Included Program Benefits: Students participating in Loyola’s Study Abroad Program in Leuven Belgium will receive two roundtrip airline tickets (one for each semester) from the East Coast (usually Newark) to Brussels, a ten-day trip to Italy, an eight-day trip to France, a three-day trip to Amsterdam, and 2-3 day trips within Belgium each semester.  Students will also have a full-time onsite Loyola faculty program director, part-time onsite associate director (each with offices in the student residence), several group meals, emergency evacuation and repatriation insurance, and a student visa.

Program Costs and tips on cost of living:  Living in Europe for ten months can be very expensive.  It seems that most students who studied in the 2006-07 academic year spent around $8000.  It is very important that students are conscious of their money from the very first week.  It is easy to not think about it until they realize that they have gone through half of their budget in the first two months. The student residence has large communal kitchens that students tend to spend a lot of time in.  Buying groceries each week to cook meals is a huge way to save costs.  Most of the Europeans in the house will cook for themselves, so it is a habit that is easier to pick up on for the Americans.  Students should also plan travel in advance.  The more they plan, the less they will spend.  While traveling, it is important for them to remember that they are not on vacation.  Meaning: just because they are traveling does not mean that they need to eat out for every meal.  Most hostels have kitchens that students can take advantage of for cooking.  Many students note upon their return that they learned to buy a loaf of bread with peanut butter to use for lunch every day while traveling.  It will save a considerable amount of money.  They should also purchase a good travel guide for cheap travel.  Let’s Go Europe is a great one.  Another factor that helps is the network of Loyola students around Europe.  There are many other European programs, so students should take advantage of friends that they have studying in other countries that they plan on visiting so that they might have a free place to stay or at least get recommendations and tips for cheaper travel within the country.   

Health Services, Insurance Information:  Belgium has excellent health care.  Students are allowed to purchase Belgian health insurance for the duration of the program.  We will facilitate the process for students upon their arrival in Leuven if they wish to purchase the insurance.  We strongly encourage all students to do so.  The insurance only costs about 70 Euro and covers them from October 1 – July 1; however, the insurance is retroactive, so any health costs incurred in the first month of the program can be recovered later.  The insurance includes coverage for doctor and hospital visits, as well as emergencies, dental and prescriptions.  Having the Belgian insurance reimburses 50-75% of all medical costs incurred while in Belgium as well as helps to facilitate the paperwork of getting into medical care.  On the whole, Belgian medical care is much more efficient and also considerably cheaper than American health care.  Students have access to a student health center as well as private doctors and hospitals in Leuven.  The University Hospitals Leuven makes up the largest hospital in Belgium.  Students can easily find access to doctors who speak English as well.

The one caveat to accessing Belgian health insurance is that students must open a Belgian bank account.  The reason is that all medical payments are debited directly from the bank account and then all reimbursements are credited directly back to the account.  Setting up a bank account is also something that the Loyola director and associate director in Leuven will facilitate upon arrival.

Link to Consular Information Sheet: It is important for your son/daughter to know as much as possible about the country he/she will be living in or visiting. The U.S. Department of State provides American Citizens with information on each country/territory around the world. Here is the link to the Country Specific Information on Belgium, along with Travel Alerts and Travel Warnings.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1044.html

Visa Procedures / Airline arrangements: Students are required to obtain a student visa to study in Belgium.  In order to be able to apply for a visa, students must have a passport that is valid through three months after the end of the intended period of study.   Students should apply for a passport as soon as they know they are applying to study abroad.  If the student already has a passport, the expiration date should be checked to ensure that it meets the date requirement.  Loyola facilitates the process of obtaining student visas.   We will go over the required paperwork and procedures in our pre-departure workshops.  Students will be responsible for lodging their own applications as the Belgian government no longer allows us to lodge applications for groups. 
 Loyola purchases group round-trip airline tickets for each semester.  We usually get a direct flight from Newark to Brussels.  The students are responsible for getting themselves to the group departure.  Once flights are booked for the fall semester, we will go over airline and flight information as well as baggage and change rules and regulations.  Students are allowed to change their return tickets.  Usually changes are only made to the final return ticket (after the second semester ends).  Students are responsible for taking care of the changes themselves once they are in Leuven.

