A Congolese student who’s not able to buy his own bed sheets, a Taiwanese student who’s budget is insufficient to pay for tutoring, a Polish girl who’s low scholarship enables her to enjoy a meal outdoor. Those are just some examples of the financial problems with which international students have to cope with in Leuven.

It’s a sad truth but not all students in Leuven can enjoy the luxury of partying, travelling from the one to the next destination or treat themselves from time to time with a glass of that precious substance called Belgian beer. The matter is not limited to what may appear to some as trivial concerns. There are in fact a good number of students who are barely able to provide themselves with basic goods as cooking implements and decent clothing. Having to worry about basic necessities is the most extreme form of financial problems.

The very diversified range of financial troubles and traps connected to studying abroad, is not easy to map out. Students from outside the EU are confronted with specific problems upon arrival, such as the temporarily inability to access money transferred to a new bank account due to inefficient banking facilities. Those students who carefully have to think about every euro they spend face more structural problems that cannot be solved easily. Their situation depends on the amount of their scholarship, the ability to find a student job, the support their parents are willing/able to offer, etc.

It are certainly not only students coming from the so-called developing countries that encounter problems like this. North American and European students also have their share of financial troubles. |