KU Leuven: Faculty of Bioscience Engineering

Are you motivated to try to better understand complex systems and search for creative solutions for the current changes, e.g., global warming, biofuels, limited resources? Then this website is what you were looking for, and I’m sure you will find a suitable program for our Faculty!

On our Campus, around the castle of Arenberg, you will be able to study and conduct research in a green, pleasant and inspiring environment. Leuven itself is a real student-town, with 36,000 students over a population of 100,000. It’s a charming small city, only 30 minutes drive from Brussels, the capital of Europe.

The broad range of educational programs in bioscience engineering at Bachelor and Master level reflects the all-around character of our Faculty. For these educational programs, it is important to rely on the strengths of the scientific and innovative research. This is carried out in three departments: the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, the Department of Biosystems and the Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems. For educational and research purposes, the Faculty can use various facilities such as the Centre of Fruit Culture, the Experimental Farm for Animal Breeding, and the Greenhouse Facility with as well moderate as (sub)tropical environments.

We will provide you not only with scientific knowledge but also with management skills, and we will motivate you to explore yourself. You will meet a lot of other international students. We are one of the most European and international faculties in Leuven! Each year we receive and send students from/to universities all over the world; from Stellenbosch to Stockholm; Valencia to Varadero; Mekele to Melbourne.

If you want to know more, have a further look at our website, or ask for our brochures.

We hope you will have an instructive and pleasant time in Leuven!

Foundation

In 1878, under Rector Namèche, the Institute of Agronomy was established within the Faculty of Science following upon the initiative of a group of Catholic landowners who put together the necessary funds on behalf of the university. This initiative has to be seen against the background of the major agricultural crisis which hit Belgium and the rest of Europe as a result of the massive grain imports from Russia and America and which put pressure on Belgian agriculture to develop new methods of production. The agricultural sciences were called upon to help in this development. Important landowners and farmers looked to the University of Leuven to contribute the necessary resources. The bishops were in favour of the plan because they did not trust the state-run Institute of Agricultural Sciences at Gembloux, and they hoped that the agricultural engineers who would be trained at the Catholic University would play a part in protecting the Belgian farmers from liberal influence and at the same time keep this traditional bulwark of Belgian Catholicism intact.

International Orientation

The Faculty of Bioscience Engineering does not limit its activities to the Belgian borders, it has a large international network for student-exchanges, for example in the Erasmus+ Programme.

What's more, the Faculty is a member of ICA, IROICA, and AgriNatura and hosts the International Banana and Plantain Collection of Bioversity International, the international student association IAAS and ISHS. The Faculty also had active agreements with IITA and Bioversity International, as well as contacts with the other CGIAR centers. Professors teaching at the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering are all involved in international research projects funded by Horizon2020, ERC and many other international funding agencies.

COME TO STUDY AT KU LEUVEN

Welcome to the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, one of the oldest universities in Europe. We offer high-quality education based on cutting-edge international scientific research and excellent, wide-ranging student facilities. Leuven is a picturesque historic town, but one that is bustling with life and lives at a student’s rhythm.

Situated in Belgium, in the heart of Western Europe, KU Leuven has been a center of learning for nearly six centuries. Today, it is Belgium's largest university and, founded in 1425, one of the oldest and most renowned universities in Europe. As a leading European research university and co-founder of the League of European Research Universities (LERU), KU Leuven offers a wide variety of international master’s programs, all supported by high-quality, innovative, interdisciplinary research.

Since its founding, KU Leuven has been based in the city that shares its name. Leuven is a pleasant, safe and bustling student town, where centuries-rich history meets cutting-edge science. The university also offers degree programs at campuses in 11 Belgian cities, including Brussels, Ghent, and Antwerp.

Mission statement

KU Leuven fulfills its mission by providing high-quality interdisciplinary research and education with a Catholic signature.