Study medicine in Belgium

Study medicine in Belgium and entry requirements

The education system in Belgium is in Bologna. Medical studies in Belgium (MD) include undergraduate and postgraduate courses. According to the Belgian legal system, to study medicine in this country, medical students need additional training combined with advanced training (general medicine, family medicine, specialized medicine, etc.) to work as a professional doctor within the Belgian legal and social framework. Starting elementary medical education requires a high school diploma and passing the entrance exam for medicine and dentistry, which is held by the Ministry of Education and the Flemish government. The entrance exam is in Dutch, so the applicants need to have a broad knowledge of this language. Most medical programs are in Dutch, and a few are available in English. The applicant needs to have three stages and degrees of skill to become an active professional physician in this country.

• Three-year bachelor’s degree with 180 credits (ECTS)
• Three-year master’s degree with 180 credits (ECTS)
• Advanced Master

An advanced program includes 120 to 180 credits (ECTS) as well as a vocational medical training course for three to six years that depends on the medical specialty. ECTS is a data transfer system related to student performance in the European Union, which equals 25 to 30 hours of study and includes attending lectures or classes.

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Topics reviewed in this article:

• Study medicine in Belgium and medical universities
• Required documents to study medicine in Belgium
• Medical education in Belgium and tuition fees
• Study medicine in Belgium and other medical sciences
• Study medicine in Belgium and get a visa
• Studying medicine in Belgium and working after graduation

Study medicine in Belgium and medical universities

The following are the best universities for studying medicine in Belgium that excel in producing science and research on various medical and biomedical topics. These topics include anesthesia, cardiology, general practitioners, gastroenterologists, gynecologists, ophthalmologists, radiologists, and surgeons.

Required documents to study medicine in Belgium

To study medicine in Belgium, the applicants need to have:

• A12-year diploma, which must be approved by the university.
• Take the entrance exam in this country.
• Be fluent in the official language of this country.
• High scores in specialized high school courses such as biology, chemistry, and mathematics

The following are the documents required to study medicine in Belgium and the qualifications for medical studies in Europe.

• High school diploma (certificate)
• Good grades in biology, chemistry, and math
• Recommendations
• Letter of motivation
• Voluntary or health-related work experience
• TOEFL and IELTS scores are usually a minimum score of 6

The qualifications required for a Master of Medicine in Europe are as follows.

• A bachelor’s degree in medicine or any degree related to health care
• Excellent English TOEFL and IELTS skills 6.5 to 7
• Passing the admission test

Medical education in Belgium and tuition fees

There are both public and private institutions for studying medicine in Belgium, and the cost of one’s education depends on the type of institution that you choose. If you are a member of an EU or EEA country and decide to join a government institution, you might have to pay 850 euros per year. If you are from a non-EU country, you must pay a fee to apply for a master’s or doctorate in Belgium. However, this amount cannot be more than five times the amount that EU students have to pay. It can be between 1,000 and 4,000 euros a year (private institutions will cost more than this). Scholarships are available but very competitive. For the Flemish Region, students studying in Belgium from the EU and outside the EU pay various tuition fees. It starts at 906 euros per year for EU students. Tuition fees for non-EU students studying medicine in Belgium might be higher based on the organizations that they choose. We have discussed the examples of the cost of studying medicine in Belgium below.

• KU Leuven

Tuition fees can be from 906 to 4,000 euros per year.

• Vlerick Business School

Tuition at some courses is around 15,200 euros per year.

• Vrije Universiteit Brussel – VUB

Its tuition costs between 906 and 1,450 euros per year.

• University of Liége

Tuition for EU students starts at 906 euros per year, and it can range from 2,400 to 4,175 euros per year for non-EU students.

Study medicine in Belgium and other medical sciences

Other medical disciplines are also of interest to many people. The study conditions in other paramedical disciplines are courses below.

• Pharmacy

Future pharmacists will start training by pursuing a bachelor’s degree in pharmaceutical science. During this program, students acquire general and scientific skills and basic pharmaceutical and medical knowledge. Due to the evolution of the pharmacist’s social role, the faculty pursues two elementary programs following the undergraduate program.

