KU Leuven

Student life

Welcome Activities

• Welcome Desk @ Brussels Airport

Each year, the KU Leuven Welcome Desk at Brussels Airport welcomes new international students. This desk is set up two weeks before the start of the Orientation Days in September and is open from early in the morning until late in the evening. Staff members and volunteers help the students get to campus, make sure they know their way around and help them with any other urgent questions. Look out for the KU Leuven banner and desk in the Arrivals Hall at Brussels Airport. After you have gone through baggage claim, the Welcome Desk is located on your right-hand side.

• Orientation Days

Orientation Days is a special programme to help students settle in during their first days in Belgium and to help them learn more about the university, Student Services offers a special orientation programme before the start of every semester. The programme of these Orientation Days includes tips and tricks, guided city tours, visits in and around Leuven, information and enrolment sessions and lots of opportunities to meet fellow Belgian and/or foreign students from the different faculties.

• Buddy Programme

International students can request a personal buddy. This is a KU Leuven student or staff member who volunteers to introduce them to the Belgian way of (university) life. The Buddy Kick-Off helps the pairs get off to a good start, while buddy workshops throughout the semester encourage them to stay in touch.

• Student Welcome

During the first weeks of the academic year, Leuven will be buzzing with activities to welcome you and show you around. An ideal chance to get to know your new friends, new city and student life. Kick off the academic year together with a week of Student Welcome activities taking place all over the city.

Leisure and Living

• Culture

KU Leuven has a broad offer of cultural activities for its students to enjoy. There are discounts for museums and performances, for example, and students can also participate in student initiatives.

• Sport

Sportcampus Arenberg is the ultimate sports location for everyone living in Leuven and far beyond. Every year we welcome several tens of thousands of people, all of whom show themselves from their most athletic side. KU Leuven students can practice over 70 sports in the sports centres, and/or join a sports club. The 24-hour Relay Race, for instance, is the biggest sports event for  students at the university. It has been organised every year since 1972 by the student association LOKO. More on KU Leuven sport.

• Pangaea Intercultural Meeting Centre

In the spirit of hospitality and intercultural understanding, Pangaea aims to create a home-away-from- home for Belgian and international students, and wants to support collaboration within the Leuven university community. Coffee and board games, lively debates and lectures on intercultural topics, a wide variety of social activities, volunteering opportunities: all organised by and for students.

Student Participation

KU Leuven is home to many different student organisations. As an international student, you are more than welcome to join in and get a taste of student life in Leuven.

• International Student Associations

KU Leuven hosts a whole range of international student associations. A lot of international students participate in associations to give students from their country a warm welcome, share their culture and background with the university community and organise activities where students can meet. These associations can be linked to specific countries or can be centred around a certain theme.

• Local Student Societies

Each study programme has its own body of elected student representatives. Find out which kring is linked to your programme.

• KU Leuven Engage

Would you like to actively contribute to society? Engage as a student of KU Leuven. Make a difference for, together with and starting from people and groups in vulnerable situations. More on KU Leuven Engage.

Student Support

• Student Services

Student Services offers a unique and comprehensive support system where students can ask for help on anything related to living and studying. The system features an in-house medical centre with GPs and psychologists, professional career guidance by the Student Career Centre, an extensive housing database with student-friendly housing, counselling in case of social or financial problems, expert legal advice and extra support for specific target groups, e.g. students with a disability.

• Places to study

In our libraries and learning centres, many facilities are at your disposal as a researcher or student. You can reserve group studyrooms, borrow laptops and tablets, top up your print credit, make use of special software and much more… More on our facilities.