Belgium is a strong study-abroad option for international students due to its high-quality education and well-regarded universities. Students can also find a wide range of programs in English, especially at the master’s level. As a country with several research-intensive universities, Belgium also offers strong options for students interested in data science.
Many of the universities below offer master’s-level data science programs, or closely related programs that combine data science with statistics, business, computer science, artificial intelligence, or engineering. Several are taught in English, helping graduates prepare for international careers in a field where data-driven skills remain in demand. In this article, we will look at some of the best universities for data science in Belgium!
Top Schools Offering Data Science in Belgium
1. KU Leuven
KU Leuven traces its roots to 1425, making it one of Europe’s oldest universities and the oldest university in the Low Countries. Today, it offers a Master of Statistics and Data Science, a 120-ECTS, two-year program taught fully in English.
KU Leuven’s program blends rigorous statistical foundations with modern data science practice. Students can study on campus or through an online/blended format, and they can choose tracks such as statistics and data science for biometrics, social and behavioral sciences, business, industry, theoretical statistics and data science, and official statistics. For students who want to build strong modeling instincts while also learning to work with real datasets, projects, and applied methods, KU Leuven offers an environment that feels both academically serious and industry-aware.
That balance also appears in student experiences. Jovan, a Peter Rousseeuw Scholarship recipient in the Master’s in Statistics and Data Science, described how KU Leuven’s teaching setup supports deep, flexible learning: “All lectures are live-streamed and recorded, and all study resources are available.” He also emphasized the practical, collaborative structure: “There were lots of projects, group work, and people from very different skill levels,” adding that learning to work well in teams became “my biggest lesson.” In a field where results depend as much on communication and iteration as on theory, that project-driven culture helps explain why KU Leuven is a strong option for data science study in Belgium.
KU Leuven also backs that academic intensity with strong onboarding and responsive support, which can be crucial for international students moving countries to retrain in a fast-paced field. As Jovan put it, “The first week is an intro week where they help you get acclimated. It is super useful for a lost guy like me in a new country,” and he noted that “student support responds fast.” The program’s flexibility can also help students connect coursework to real interests: Jovan shared that his thesis, focused on sports analytics, succeeded because “my supervisor let me be myself and work on something I actually enjoyed.” KU Leuven offers a rare mix of rigor, structure, and practical enablement that makes it a standout data science destination in Belgium.
2. Ghent University
Ghent University was founded in 1817 in Flanders, Belgium. It is a major Belgian university with a broad range of programs, including English-taught master’s programs for international students.
Ghent University is an excellent school for data science in Belgium. It offers a subsequent one-year Master of Science in Data Science for Business with 60 credits. Students interested in a broader business-engineering route can also consider the two-year Master of Science in Business Engineering: Data Analytics, a 120-credit English-taught program.
Both programs are taught in English and focus on data-driven decision-making, analytics, and practical business applications, helping graduates prepare for careers connected to business data science and analytics.
3. University of Antwerp
The University of Antwerp is a young university with roots in three institutions: UFSIA, RUCA, and UIA. These institutions were brought together in October 2003 to form today’s University of Antwerp.
For students interested in data science, the university offers the English-taught Master of Computer Science: Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, a 120-ECTS program. The Computer Science master’s structure includes routes in Computer Networks, Data Science, and Software Engineering, with the data science route focusing strongly on research and development.
Direct admission is available for students with certain Benelux academic bachelor’s degrees in Information Sciences, Computer Science, or Engineering Sciences: Computer Science. Applicants from outside the Benelux are assessed on whether their previous degree is comparable to the University of Antwerp’s bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and whether they have sufficient software engineering, mathematics, and theoretical computer science background.
4. University of Liège
The University of Liège was officially installed in 1817 and is one of Belgium’s major public universities. Its MSc in Data Science and Engineering, professional focus, is a daytime, English-taught master’s program at Liège Sart-Tilman with 120 credits.
Because this is an engineering-oriented data science program, students are expected to have a strong background in mathematics, computer science, statistics, and related engineering foundations. Applicants whose previous studies do not cover all prerequisites may be assigned additional bridging course credits before or during the program.
In addition to core training in computer science, statistics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, data engineering, and high-performance computing, the program includes cross-disciplinary courses in management and law. The program lasts two years and includes a master’s thesis in a research laboratory or company, helping prepare graduates for technical and international careers in data science.
5. Hasselt University
Hasselt University began its first academic year in 1973 as Limburg Universitair Centrum (LUC). UHasselt and Maastricht University established the transnational University Limburg (tUL) in 2001, and LUC changed its name to Hasselt University in 2005.
The university offers an English-taught, two-year Master of Statistics and Data Science worth 120 ECTS. Students can choose from four specializations: Biostatistics, Bioinformatics, Epidemiology, and Data Science. Hasselt also offers flexible study formats, including on-campus and distance-learning options, and notes that the 2026–2027 curriculum will keep the same four specializations.
Located in the heart of Europe, Belgium gives students access to data science programs and research environments at institutions such as KU Leuven, Ghent University, and more. Because many of these programs are taught in English and connect data science with statistics, business, computer science, AI, or engineering, they can be strong pathways for students seeking international careers.
We hope this article on the best universities for data science in Belgium was helpful. If you’re looking to study abroad, make sure to check out the Belgium Page and some of the Available Programs in Europe for International Students!
