Welcome to the Louvain School of Management!
It is a great pleasure for us to have you at LSM for a term. Thank you for choosing Excellence and Ethics in Management.
Feel free to navigate the interactive chart above by clicking on the coloured bubbles to learn more about:
| semester dates | courses | living costs |
| visits in and around Belgium | life on campus in Louvain-la-Neuve | sports and activities |
| contact information | useful links | FAQ (about coming to LLN and your semester on campus) |
You will also find additional information about your stay at LSM in the CEMS Incoming Exchange guide.
Your stay @ LSM
To apply for a CEMS exchange at LSM, follow this 4 step process:
- Be nominated at the Louvain School fo Management by your home coordinator
- Register as an incoming student on our mobility platform
- Check for your accomodation and learn about living in Louvain-le-Neuve
- Prepare your learning agreement
Step 1 - Nomination |
Firstly, your home coordinator must ...
Your home coordinator must nominate you on the cems.org website.
The nomination deadlines are:
- April 20 for the Fall/1st term
- October 20 for the Spring/2nd term
Nominated students will receive an email inviting them to complete the next steps after the CEMS exchange coordinator validates their nomination.
Additional documents needed: Visa application and/or grants
Chinese students residing in China will be provided with an APS Exemption Letter needed for the Visa application (usually sent directly to the home coordinator).
Before the student's UCLouvain registration is completed and upon specific request, an LSM Acceptance Letter can be provided to enable non-European students to start their Visa application. Be aware that this document is not the official proof of registration. The official document, the UCLouvain proof of registration, will be available to download at the end of July from your virtual desk MyUCL, the UCLouvain student account, directly after UCLouvain registration completion. Non-European students arriving in September will also get the "UCLouvain Authorisation d'inscription" by email, another version of the UCLouvain proof of registration.
Step 2 - Registration |
After students have been correctly nominated but their home coordinator, they need to complete their file and UCLouvain's registration (enrollment to the university).
Complete their file and send the following documents to LSM by email by the application deadline:
- A photocopy of a valid passport or identity card (front and back)
- The UCLouvain Registration form completed and signed
- The "Doc_reglement_vie_privee_FR" (University regulations and data protection) manually signed
- The 1 color passport-size photo (official ID picture with white background).
The student's application file deadlines are:
- May 15 for the Fall/1st term
- November 15 for the Spring/2nd term
Secondly, students will need to ...
In order to apply for a Visa, you need the official UCLouvain Proof of Registration, which will be sent your your UCLouvain student address and available on the student’s intranet account after registration completion. In the meantime, you can start your application using the official UCLouvain Admission Letter, UCLouvain Authorisation d’inscription, that will be sent by the Registrar Office BY EMAIL (email mentioned in your online application). Chinese students residing in China should also have received (by email directly from their coordinator) their APS Exemption Letter.
Important information for Non-European students:
Visa application should be started AS SOON AS POSSIBLE as it may take up to 60 days to complete the full process.
Note that :
- Students with dual nationality (European & non-European) will be considered by UCLouvain as European students.
- ASP Student Visa (long-term Visa) is compulsory to register at UCLouvain and the City Hall.
- Chinese students coming from China are EXEMPTED from the ASP Certificate by showing the APS Exemption Letter that the LSM sent after their nomination.
- Download your UCLouvain proof of registration needed for your Visa application. Follow this process to find your UCLouvain official documents.
In case you need to start your Visa application process before your UCLouvain account is activated, you can start it based on the LSM Acceptance Letter that you can specifically request to the LSM Incoming Student Coordinator.
Refer to UCLouvain Enrollment Office page for more information about the UCLouvain Registration procedure.
Some embassies request you to open a local bank account, also called a “Deposit Account”. To receive all the information about the financial proof of sufficiency, consult this page.
They will give you the bank details where you will have to deposit. As soon as the money is received, they will send you an official document to be sent to the Belgian Embassy. You will be refunded this money before the end of your stay.
Intranet account and UCLouvain Proof of Registration
Students will get an automatically generated email from the UCLouvain Office of the Registrar with their UCLouvain ID (called “NOMA”) as soon as their UCLouvain account MyUCL is ready to be activated. All students will receive the email for the activation of their UCLouvain account by the end of June, for an exchange during the fall semester, and the end of December, for an exchange during the spring semester (if their file has been submitted on time). However, for students coming during the Fall semester, the account will only be accessible as of mid-July. For students coming during the Fall semester who need a document before mid-July (the date around which you will be able to access MyUCL), the Office of the Registrar will send you an Admission Letter (Autorisation d'inscription) by email.
You can activate your UCLouvain account using this link (write your “NOMA” in field 2 & your date of birth in the format dd month YYYY in field 3). You will need to activate your account to download the UCLouvain Proof of Registration for your Visa & mobility grant applications. This document is the sole official UCLouvain proof of registration; no need to get the original (students have to download this document themselves).
Understand how to set up “MyUCL” and get more acquainted with it by watching this tutorial.
Step 3 - Accommodation & Living Costs |
Most of the housing managed by the University and private owners are shared apartments. Students have individual rooms but share common areas such as the kitchen, living room, and sanitary installations (shower and toilets). Usually, each bedroom is equipped with a sink, bed, mattress, chair, table, cupboard, and shelf space. The tenants must buy their bedding and cutlery themselves. Most shared apartments have between four and ten tenants.