Banking / Money Issues: We do encourage students to open up a Belgian bank account upon arrival in Leuven in conjunction with obtaining the Belgian health insurance.  The onsite director and associate director will facilitate that process upon arrival in Leuven.  With the Belgian bank account, students will also have an ATM card which provides them with access to the Belgian ATMs without being charged.  Once the student’s bank account is set up, you can wire money to their account.  If a student has their own money that they wish to have transferred to the Belgian bank account, then a parent should be added to the student’s home account so that they can make the wire to the Belgian bank account while the student is in Leuven.

Whether or not the student opens a Belgian bank account, they will still have access to their US bank accounts.  You should check with your bank to make sure that the student’s debit card will work overseas, and find out what fees are associated with using the account internationally (do the same with any credit cards).  Students will be able to withdraw money from any ATM in Europe (as long as the account has a debit card instead of an ATM card).  You should also check to see if your bank is partnered with any European banks.  Usually in that case, students can use the partner’s ATMs for free or for a very low fee.  Credit/ Debit cards are not as widely accepted in certain European countries as they are in the US.  People tend to use cash more frequently.  Students should make sure that they are signed up for web banking for all accounts that they will be using overseas.  That way they can monitor any fees that are being charged, as well as know their balance in American dollars.  When using ATMs in Europe, all information and dispensed currency will be in Euros.  Check www.xe.com for the current currency conversion.

Packing / Getting Ready: Belgium does generally follow the same seasons that we have in the US, but they are a bit milder.  The temperatures will range from the 30s to the 70s over the course of the year.  It can rain a lot.  In terms of packing, the first thing to realize is that students are not packing for the whole year.  They only need to pack for the first semester.  When they come home at Christmas, they will have a better understanding of what they are (not) wearing and can make adjustments.  Students should pack a jacket, a rain coat, and shoes that will be comfortable to walk in for long periods of time.  For girls, there is really no need to bring heels because the streets of Leuven are cobblestoned with very large and deep gaps in between the stones.  They could take one pair that they might wear elsewhere, but don’t waste space on more than that.  Students can rent bedding and towels.  If they end up wanting to purchase their own, they can get anything from Hema (a very cheap department store in Leuven).  I would not advise packing those items as they can be heavy and take up a lot of room in a suitcase.  Students should plan on purchasing hair dryers or straighteners in Belgium if they plan on using them.  Students should purchase a European plug convertor kit (you can get them at Target) for their laptops and chargers.  They do not need electricity adaptors for those items as they work on international electric currency.

Misc: Communication is another concern for parents.  There are a couple of options for communicating with your son or daughter while they are in Belgium.  All students will have internet connections in their rooms, but they do not have phone connections.  The residence is set up like an old-fashioned dorm in the sense that there is one public phone on each floor.  Students are not allowed to make outgoing calls, but can only receive calls for a limited amount of time so as not to tie up the line.

One option for communicating is a program called Skype.  Skype is an internet-based calling system (www.skype.com/download) that enables you to call for free or inexpensively.  All that is required is an internet connection and a microphone for the computer.  You can call computer-to-computer for free.  You can also call from computer to a landline or mobile phone at very cheap rates (The rate to call to a Belgian phone is 2.4 cents/minute).  This works well in a few combinations—computer to computer, or the student’s laptop to your home/cell phone, or the student’s room/cell phone to your computer.  You can pay-as-you-go with Skype or get a monthly subscription.  Your son/ daughter can also purchase a local phone number (as in your home town) on Skype so that when you dial from your cell phone or land line it is a free local call.

Your student can also always purchase a cell phone.  We recommend purchasing a phone overseas because many of the international cell phones that are sold in the US do not work well abroad and you must unlock a certain chip in them to be able to use them abroad at all.  It is much simpler to buy one once there.  Some students purchase cell phones from students who studied in Leuven the previous semester.  That is the cheaper way to do it.  There is also a raffle during orientation where students could win a phone from one of the previous students.  Students who have studied in Leuven in the past have differing opinions on the issue of whether or not to get a cell phone.  If your student does purchase a cell phone in Belgium, they do not have to sign a contract but can do prepaid minutes (pay-as-you-go) instead. Incoming calls are free for the students as long as they are in Belgium.  Once they go outside of Belgium they are roaming and it is expensive for them to receive calls.  You should also look into special rates for calling to Belgium through either your cell phone or land-line phone company.  Most companies have them, but just do not advertise them. 
 
Websites:

Leuven housing page
Leuven PECS (the University’s international office) site