region of East-Brabant (Leuven and surroundings) use www.khobra.be/en

Yes, every student can get a free vaccine in Belgium!

• If you have a Belgian national registration number or a BIS number (i.e. you are registered at the city hall), you can make an appointment with your local vaccination centre. For the Leuven area, this can easily  be done by filling in this form. For information about other vaccination centres, click here. 

• If you are not yet registered at your city hall and you wish to get a free vaccine in Belgium, UCLL can create a BIS-number for you. Please follow the instructions under "what is a BIS-number and how do I get it?"

Practical information on vaccination.

A BIS number is a temporary personal identification number, which will later be converted into a national registration number. 

• I'm a degree student: once you are registered as a degree student at UCLL, you will automatically be assigned a BIS number. You can request your BIS number by sending an email to international@ucll.be.  Subject = Vaccination + your student number.
   
• I'm an exchange student: UCLL can have a BIS number generated for you. To do this you can send an e-mail to coronavirus@kuleuven.be with the following information:
  • Copy of biometric page of passport
  • Residential address in Belgium 
  • Place of birth (not always mentioned in passport)
  • Your student number + mention that you are a student at UCLL.

I’ve already been vaccinated in my home country, can I have this vaccination registered in Belgium so that I receive a EU Covid certificate?

• If you were vaccinated in the EU or if you have a digital EU passport from another country that is recognized in Belgium, it is not necessary to have your vaccination registered.  Your vaccination certificate is valid across the entire EU. If you were vaccinated in different countries, register all of them in your home country in order to keep your national certificate complete.

• If you were vaccinated outside the EU with a vaccine approved by EMA, the European Medicines Agency, you can have your vaccine registered in Belgium, and obtain a EU certificate.
   
• If you were vaccinated outside the EU with a vaccine not approved by EMA,  you will not be able to obtain a vaccination certificate. We recommend that you apply for an additional EMA approved vaccination in Belgium.

Please note that, in order to register your non-EU vaccination, you will need the following: 

• an official vaccination certificate with the dates, brand name AND the lot number of the vaccines administered - if this is not mentioned on your vaccination certificate, you will need to ask your vaccination centre for this information;
• a Belgian national registration number (‘rijksregisternummer’ in Dutch: a unique identification code issued to each person registered in Belgium), or a BIS number.
• You can register your non-EU vaccines via this procedure. 

After you have been vaccinated in Belgium or after your foreign vaccination has been registered by a doctor, the Belgian government will issue a digital COVID certificate (=covid safe ticket or CST).

A CST-ticket will only be asked  at the entrance of events or bars if the corona barometer is in orange or red. It might also be asked upon traveling (depending on the regulations of your destination).

All info about the digital certificate can be found online, you can also request your COVID certificate there. For those who cannot access the online certificate, there are the following possibilities:

• You call +32 78 78 78 50 (Flanders) or +32 2 214 19 19 (Brussels) to have a paper certificate sent to your physical address in Belgium.
• Contact your local registration office for activation of your digital keys. Students in Leuven can do this at the City Office.
• Students who are not in Belgium can send a request to servicedesk.dto@bosa.fgov.be.

EU citizens request their CST in their own country.

This EU CST is valid in all European countries, including Belgium and all vaccines given in other countries should be registered in their own country, to update the national CST. A growing number of non-EU countries have Covid Certificates that are valid in the EU.

Non-EU citizens with long term stay (over 3 months) in Belgium, can apply for CST in Belgium through the above procedure. Vaccines received in other countries should therefore be registered in Belgium.

Non-EU visitors with short term stay (under 3 months) in Belgium, can request a temporary CST.

The answer depends on which vaccine was administered. 

If you were vaccinated with an EMA-approved vaccine, you can contact your local vaccination centre (for Leuven via corona@leuven.be) and discuss your options. Please note that the vaccination centre will need proof of your first vaccine. 

For those who were vaccinated with a vaccine not approved by EMA, a solution is currently being sought.  For further details, please get in touch with your local vaccination centre. 

Please also note that contacting your vaccination centre is only recommended if you have a national registration or a BIS number.

KU Leuven pharmacy students have designed a very comprehensive webpage for anyone who has questions on vaccination: the page contains practical information, general information, details on the development of the vaccines, etc.

Go to the vaccination page.

If you want to learn more about the courses at UCLL, please visit our course offerings webpages.  

Here you will find detailed information about each course of the current academic year. After 15 July, course information for the next academic year (starting in September) will be displayed.  Very often, there  are minor or no changes unless the study programme is revised substantially.

Do you want to transfer to UCLL from another university where you have already earned credits ?

Take a look at our course offerings to have an idea of the courses that we offer and whether your previous courses  are similar to ours in order to apply for a transfer of credits.

You must complete your student registration before you can apply for transfer of credits.  Decisions about transfer of credits will be made by the programme's senior staff at the start of the academic year or semester.

Please visit our tuition fees webpage for the current tuition fee rates.

If next year’s rates are not published yet, it means that they are not available yet. You can find an indication of all tuition fees in our international brochure.

No, we don’t. However, when you have a look at our tuition fee rates, you will notice that our programmes are very moderately priced, so you will receive quality education at a reasonable price!

You only pay the tuition fee upon student registration. You will receive further instructions then.

Students with a blocked account do not need to pay their tuition fee upon registration, since it is included in the blocked account.

UCLL is a university of applied sciences and a member of the KU Leuven Association. This means that KU Leuven is our umbrella (overarching) university. 

UCLL is a university of applied sciences offering professional (advanced) bachelor’s degrees and postgraduate certificate programmes. KU Leuven is an academic university offering academic bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate programmes.

They are specialised bachelor’s programmes, we call them 'advanced bachelor’s programmes', not postgraduate or master’s programmes.

Because we have partnerships with a number of international universities, you can pursue a master’s or postgraduate degree (abbreviated track) with any of these universities.

We have a dedicated webpage where you find the general admission requirements and information about diplomas/degrees and accepted language tests and in which cases such language test can be waived.

Go to the dedicated webpage and follow the steps that will take you to the online application.

... To enrol in the Advanced Business Management (ABM) programmes?

For our ABM programmes, you must have earned a bachelor’s or undergraduate degree.

Our ABM programmes are – what we call – advanced bachelor’s programmes, specialising in a particular area. Our programmes specialise in 'International Management' and 'Design Thinking & Innovation'.

...To enrol in the International Educating Class (IEC)?

In order to qualify you must have earned a bachelor’s or undergraduate degree.

... To enrol in the Advanced Bachelor Global Citizenship and Development Programme?

In order to qualify you must have earned a bachelor’s or undergraduate degree.

You must pay the tuition fee by bank transfer. Payment by credit card is not possible.

Go to the dedicated webpage for detailed information. Read the information under 'Help with your application', section 'Pay application fee'.

You will find the answer on the application webpage.

Step 1: submit the online application.
Step 2: send certified copies to:

UC Leuven-Limburg
Admissions Office
Geldenaaksebaan 335
B-3001 Heverlee
BELGIUM

or

Have your university or school confirm your degree and grades by email to admissions@ucll.be.

or

​Deliver the original diploma/certificate to the reception desk at the above address (if you or a relative live in the neighbourhood). In this case, we will assess the document and let you know when to pick it up again.

Never send any originals by post or courier, we don't either!

If you want to take Dutch-spoken courses, you must have achieved the required level of Dutch language proficiency before you can be admitted. 

• Our associate degree programmes require a B1+ level of Dutch.
• Our bachelor programmes require a B2 level of Dutch.

For detailed information,  go to Toelatingsvoorwaarden (in Dutch)

This is what you should do:

1. Check the application requirements for our advanced bachelor’s programmes.

    

2. Submit an online application.
   Our Admissions Office will assess diploma and language requirements.
    
3. Fill out the candidate form.

   This form will serve as the basis for the selection process by the programme.

