Practical information for exchange students: Before your arrival in Leuven

• What To Bring
  • Documents
  • Visa
  • Health and Accident Insurance
  • Money
• When To Arrive
  • Academic Calendar and Holidays
  • Orientation Days for International Students
  • Dutch Language Courses
  • Temporary Accommodation - important! please read!

What to bring

Documents

Do not leave home without:

• your permission to register as an exchange student at K.U.Leuven
• proof that you are registered as a student at your home university
• for TEMPUS students: proof of your TEMPUS scholarship stating the amount of the grant
• at least 4 passport photographs

Visa

EU nationals and students from Iceland and Norway do not need a visa to enter Belgium. All you need is a valid passport or identity card and your permission to register at K.U.Leuven.

Students from other countries must apply for a temporary residence permit ('Authorisation for provisional sojourn') at the nearest Belgian Consulate or Embassy before they leave for Belgium. You will be asked to submit the following documents:

• a valid passport
• your permission to register at K.U.Leuven
• a proof of solvency
• a certificate of good conduct from the police department
• a medical certificate

You must apply for the temporary residence permit ('Authorisation for provisional sojourn') before leaving for Belgium. Do not have a tourist visa put into your passport. You cannot stay in Belgium for a period longer than a tourist visa allows, and you will not be able to convert the tourist visa into a temporary residence permit ('Authorisation for provisional sojourn') once you are in Belgium.

Students from Switzerland whose stay exceeds three months: Please read carefully! You can apply for an "Authorisation for provisional sojourn" upon arrival in Belgium. However, in that case the proof of solvency will require you to open two Belgian bank accounts: a blocked account with € 480 for each month you will stay in Belgium, and a current account into which € 480 must be deposited from the blocked account each month. Moreover, the whole procedure, if gone through after arrival in Belgium, can take up to six months. Therefore, we advise you to apply for your temporary residence permit ('Authorisation for provisional sojourn') at the Belgian embassy in Switzerland, before you leave for Leuven.

Belgian embassies abroad

Money

It is very important that you assess the financial means necessary for living and studying in Belgium. Material uncertainty can endanger the successful completion of your programme. Exact estimates of study and living expenses are impossible to give because of the ever-rising cost of living and individual differences in life style. The overall living expenses for a single student for one academic year (ten months) in Leuven are estimated at € 6,500. The average monthly rent for a standard student room is about € 210..

When to arrive

Academic Calendar and Holidays

On the following days , university offices will be closed and all classes cancelled:

With the exception of those marked with an asterisk, all holidays mentioned above are Belgian national holidays during which all shops, private offices, government offices and schools will be closed. On 15 November, the feast of the Royal Dynasty, all government offices are closed. The administrative offices of the university are closed for a few days during the Christmas vacation (i.e. between 25 December and 1 January).

Orientation Days for International Students

In the week before the opening of the academic year, and in the week before the start of the second semester, an orientation programme is offered to all new international students at K.U.Leuven. In addition to practical information on how to find your way at the university and in the city of Leuven, the orientation offers lectures on Flanders, Belgium and Europe, and social events which provide an opportunity to meet fellow students, as well as a trip to Brugge. As an exchange student, you will receive a registration form from your contact person in Leuven. Participation in the Orientation Days is free, except for the trip to Brugge.

Dutch Language Courses

Within the regular undergraduate programmes all required courses are taught in Dutch. As a result, fluency in Dutch is a prerequisite for attending these courses. However, to accommodate international students many elective courses are taught in English. Linguistic preparation may be financially supported by the Socrates/Erasmus or TEMPUS programmes; for more details, ask your contact person in your home university.

Dutch courses (as well as courses in other less-spoken languages) can be taken at the

Instituut voor Levende Talen (ILT - Institute of Modern Languages):
Dekenstraat 6, B-3000 Leuven
phone: 016/32 56 60 or 016/32 56 76
e-mail: bina.patel@ilt.kuleuven.ac.be or claire.danhieu@ilt.kuleuven.ac.be

Each August, at the request of the Office for International Students and Scholars, the ILT organises a Dutch summer course for international students. This year, the course will run from July 30 to August 29, 2002. The aim of the course is to teach Dutch to those students who have no prior knowledge of the language. Students with an elementary knowledge only will be given the possibility of improving their Dutch. Lectures are given 20 hours a week. Enrolment should take place before June 28 and costs € 228. After this date enrolments will only be accepted if the required quota of students has not been reached. Payment will not be refunded after July 21. Detailed information is available on the ILT's website.

The Institute also provides Dutch languages courses throughout the academic year. At the request of the International Relations Office the ILT organises two types of 'Dutch for Foreign Students' courses. They are introductory Dutch language courses and they are only available for Socrates/Erasmus students.

• The A-course lasts 3 months and is meant for beginning students in order to activate communication through conversational exercises. It is a practical course based on the principles of Dutch grammar. The aim is to make students acquainted with the vocabulary of every-day life.
• In the B-course students will get acquainted with Dutch language and Flemish culture. Approximately two thirds of the time is devoted to conversation. Vocabulary is mainly practical. The other part of the course is based on historical, political, socio-economic and cultural aspects of Flemish-Belgian society.

Socrates/Erasmus students interested in joining the A- or B-courses should contact the secretariat before September 13, 2002 for the first semester and before January 15, 2003 for the second semester. These courses are free of charge, except for the course material (€ 25).

Temporary Accommodation

All exchange students should notify the International Housing Service of their arrival date in Leuven. Upon arrival in Leuven, please go straight to the International Housing Service at Naamsestraat 80. The staff will assign you a guest room. Students who arrive before September 10 will be given a guest room in one of the university residences at a cost of approximately € 10 per night. After September 10, these residences are fully booked and you will be given a guest room outside of town, at the monastery of the Oblaten Fathers (also € 10 per night), approximately 4 kilometers from the city centre. There are regular bus services between the monastery and the city of Leuven. From September 11 to October 10, the reception office at the monastery is open daily, including weekends, from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.

We advise all exchange students who will be in Leuven for the first semester only to arrive well before the start of the academic year, preferably a week or two in advance, or earlier if possible. In fact, it would be best if you could come to Leuven for a short while in August and book a room then. The week before the start of the academic year is the most difficult time to find both temporary and permanent accommodation.