Studios generally have one living room, including a kitchen area and a shower. Apartments have up to four rooms.
Living in a “kot” : “Kot” originally is a Dutch word meaning “junk room”. Nowadays, it is used in all parts of Belgium for student flats. It consists of single bedrooms with common areas i.e. kitchen, living room, bathroom(s) /shower(s), and toilet(s). A “kot” can be pre-booked in advance through the UCLouvain “Service des Logements” (UCLouvain Housing Service) or through real-estate agencies or private owners. It gives you the possibility to live with Belgian students in a shared apartment. A UCLouvain kot is usually less expensive than other housing solutions (check UCLouvain housing costs). Most of the rooms are on campus or in the neighborhood. Living in a kot means living with other students which helps the integration on campus. The cleaning service comes once a week and cleans all the surfaces of common rooms.
Please note: UCLouvain Accommodation Office will do its best to assigned CEMS students to the same apartment. It’s therefore necessary to inform UCLouvain Accommodation Office about your status of “CEMS Exchange Student” if you decide to book a UCLouvain room.
“Kot à projet” (KAP): In a KAP you will share a common interest with your housemates and work on a project during your exchange period. All KAPs are supervised by the university. Those rooms must also be booked through the Service des Logements (UCLouvain housing service).
Private owners: You can find a list of them on the UCLouvain Housing Service website. If you wish to rent accommodation this way, you will have to contact the owner by phone or e-mail and come to an agreement with him/her directly.
Real Estate Agencies :
Other possibilities :
- Notre Maison
- Foyer Saint Paul
- Youth Hostels (Les Auberges de Jeunesse Belgium)
- Mozaïk Hostel
- Hotels in and around Louvain-la-Neuve (IBIS, Martin's, B-Lodge)
Book your accommodation with the UCLouvain Housing Service :
Please apply online. UCLouvain accommodation is limited and the reservations are made following the ‘first-come, first-served’ principle.
Please note: UCLouvain Accommodation Office will do its best to assign CEMS students to the same apartment. It’s therefore necessary to inform UCLouvain Accommodation Office about your status of “CEMS Exchange Student” if you decide to book a UCLouvain room.
Note that the LSM International Office can only offer limited support in your search for accommodation. For any question you have about your UCLouvain accommodation, the best is to check the UCLouvain Housing FAQ first and, if needed, contact the UCLouvain Housing Service by email at inforlogementlln@uclouvain.be
Advice
Make sure you arrive the Friday (day of the LSM International Welcome Day) before September 15th for the first semester, and February 1st for the second semester. Upon arrival, you will need to sign the accommodation lease and get your keys.
Check the UCLouvain Housing Service opening hours.
When arriving in Belgium, you have the possibility to stay in the Kot Erasmus for a few days (approx. 3 days) to take the time to look intensively for a place to live. If you want to get a bed in the Kot Erasmus, you must go on their website to register online: http://koterasmus.be/. They offer temporary dorms to give you the time, when arriving in Belgium, to find your definitive accommodation.
Go to the UCLouvain Housing Service as soon as possible (and every day) upon your arrival. Some UCLouvain apartment buildings are released early in the semester. There are several reasons for this such as students canceling their arrival, finding another place to live or failing exams and/or dropping out.
Help upon arrival: ESN LLN can help you when you arrive in Belgium if you ask for it. If needed, they will accompany you until you find a place to stay. They will not search for you, but they will advise you on how to find a place. They are on Facebook, but you can also send them an email at esn.lln@gmail.com.
If you wonder what the cost of living in Belgium is, please consult the Genially at the top of the page.
Step 4 - Learning Agreement |
After the nomination and registration period, you are encouraged to think about the courses that you will take at LSM. Students need to fill in a Learning Agreement, a study contract. Here are the 3 steps to fill in this learning agreement.
The minimum course workload for a CEMS student is 25 ECTS credits per term (seminars excluded).
All details about the available CEMS activities at LSM (courses, languages, seminars, business projects, etc.) are available here. You should also take a look at this page to help you choose the courses you will take at LSM.
In regards to French language courses, you can follow up to 2 French language courses free of charge by semester (1 general & 1 complementary course – max. 8 credits) if these are listed on your Learning Agreement. If you want to follow more courses (more credits), there is a tuition fee for additional courses. Be aware that lectures are mandatory and are given at a rhythm of 2 times 2 hours per week all through the semester. All the necessary information about language courses will be given by the ILV (Language Institute) during its Information Session given at the beginning of the semester.
Fill in the learning agreement
Your learning agreement must be completed and signed by both you and your home coordinator: a pre-filled template will be sent to you by the LSM CEMS Team in due time. Even if your initial proposal (first learning agreement) may change, it is essential that you send us a study programme before your arrival. It is up to you to discuss your course choice with your home academic advisor as your programme needs to fit your home institution's requirements.
Please note:
- It is your responsibility to check that you comply with the courses' prerequisites (available in the course descriptions)
- Attendance is compulsory. It is your responsibility to check that you do not have any overlaps.
After choosing your courses, please send your Learning Agreement to lsm-cems@uclouvain.be. After your arrival in Belgium and during your mobility, you will be able to adjust your programme during the first week of the semester using the Annex for changes to the original proposed study programme, the appendix to your Learning Agreement listing your initial courses choice. After the first week of class, no changes to your learning agreement will be accepted.