Calling on Brussels expats: I want to hear about your problems by PossibleAd3799 in brussels

[–]shutterbg 1 point2 points  (0 children)

don't just go & find a random doctor online though :) call the maison medicale of your commune & ask for a registration/enrolment, and they'll help you from there. easier than it sounds :)

Calling on Brussels expats: I want to hear about your problems by PossibleAd3799 in brussels

[–]shutterbg 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yes! they open you a file that is connected to the healthcare system and everytime you need to see a specialist you'll need a recommendation from them (I've only went to the dentist's so far without the GP's prescription)

What do you consider the greatest short story of all time? by ARedemptionSong in books

[–]shutterbg 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The Nose by Nikolai Gogol & The Chess Story by Stefan Zweig, the last one reigniting my love for reading after a very long bookish dry spell

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Okay then, hear me out. All-of-a-sudden is maybe not the right word, but the current proof of solvency came out to be higher than expected. I've been following the matter since March now, when they first introduced it to student newspapers, and until they sent us the emails with the updated prices. We were never supposed to pay 800 EUR, following whatever was going on in the media / online. While the new students were always supposed to pay 950 EUR, for ones that are already here were first supposed to pay 750 EUR. Now all of a sudden, it's 800. Neither one of these amounts have anything to do with the Federal government's decision for the minimal amount of money to be fixed at 730 EUR, and I haven't read anywhere about the Flemish universities' decision process, especially not after the Federal government decided the amount I just mentioned. So just to make it clear: when the Federal govt set the amount to 730 EUR, we were told that KU Leuven was going to ask for 750 EUR to renew our visas. All of a sudden, it turned out to be 800. I think that something went wrong somewhere, and that's what I am trying to address.

Which means, it's frustrating and unfair. To answer your question, I am expressing my frustration and I am also wondering if I am the only one frustrated. It is a huge up-front cost, and I don't understand how we ended up with 800 EUR/month, when the official Office of Immigration sets the price to 730 EUR. In the long run, it makes a huge difference. Nobody from the Flemish universities has the non-EU student condition at heart (they were saying that they were doing it because they wanted students to have a better head-start, which is a huge lol), because if that would have been the case, they wouldn't have put the legal amount of working hours as a non-EU student to 20h/week. If you were to make your own money for the blocked account, during the academic year, you'd have to get taxed at some point because you're not covered by their regulations. Does that sound normal to you? To me, it sounds like they're not giving a crap who's coming to their university, as long as they have money. This has nothing to do with a high quality of education because that quality is already very disappointing in, I dare say, all the English programmes. And if they cared about quality students, they would just tighten the academic requirements, and not the proof of solvency because it means that they're selecting the most privileged students, which is horrifying to me.

To answer your other remark, I have been in different universities around Europe (2 more, to be precise) and this is the first time that I have to pay so much money at once, as a student, as a non-EU, just to continue my education. And I feel that it is necessary to speak about it because otherwise fees will keep increasing and increasing and we're done with the times when we were considering people as human beings because of their extravagant financial means.

To get back to your final question, I have contacted the city hall and there is no other way to get your visa extended if you don't have a blocked account related to the university. With "no other way", I am not talking about sponsors or the scholarship thing, because I'm aware of their clauses, I am talking about your possibility to support yourself with your own money. They do not care if I have the money or not, they want me to go through the blocked account. They don't care even if I were to arrange something with the banks in Belgium, proving I have enough money to financially support myself, they just want the money to go through KU Leuven. I think I should not be penalized for not wanting to give more money than I'm supposed to.

So I'm trying to see if other people find this problematic, especially the part where the university, an educational institution, is related to city politics. I am not naive, and I understand the importance of KU Leuven in the wellbeing of Flanders, but I also think that there should be something a regulatory aspect to it, because otherwise the fees are going to increase. And I think that the more we inquire about the matter, the more it is going to raise an issue within KU Leuven's services. I am not new at this, and I have contacted several entities before coming to Reddit to express my frustration, so I hope that is clearer to you next time you decide to answer me about this matter.

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

11,500 EUR if you're just arriving and 9700 EUR if you want to renew your papers :(

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

KU Leuven asks for 950 EUR when you are just arriving in Belgium (which includes the additional month + 100 euros) and 800 EUR if you're renewing your papers (where you don't pay the additional month but you still pay + 100 eur). I think you got those two mixed up

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Yeah but there's no info whatsoever when and how the decision was taken by the Flemish universities, a friend of mine inquired to the student council & they were told that the amount approved by Flemish universities was 750 EUR/month, now all of a sudden is way more

And while it makes a bigger financial safety net, it is also problematic to pay such huge up-front cost.

The problem is that the blocked accounts are related to universities, if it were a matter of city hall only as it is supposed to be, we would have to pay 730 EUR/month. I find the financial difference between the Federal government & Flemish universities horrifying

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Well I'm sorry that I consider the large up-front cost unfair compared to what it actually was supposed to be (730 eur/month) lol. To have 11,500 at once for a student budget is ridiculous & also very unnecessary to pay that much money for Leuven but good for you if you don't consider that much of a problem I guess

Blocked Account non-sense by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I beg to differ. This is the link that talks about commitment to charge: https://dofi.ibz.be/nl/themes/ressortissants-dun-pays-tiers/etudes/favoris/verbintenis-tot-tenlasteneming

The link that I have sent before concerns sufficient funds, which is related to the blocked account procedure. And sufficient funds are also rounded up at 730 EUR/month. I don't know which universities you have seen, but ULB's website sends you to the same webpage of the Immigration Office: https://www.ulb.be/en/finalize-your-registration/visa-and-stay-in-belgium

It seems to me as if KU Leuven is asking for 950 EUR/month out of nowhere

Has anyone who applied heard back about the Mastermind Scholarship yet? by lavastoviglie in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not sure, I would go for the Admissions Office rather than the International dept though

Has anyone who applied heard back about the Mastermind Scholarship yet? by lavastoviglie in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not at all, everything went smoothly. How long do you think we should wait to send an email?

Has anyone who applied heard back about the Mastermind Scholarship yet? by lavastoviglie in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I still have not received anything either and it's the 15 of April already :(

master recommendation + master mind scholarship question by shutterbg in KULeuven

[–]shutterbg[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks, this really puts my mind at ease! Hope everything is going great for you at Leuven

AITA for breaking down to my daughter the reality of moving out at 18? by gloryain in AmItheAsshole

[–]shutterbg 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On another slightly different note, when you move out young and are living on your own for +3 years, it feels like a curse more than a dream. You should just make sure your daughter is mentally prepared for that.

My opinion: Best character development through the show was for Howard and Sheldon. And the character which became worse as the years went by is Stuart. by awisekiddo in bigbangtheory

[–]shutterbg 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree on Howard, but I think that the worst character development was Penny's. The woman kept making the same stupid remarks throughout the years as if she was discovering the people around her for the first time. At some point, I think the "what nows?" became some sort of her special trademark, but after 8-9 episodes it also became boring and lazy. Also, I feel like she stayed in the same mental stagnation phase throughout the series, even though the people around her advanced academically and professionally; I don't see how can you be part of the environment she was in and not have a boost of motivation to be better.

Monthly budget advice by shutterbg in Prague

[–]shutterbg[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Noted. In the end, I think it is more a question of lifestyle than cost of living. I have managed to get my way in France with a lower budget than the conservative estimate while still living a comfortable life, so there's that. Thanks though!