When you have received approval from admissions and by the programme, you can start your preparations for this unique yet challenging programme

On the dedicated webpage, you will find an item ‘Help with your application’.

Read it attentively. If you don’t find the answer to a specific question, please email a screenshot of the page where you got stuck to admissions@ucll.be and we will try to help you out!

Your motivation letter (between 200 and 400 words) would ideally be about:

• your aspirations;
• your ambitions;
• your past achievements;
• and how it links to your choice of study.

You can also add your resume (optional).

After you have been informed by email that you are admitted into UCLL, you will receive instructions to download your admission letter in your online application within three weeks.

There might by several reasons why you can’t find your admission letter:

• Did you fill in the questionnaire? If so, the grey button 'Download admission letter' should darken and become clickable.
• Check the 'Downloads' folder on your computer.
• Try another browser and click 'Download admission letter' again.

You must apply for a visa 'type D': long-term student visa (12 months). Check the links on our website for all information.

As soon as you are admitted, you can start your visa application. Don’t wait too long gathering all required documents, as the visa procedure might take several months.

Go to the dedicated webpage.

Go to the Belgian Foreign Affairs website to find out where and how to apply for a student visa.

UCLL falls under article 58 as it is a higher education institution that is organized, recognized or subsidized by the public authorities (law of 15.12.1980).

During the application process for a student visa, you will have to prove your financial capability to take care of your living expenses for each study year in Belgium.

UCLL can assist you by offering a so-called 'blocked account proposal' (BAP).

Go to the dedicated webpage > 'step 2 Blocked account' for more information.

No, it is not required at all. However, it is a safe and secure way to proof your financial means and will speed up your visa procedure.

The amount varies depending on the programme that you choose. A blocked account always includes:

• the tuition fee of your programme
• 700 euro monthly instalment x 12 months
• a start-up fee

Yes, you must open a Belgian bank account. Before you head to the bank of your choice, you must have a document called 'Annex 15' which is issued by the City Office. 

Before you can register with the city you must have a permanent address (student room) to be proven by a rental agreement.  You will receive additional practical information upon arrival.

The instalments are paid at the end of the month, e.g. the November instalment will be paid at the end of October and so on. 

For exact dates check UCLL's intranet (following student registration). 

The last step before starting as a UCLL-student, is to complete your student registration.

This is an entirely online procedure that we will guide you through.

Registration dates:

• First-semester registration: 15 August until 30 October 2021
• Second-semester registration: 15 January until 15 March 2021

More info on the registration webpage.

You can deregister at any time. However, please be aware of the consequences regarding reimbursement of your tuition fee, and so on.

Send an email to:

• Leuven campuses:  inschrijvingen.leuven@ucll.be
• Limburg campuses: Barbara Simons

Potential loss of study vouchers and tuition fee. For all details, visit the dedicated webpage.

After student registration at UCLL, and when you have found a permanent residence (student room) you must register at the city office.

Check UCLL's intranet (following student registration) for all details.

Finding a student room is your own responsibility. Nevertheless, the Association KU Leuven's Housing Service is always happy to help you sort things out.

Find all details and links to the housing database on our housing  webpage.

No, UCLL does not have its own residence halls. However, a certain amount of rooms in KU Leuven residence halls are reserved for UCLL students.

You can find all information on the KU Leuven website.

Yes, all residents of Belgium, Belgian nationals or otherwise, are required by law to be covered by a health insurance policy.

If you are an international student, first check if your local health insurance covers medical costs in Belgium. If not, you must sign up for a Belgian health insurance of your choice, as it is not taken care of by UCLL. 

You sign up for a health insurance with adequate coverage in Belgium. We’ve listed some health insurance companies for you on a dedicated webpage.

No, it’s not expensive at all. Take a look at the different company websites for a detailed price overview on our health insurance webpage.

On average, 75% of the official rates of (Belgian) medical expenses are reimbursed. Without insurance coverage, however, the costs of medical care can quickly spiral out of control.