The emphasis of this program is on the relationship between the pharmacist and the patient and providing patient care. The students can work in a pharmacy or hospital after pursuing an advanced program (Master after Master). Master of Pharmacy emphasizes drug use, not patient-centered. Students who are more interested in industry are often pursuing advanced master’s programs in industrial pharmacies.

The applicants need to have Dutch language skills to study in most undergraduate and postgraduate courses because they are currently taught in Dutch.

• Dentistry

It is a branch of medicine that focuses on the study, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to the mouth, related structures, and how these conditions affect the human body. Dental and health care are quite essential, so dentists and dental assistants must be perfectly prepared for their profession. The students will obtain an elementary and general knowledge of dentistry, experience in studying medicine in Belgium, as well as a bachelor’s degree in dentistry. The applicants will study subjects such as anatomy, physiology, biology, patient care, and pharmacology. This course includes lectures and seminars as well as technical and practical meetings. They may also need an internship to develop their clinical skills. Clinical teaching is a vital part of their course to ensure that they have functional and theoretical knowledge. The students can get their specialty after obtaining their dental degree. The students need more training to become a dental surgeon. The doctorate in dentistry will last five to six years. The applicants need to take the entrance exam and be fluent in the Dutch language to study medicine and dentistry in Belgium.

• Nursing

Belgium is a federal state. It means that the competence of the nursing system is divided. It is educationally divided into Flemish, French, and German communities. However, the scope of professional activity and federal competence is reviewed by the relevant governmental ministries. Nursing education has varied between the Flemish and French communities, and German society is largely following the French model. Nurses in Brussels follow the model of education according to the language of the institution they are taught. There are two categories of nursing, the nursing expert and the nursing course. To receive a nursing certificate after completing high school, they teach nursing in the fourth year of high school. The training is based on practice and internship and lasts for three months. This group of nurses is not considered as a specialist nurse but may follow the path of the hospital that is the general nurse, in the second and third years of training. All nursing professionals can do specialized and complementary training as follows: cancer, imaging and radiation therapy, palliative care, endoscopy, dialysis, radiotherapy, and health education (nursing specialties regulated by Belgian federal law). After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in nursing, nurses can receive a bachelor’s degree (BANABA) in intensive care and emergency, oncology, neonatal, etc., and finally, a master’s degree in nursing. Before they can enter a master’s degree program, they must take 60 ECTS credits with scientific research, and then students have 60 credits (ECTS) of theory so they can get a doctorate.

Study medicine in Belgium and get a visa

The following documents are required to study medicine in Belgium and obtain a Belgian study visa.

• Visa application form for studying medicine in Belgium
• A valid passport that you have received in the last ten years (valid for at least three months)
• Two photos
• Language preference form based on your choice of German, French, or Dutch
• Travel insurance with a minimum of 30,000 euros
• Defining the purpose and motivation for traveling to Belgium
• Proof of financial viability
• Determining the place of residence

You must also provide the following additional documents.

• Registration certificate that allows you to attend courses (school, university/language, etc.) or study medicine in Belgium.
• Letter of confirmation from the educational institution where you are currently enrolled to study medicine in Belgium. (if possible)

Studying medicine in Belgium and working after graduation

One of the ways to obtain residency and citizenship is by studying in a country. By studying medicine in Belgium, you cannot get a passport from this country, but you will get a study residence. However, you can obtain permanent residence in Belgium when you enter the job market of this country (after studying medicine there) you can have the income to pay insurance and taxes. Generally, in European countries, after working for three to five years and receiving a salary, you can obtain permanent residence and apply for a passport after six to seven years. To better understand the working conditions after studying medicine in Belgium, it is necessary to examine the unemployment rate in this country. The World Bank provides information on Belgium from 1983 to 2019 that shows the average unemployment rate for Belgium was 8.26%, with a minimum of 5.4% in May 2019 and a maximum of 11.5% in September 1983.