Academic requirements
To start your studies at VUB, you must meet a few academic requirements. After your application, we verify your diploma and transcripts of records to decide whether you qualify for the programme you selected.
Prior knowledge and calibration tests
Specific programmes set extra requirements before you can start. For example educational programmes, engineering and architecture or medical programmes. Some of these require prior knowledge or calibration tests.
Entry exams for doctors and dentists (Dutch only)
Prior knowledge and calibration tests
Learning account
As long as your learning account is positive, you can enrol for a programme. You don't need to have the amount of credits you wish to take. So it's perfectly possible to start a programme with 60 credits (one year) if you only have 2 credits left in your learning account. As long as the account is positive (at least 1 credit), you are good to go.
All about your learning account
There's 1 exception possible:
If you have zero or less credits left, but you were enrolled in a bachelor programme during the previous academic year and you only need to finish maximum 30 credits in your bachelor programme, you will be allowed to enrol for 1 more academic year if you meet the other academic requirements.
Bachelor programme
When you apply for a Bachelor programme you need to have a Belgian secondary school diploma or secondary school credentials that grants you access to a Bachelor degree in your home country. For Flemish education it doesn't matter whether you completed ASO, TSO, KSO or BSO, but with a BSO diploma you will need more than a certificate.
Some credentials are deemed equivalent to a Flemish degree of secondary education and grant direct access (if you also have a proof of language proficiency) to our Bachelor programmes.
List of equivalent secondary school certificates
These are the general requirements. Each programme can have specific requirements when screening your application file. You can find these on the designated programme pages:
Overview of all programmes we offer
Master and advanced master programmes
When you apply for a master programme you need to have a bachelor degree (or equivalent).
After you submit your application, we will verify your degree and transcripts in order to determine whether you are eligible for the programme of your choice.
Each programme can have specific requirements when screening your application file. You can find these on the designated programme pages:
Overview of all programmes we offer
No secondary school diploma?
Check the conditions in our teaching and examination regulations (Article 29)
Language requirements
Proof of language proficiency
Upon application you must be able to prove sufficient knowledge of your programme's language of instruction. Make sure you meet one of the requirements mentioned below. There are multiple options to prove sufficient knowledge, you only need to meet 1 of the conditions to be able to apply.
If you have a Belgian high school diploma
- Students with a Flemish high school diploma don't need this proof to apply for a Dutch or English programme.
- Students with a Walloon high school diploma don't need this proof to apply for an English programme. They do need it to apply for a Dutch programme.
Language requirements: Dutch
Dutch
§1. Prospective students can provide proof of sufficient knowledge of Dutch as the language of instruction by meeting one of the following criteria:
- having a diploma of secondary or higher education where Dutch was the language of instruction
- having successfully completed at least one school year of secondary education where Dutch was the language of instruction
- having successfully completed programme units in higher education with at least 54 ECTScredits where Dutch was the language of instruction
- having passed the entrance examination for doctors or dentists organised by the Ministry of the Flemish Government
- having obtained a certificate of continuing education “hoger onderwijs voor sociale promotie” where Dutch was the language of tuition
- having passed the ‘Nederlands Staatsexamen Nederlands als tweede taal (NT2), Programma II’ examination
- having passed a test set up in accordance with European Union reference level B2, particularly the Certificaat Nederlands als Vreemde Taal (CNaVT) – ‘Educatief Startbekwaam’, (Certificate of Dutch as a Foreign Language), (until 2014: the Profiel taalvaardigheid hoger onderwijs (PTHO) (Higher education language proficiency certificate)), and the Interuniversitaire Taaltest Nederlands voor Anderstaligen (ITNA – ERK B2) (inter-university Dutch language test for non-native speakers)
Certificates and other proof of language tests may not pre-date the first enrolment by more than five years.
§2. Each faculty may require a higher level of language proficiency for a specific programme. This will be mentioned in the programme description.
§3. The Interfaculty Department of Teacher Training can apply specific language requirements to programmes that fall within its responsibility, as outlined in article 41 §4.
§4. Exceptions to language requirements may be granted by the person responsible for the programme on the basis of an overall assessment.
§5. Each faculty has the discretion to decide that students do not need to submit proof of their knowledge of the language of tuition when they enrol for a postgraduate or advanced master’s programme. This will be mentioned in the programme outline.
Find more information in the Teaching and examination regulations.
Language requirements: English
English
§1. Prospective students can provide proof of sufficient knowledge of English as the language of instruction by meeting one of the following criteria:
- having a diploma of secondary education where English was the unique language of instruction, excluding eventual language courses
- having a diploma of higher education where English was the language of instruction
- having successfully completed secondary education organised (by an educational establishment accredited) by the Flemish, French-speaking or German-speaking Community of Belgium.
- having successfully completed one of the following language proficiency tests corresponding to the Common European Framework of Reference with minimum level B2:
=> TOEFL iBT (home edition) with minimum level: 79
=> IELTS with minimum level: academic module 6.5 (also accepted: IELTS Indicator and IELTS Academic Online Test)
=> ITACE with minimum level: B2
=> Cambridge English Qualification Scale with the following minimal level: 170.
Certificates and other proof of language tests may not pre-date the first enrolment by more than five years.
§2. Each faculty may require a higher level of language proficiency for a specific programme. This will be mentioned in the programme outline.
§3. Exceptions to language requirements may be granted by the person responsible for the programme on the basis of an overall assessment.
§4. Each faculty has the discretion to decide that students do not need to submit proof of their knowledge of the language of tuition when they enrol for a postgraduate or advanced master’s programme. This will be mentioned in the programme outline.
Find more information in the Teaching and examination regulations.
Language tests
The Academic Centre for Language Education (ACTO) organises multiple language tests.
ACTO language tests
Or check the webpages of these language tests for more information or to take a test near you!
TOEFL ITACE ITNA CNaVT