Admission and application

Admission requirements

Academic requirements

Academic bachelor degree (minimum 180 ECTS credits or equal) in pure or applied sciences (e.g. chemistry, biology, geology, physical geography, geo-ecology, civil or agricultural engineering, environmental or agricultural sciences, etc.) or an equivalent level from a recognised university or engineering college.
The obtained bachelor degree must contain at least 40 ECTS credits or equal in natural sciences, covering at least four of the following disciplines: physics, chemistry, mathematics, ecology, biology, geology, physical geography, environmental sciences and agricultural sciences.
The grades obtained during the bachelor degree must be very good or excellent (typically top 30% of the student cohort).

English language requirements

Having obtained one of the listed English Language Test Certificates:

TOEFL iBT (total score of at least 90 out of 120), TOEFL iBT Home Edition is accepted.
Academic IELTS (overall band score of at least 6.5 with at least 6 for writing).
Cambridge C1 advanced certificate (formerly Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE)).

Other test certificates such as TOEIC, TOEFL ITP, Duolingo, … are not accepted.

Only if you have obtained your previous higher education degree in: Australia, Belize, Botswana, Cameroon, Canada, Gambia, Ghana, Guyana, Hongkong, India, Ireland, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Malta, Namibia, New-Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States of America, Zambia or Zimbabwe, you can be exempted to provide an English Language Test Certificate. In this case, you need to provide an English Language of Instruction Certificate issued and signed by your previous university. This certificate should clearly state that the language of instruction during your previous degree was English.

A Language of Instruction Certificate will not be accepted if you have obtained your degree in another country than the countries listed above.

How to apply?

Process

Deadlines

Important

Process

Deadlines

Important

Admission and scholarship selection

The IMSOGLO Student Selection Group, with representatives of all partner universities, grants admission to IMSOGLO based on the academic and language requirements described on this page. Scholarships are awarded by ranking all applications based on previous academic achievements, CV, and motivation. Applicants will be notified about the outcome of the scholarship selection before April 2025.

Appeal

If you would not agree with the outcome of the IMSOGLO Student Selection Group, an appeal can be filed to imsoglo@ugent.be. The decision of the Selection Group will not be changed unless the applicant can prove that the Committee made an objective mistake during evaluating the candidate.

Legalisation of your documents and letter of admission

Please legalise your BSc Degree Certificate (Diploma) and Transcript of Records according to the correct legalisation method for your country.

The Diploma and Transcript submitted during application stage should not be legalised. If you are granted academic admission to IMSOGLO, you will be contacted by the International Admission Desk of Ghent University in April 2025 in order to send scans of your legalised Diploma and Transcript of Records by e-mail as soon as possible and before the ultimate deadline of 31 May 2025.

After the International Admission Desk of Ghent University has received your legalised documents, you will receive a Letter of Admission for the IMSOGLO programme based on which you can apply for a student visa.

Visa application and further practical info

If you need a visa to enter Belgium, please start your visa application as soon as possible after you have received your Letter of Admission.

Apply for a long stay student visa type D at the Belgian embassy or consulate which is competent for your country of residence. More information about your visa application can be found here and at the competent Belgian embassy or consulate.

IMSOGLO includes student mobility to other Schengen countries, and therefor you have to apply for a long stay student visa type D with code B35. After your arrival in Belgium, you will be able to apply based on this code B35 for a 2 year residence permit that will allow you to travel to Austria and Germany without having to apply for a visa in these countries.

When applying for a visa, you will be asked to prove your solvency (i.e. sufficient means of subsistence). This solvency can be proved in different ways:

A Scholarship Award Letter (document certifying that the student has been granted a scholarship).
An affidavit of support (or a financial guarantee).
A blocked account and solvency letter: Ghent University can provide a letter to prove sufficient means of subsistence. In that case the financial means have to be transferred to a bank account of Ghent University, where they will be blocked on a personal account. The financial means will then be reimbursed to you on a monthly basis. For more information, contact international@ugent.be.

All instructions on other administrative steps (insurance, bank account, student housing, travel to Belgium, residence permit …) will be sent to admitted students by e-mail in May 2025.

Student Agreement and Student Handbook

Prior to enrolling to IMSOGLO, all students will be asked to sign the IMSOGLO Student Agreement, listing the students’ rights and duties, and scholarship conditions.

The IMSOGLO Student Handbook contains practical info for the student cohort starting in September 2024.