Scholarships to study in Belgium: ARES, WBI, VLIRUOS, Master Mind and universities

Information checked on 2 November 2026.

Scholarships to study in Belgium from Africa fall into two families. Development cooperation scholarships, ARES on the French-speaking side and VLIRUOS on the Flemish side, are full but reserved for nationals of a list of partner countries. Excellence scholarships, WBI's Master IN, the Flemish government's Master Mind, Science@Leuven, are open to all nationalities but do not cover everything. This guide compares these programmes for the 2027 intake and gives the list of eligible African countries and the calendar. For the admission and visa procedure itself, see our guide to studying in Belgium from Africa.

Scholarships to study in Belgium, in one table

The scholarship pages are in French.

ARES scholarships: Belgian cooperation for professionals

The Académie de recherche et d'enseignement supérieur (ARES) funds, with Belgian development cooperation, international training scholarships at institutions of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles: a specialised bachelor's, a one-year specialised master's, or a six-month continuing education course. It is not a scholarship for a young school leaver: it is a scholarship for professionals.

The published conditions:

• be a permanent resident and work in one of the 32 partner countries (21 in Africa);
• have at least two years of relevant work experience after the last higher education degree;
• have held the relevant degree for 20 years at most at the start of the course (one more year per birth or adoption);
• meet the course's admission requirements and apply to only one course.

The scholarship covers international travel, a subsistence allowance, insurance, and for the specialised bachelor's and master's, enrolment fees and exceptional visa costs. You apply online on the ARES GIRAF platform.

Calendar. The 2027-2028 call is closed: it ended on 18 September 2026. ARES announces the next call for August 2027, for a 2028 start. Prepare your file for that call now.

Which African countries are eligible for ARES and VLIRUOS?

The two cooperation scholarships each have their own list, and both require a link with a partner country: residence and work for ARES, nationality and residence for VLIRUOS. The VLIRUOS list is entirely included in the ARES list.

If your country is not listed, turn to the scholarships open to all nationalities: Master IN, Master Mind, Science@Leuven.

VLIRUOS ICP Connect: an English-taught master's in Flanders

VLIRUOS, Flemish university cooperation, funds students from 25 countries of the Global South for a professional bachelor's or an English-taught master's at a Flemish university or university college. The scholarship covers study costs, travel, insurance and stay (housing and food), for the full length of the programme: there is no partial scholarship or extension.

• Age: 35 at most on 1 January of the intake year for a bachelor's or initial master's, 45 for an advanced master's; at least 19 for a bachelor's.
• Programmes: 12 open for scholarships in 2027-2028 (2 professional bachelor's, 7 initial master's, 3 advanced master's). Eight others are no longer funded.
• Application: directly to the university running the programme, ticking the scholarship request in the admission file. One ICP application per year.
• Dates: each programme sets its own. Example: the Master of Science in Food Technology (KU Leuven and UGent) closes on 1 February 2027. Answer by mid-May at the latest.

VLIRUOS holds an online information session on 26 November, from 14:30 to 16:30 (Brussels time). It helps you choose a programme.

WBI: Master IN, DOCTIN and postdoctorate

Wallonie-Bruxelles International (WBI) mainly funds excellence, with no country list.

Master IN. A grant of up to 10,020 euros per academic year, paid in three instalments (50% on arrival, 25% at the end of January, 25% after passing the year and a testimonial). One year for a 60-credit master's, two years for a 120-credit master's if you pass at least 54 credits in the first year. The last degree must be at most five years old. Excluded are students already enrolled in Belgian higher education and former ARES cooperation scholars. The file goes to the host institution, which forwards it to WBI; the 2026-2027 call closed on 31 March 2026, and the 2027-2028 call is not yet published. WBI gives priority to certain countries, including Morocco and Tunisia in Africa.

DOCTIN. A partial mobility grant of 20,979.63 euros (amount varying by thesis year) for a doctorate entirely in the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles or under joint supervision. You need a 120-credit master's or a degree giving access to a doctorate. Applications go through the Study in Belgium website; WBI's page does not publish the deadline.

IN.WBI postdoctorate. 2,120 euros net a month, return travel and insurance, for a doctor with a foreign degree who has found a host university. Fixed dates: 1 February for a long stay, 1 April and 1 October for short stays.

Master Mind, KU Leuven and Ghent: Flemish scholarships open to all

Master Mind. The Flemish government pays 10,225 euros a year to excellent international master's students, who pay only the lowest enrolment rate (136.50 euros in 2026-2027). Each Flemish institution puts forward at most 20 candidates and sets its own date. Note: the ministry states that the scholarship is under review for 2027-2028; amount and rules may change.

Science@Leuven. KU Leuven's Faculty of Science pays 12,000 euros a year, two years at most if the first year is passed, to holders of a non-Belgian bachelor's with excellent results. Applications from 1 October 2026 to 15 February 2027.

Sandwich PhD at Ghent University. UGent awards 15 scholarships a year for a 48-month doctorate shared with a university in the Global South: Ghent funds the 24 months spent in Belgium, the partner university must fund the other 24. Deadline: 9 February 2027 (exception request before 15 January).

What the scholarship does not settle

A scholarship does not exempt you from admission or the visa. For 2026-2027, the Immigration Office requires 1,062 euros net a month in means of subsistence; a scholarship certificate is accepted if it reaches that level. A grant such as Master IN (up to 10,020 euros a year) remains below 12,744 euros a year: you will need to top it up. On tuition, most countries of French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa are exempt from the 4,175-euro supplement at French-speaking universities; details are in our guide to studying in Belgium from Africa. Coming from the Maghreb? Read studying in Belgium from Algeria, Morocco or Tunisia.

Calendar for the 2027 intake

Preparing your application with Compatri

The study in Belgium page (in French) of the scholarship directory groups these programmes with their sources. Subscribe to the scholarship alerts (in French) to be told when calls open and get a final reminder ten days before each confirmed deadline, and open application tracking (in French) from the VLIRUOS or Science@Leuven page.

On the ground, the diaspora is waiting for you: Beninese people in Belgium already meet on Compatri, and our guide to an international student's first month in Belgium helps you avoid missed steps on arrival. A diaspora mentor can review your project. To compare with other destinations, read our guide to fully funded scholarships for African students, and for the letter, the motivation letter for a scholarship.

Compatri awards no scholarship: only the rules of ARES, WBI, VLIRUOS, the Flemish government and the universities are authoritative.

Sources

• ARES: international training scholarships 2027-2028
• ARES: scholarships
• VLIRUOS: ICP Connect scholarships
• VLIRUOS: list of eligible countries
• VLIRUOS: Master of Science in Food Technology
• Study in Belgium: WBI Master IN grants
• HEH: WBI Master IN grant, amount and payments
• WBI: DOCTIN call 2026-2027
• WBI: IN.WBI excellence scholarships
• Study in Flanders: Master Mind scholarships
• KU Leuven: Science@Leuven scholarship
• Ghent University: doctoral scholarships for candidates from the Global South