Brussels' student population on the rise

Brussels’ student population has grown by one-fifth in 10 years’ time, according to  a new study by the Brussels Studies Institute, the platform for research on Brussels. With about 86,000 students enrolled in higher education – about one-quarter of the total student population in Belgium – the capital remains the biggest student city in the country.

About 72% of students follows classes at a French-speaking university or college, while the remaining 28% are enrolled at a Dutch-speaking institution. A little over half of the students study at a university, with the rest enrolled at a college. About 23% do not have Belgian nationality, and 7% are not European.

About one-fifth of the students receive funding to pay for their studies. “This support is clearly insufficient, however,” states the report, “because about 1,500 students also need help from a Brussels social aid agency (OCMW)”.

photo by Big_Apple/Wikimedia Commons