VLIR-UOS ITP and ICP Scholarship Programme, Belgium

Every year, with the support of the Belgian Directorate-General for Development Cooperation (DGDC), VLIR-UOS awards scholarships to students from developing countries to study one of the 15 International Course Programmes (ICPs) or one of the 6 International Training Programmes (ITPs). The ICPs and ITPs target people from the South with a responsible position in civil society (at a university, school, NGO, ministry, etc).

Each year there are a maximum of 180 scholarships available for first-year ICP students and a maximum of 70 scholarships for ITP participants.

Training Programmes (ITP)

ITPs are short-term training programmes whose main focus is transferring skills rather than knowledge. The International Training Programmes are designed for people from developing countries with a certain degree of professional experience.

The ITPs aim at transferring knowledge and skills, and create the possibility for cooperation and networking.

List of International Training Programmes 2009

• AudioVisual Learning Materials (AVLM) – Production and Management (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)
• Beekeeping for Poverty Alleviation (Universiteit Gent)
• Governing for Development: Opportunities and Challenges for Development Actors under the New Aid Approach (Universiteit Antwerpen)
• International Training Programme in Food Safety,
• Quality Assurance Systems and Risk Analysis (Universiteit Gent)
• Political Economy of the Great Lakes: Towards inclusive Development (Universiteit Antwerpen)
• Scientific and Technological Information Management in Universities and Libraries: an Active Training Environment 9 (Stimulate 9) (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)

Master Programmes (ICP)

ICPs are master programmes, lasting one or two academic years, all of which lead to a master’s degree. They focus on specific problems of developing countries. The main target group for the courses are students from developing countries, although the courses can also be attended by Belgian students or students from other countries.

The ICPs aim to provide a training in such a way that the knowledge that the students acquire is disseminated and applied in the home institution and country of origin.

General remark

As an official body administrating government funds, VLIR-UOS uses on this website the qualifications attributed in the Flemish Register for Higher Education. This database is governed by the Dutch-Flemish Accreditation Organisation (NVAO).However, the discussion regarding the qualification (Master/Master of Science/…) of all master programmes – including the ICPs – in Flanders, Belgium, is an ongoing one

International Courses 2009-2010

• Master of Development Evaluation and Management (Universiteit Antwerpen)
• Master of Globalisation and Development (Universiteit Antwerpen)
• Master of Governance and Development (Universiteit Antwerpen)
• Master of Human Settlements (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)

International Courses 2009-2011

• Master of Aquaculture (niversiteit Gent)
• Master of Biostatistics (Universiteit Hasselt)
• Master of Ecological and Marine Management (ECOMAMA) (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
• Master of Environmental Sanitation (Universiteit Gent)
• Master of Food Technology (Universiteit Gent)
• Master of Human Ecology (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
• Master of Molecular Biology (IPMB) (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
• Master of Nematology (Universiteit Gent)
• Master of Nutrition and Rural Development,Main Subject: Human Nutrition (Universiteit Gent)
• Master of Physical Land Resources (Universiteit Gent)
• Master of Water Resources Engineering (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)

ICP-Ph.D. programme

DefinitionTo enable promising graduates of the International Courses (ICPs – ICPs are Master programmes that receive institutional support from VLIR-UOS, see list of Master programmes) to make a Ph.D. at a Flemish university, VLIR-UOS launched its ICP Ph.D. programme in 2003.

Starting from the academic year 2002-2003, a maximum of ten Ph.D. scholarships can be granted every academic year to excellent ICP graduates from a developing country. The ICP Ph.D. programme aims to institutionally strengthen universities or research institutions in the South through capacity building, by upgrading local academic personnel by offering Ph.D. scholarships. Only ICP graduates that are nationals from a developing country are eligible for an ICP Ph.D. scholarship. See the call for all criteria.

PracticalAn ICP Ph.D. scholarship consists of two two-year terms, and cannot be extended. It is a ’sandwich’ scholarship, which means that in principle two-thirds of the research is conducted at the local institution and one-third at the Flemish university.

The scholar is free to choose the periods of his/her stays in Belgium and his/her home country, albeit in agreement with both supervisors. However, for practical reasons, the scholar is obliged to come to Belgium at the start of the scholarship, i.e. on 1 October of the reference year.

Funding is provided both on the level of the scholar as well as on the level of the local resp. the Flemish supervisor’s unit. See the call for more details. A call is launched in November. Deadline for applications is February (varies per Flemish university – see the call). Selection takes place in May. Selected Ph.D. researchers start in October of that year.

Visit VLIR-UOS website to find out more information about:

Overview of the scholarships

Eligible country list