Facts and figures
Students (Belgian)
In the academic year 2007-2008 a total of 9341 students enrolled at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, over 2% more than in the previous year. 1341 of them are ‘generation’ students. This means students who are enrolling for the first time in higher education. They make up 14.4% of the total number of students. We recorded 55% female generation students as opposed to 45% male generation students.
Nearly 95% of the generation students are following a full-time programme of at least 54 credits.
Arts and Philosophy the largest faculty
Based on enrolment numbers, the faculty of Arts and Philosophy is the largest department, closely followed by
the faculty of Law and Criminology (17.0%) and the Faculty of Economic, Social and Political Sciences (15.9%).
54,6 % pass rate for first year students
The pass rates for the generation students were calculated based on the results announced after the first year of the Bachelor’s programme. The percentage passing in 2007-2008 was 54.6% which is considerably higher than in the previous academic year, in which the pass rate was 43%. The pass rate for female students is traditionally higher than for their male colleagues: 59.84% versus 48.18%.
Employees
On 1 December 2008 the Vrije Universiteit Brussel employed a staff of 2753. The academic staff account for 1802 employees, of whom 28% are professors, 17% teaching assistants and 55% special scientific staff (researchers without teaching duties). The administrative and technical staff is made up of 951 employees.
The UZ Brussel, which is the Teaching Hospital of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, employs over 3000 people.
With a total of over 5700 employees, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel is the largest Dutch-language employer in the Brussels Capital Region.
Research
In 2008, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel had a research budget of over 70 million euros. The income from collaboration with the private sector is forming an increasingly large part of the total research budget.
Doctorates
In 2007-2008, 128 researchers successfully completed doctoral dissertations, which is approximately the same number as in the previous year. The largest number of doctorates are situated in the faculties of Engineering, Sciences and Bio-engineering sciences and Medicine and Pharmacy.
In addition, there are 1079 doctorates in preparation. The male doctoral students form the majority: 619 versus 460 women.
Doctoral Schools
At the start of the 2008-2009 academic year, three Doctoral Schools were established. The Doctoral Schools are intended to give the doctoral programme a clear framework and in this way to increase the visibility and reputation of the doctorate, within the academic world as well as outside of it.
- Doctoral School of Human Sciences
- Doctoral School of Natural Sciences and (Bioscience) Engineering
- Doctoral School of Life Sciences and Medicine
Regarding joint publications with industry, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel was a leader in Belgium on the ‘CWTS University-Industry Cooperation Scoreboard 2008’, which compares the world’s top 350 universities engaged in research activities. The fact that in 2008, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel was Belgium’s biggest climber in the university ranking published by the Times - jumping 15 places – and that it improved its score for the second time running on all criteria of the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), attests to the quality of the education.
Patents and spin-offs
On 1 January 2009 the Vrije Universiteit Brussel managed 40 current patents/patent applications in the name of the VUB and there were some 60 current patents in collaboration with third parties, including Leuven R&D, VIB, IMEC and other partners. Protection applications for VUB inventions submitted by companies are not included in these figures. There were 29 inventions reported, and ten new patent files were opened. As is often the case, some patent files were cancelled because of lack of market potential or because the patent file was not strong enough.
The Vrije Universiteit Brussel can also boast 22 established spin-offs of which 19 (17 spin-offs and 2 incubators) are still active. In 2008 three new spin-off companies were founded: Collibra NV, Universum Digitalis bvba and Optrima 3D Imaging.
- More information about research at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel...
Education
The Vrije Universiteit Brussel offers 27 Bachelor’s degrees, 57 Masters degrees and 24 Postgraduate Master’s degrees, as well as a teaching diploma. In 2008 the Instituut voor Postacademische Vorming (iPAVUB or Institute for Post-Academic Training) offered some 50 post-academic degrees, including eight postgraduate degrees.
100% of the Bachelor programmes visited received accreditation.
- More information about education at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel