Full-time MBA Programme

You want to make an impact – when you graduate and throughout the rest of your professional life. The Full-time MBA at Vlerick gives you the mindset, knowledge, skills and network to go out into the world and make meaningful change. 

Your learning journey at Vlerick will be practical, hands-on and energising. You’ll workshop ideas, and get input from leading faculty and business people – and you’ll put what you learn into practice through projects, group work, business games and simulations. 

You’ll get coaching, expert tuition, world-class career support and quality networking to completely prepare you to advance your career. 

Integrated learning 

Your courses are grouped into four integrated modules. In each one, you dive deep into a topic – and you learn how it’s connected to other functions and disciplines at the same time. This approach helps you to understand how a company is structured – and how you’ll need to work with other teams to innovate and solve problems. All of this means that you learn frameworks and theory in the context of the way a business is structured and operates. 

Overview of the 4 integrated modules

Financial & Analytical Foundation

At the very beginning of our programme, we lay a strong Financial & Analytical Foundation. This foundation consists of two key components:

  1. Financial Foundation

A combination of three stand-alone courses designed to help you build a solid understanding of financial terms and concepts. These courses are critical for effective communication in the world of business:

• Financial accounting
• Corporate finance (incl. FAST)
• Managerial accounting

   2. Understanding & Using Data

Understanding & Using Data is a unique aspect of our programme integrated into each integrated module. Various concepts and techniques to aid the business decision-making process will be studied to illustrate the road to the valuable information that can be extracted from data. In today’s world of complex and interrelated systems, decision-making remains an essential but difficult part of business. This is where data comes into play.

Excel in two broad areas 

All your hands-on learning, workshops, lectures, networking, trips and projects will lead you to develop two core skillsets – entrepreneurship and leadership. 

Entrepreneurship 

The business world needs flexible, creative thinkers who are capable of driving their organisations forward and making a lasting impact. Through coaching, listening to guest speakers, gaining an understanding of start-up life, learning to adopt design thinking, and understanding how to finance your own venture – and how large organisations invest in innovation – you’ll develop an entrepreneurial mindset. You’ll also develop your own business plan and gain agile, hands-on experience that will be invaluable – whether you want to start your own venture or drive success in a corporation. 

Leadership

At Vlerick, becoming a leader means mastering the soft skills, as well as the rigorous academic approaches that will help you to navigate decision-making. You’ll learn vital business skills including negotiation, presenting, and working with team dynamics. You’ll learn to problem-solve and motivate others. This is all supported by extensive leadership coaching and monthly group coaching sessions. Your Vlerick coach will push you to evolve and grow. So you’ll learn how to approach business, and importantly, you’ll learn about yourself. 

Electives

Explore your passions by choosing three electives in specialist business areas. From marketing through to finance and exploring innovation, there is a range of possibilities for you to choose from.

International study trip  

Immerse yourself in international business practice and networking during the study trip to Asia/Africa.

Knowledge-in-action project

Put everything you’ve learned into practice in a two-month project for a company or not-for-profit organisation. Address a strategic or managerial challenge – all with expert guidance and feedback from your professors and peers.

Integrated management exercise (IMEx)

During an intensive week, you’ll play the Integrated Management Exercise (IMEx) – a business game where your team competes to run the best company.

• Transform your career with intense leadership development and in-depth knowledge of all key MBA topics
• Get real-world experience with a two-month, hands-on project in a company or not-for-profit organisation
• Become an authentic leader with extensive coaching, group sessions and reflection
• Gain the perspectives of classmates and faculty from diverse professional, educational and cultural backgrounds 
• Build a powerful network that will support you throughout your career
• See an immediate return on your investment

In businesses across all sectors, you’ll find Vlerick graduates in strategic roles, working across borders. They’re successful, sought-after and highly valued. Here are just some of the places they’re making an impact: 

AB-Inbev, Accenture, Altran, Amazon, Bain & Company, Barco, Bekaert, BNP Paribas, Bopro, British American Tobacco, Brussels Airlines, Cargill, CG Holdings, Cisco, Citibank, Coca-Cola, Delhaize Group, Deloitte, Dow, Elia, Energetica Natura, Ernst & Young, Froomle, GE, GSK, HSBC, IKEA, Impaqtr, ING, Intertrust Group, Johnson & Johnson, KBC Bank, Mastercard, Materialise, McKinsey, Microsoft, ML6, Morgan Stanley, Nielsen, Novartis, Nxp Semiconductors, Odoo, Ontex, Philip Morris, Philips, Proximus, PWC, Roland Berger, Rydoo, Schindler, Signify, TeamViewer, Tomorrowlab, Tomtom, Toyota, UNIVERCELLS, UPS, and Vinçotte.  

Our careers team is there to support you from day one. They get to know you. They push you and find opportunities for and with you, with activities including: 

• Practical workshops 
• One-to-one career counselling 
• Executive coaching 
• Company visits 
• Alumni sessions and networking events 

• Do you have at least three years of full-time work experience? 
• Do you want to become a leader who makes a positive impact? 
• Do you want to develop your entrepreneurial mindset to lead effectively? 
• Are you a professional who wants to succeed as an entrepreneur? 
• Are you looking to change career, change sector – or change the country you work in?  

Our recent cohorts looked like this: 

Start date: 2 September 2024
Duration: 10 months (September - June) 
Location: Brussels 
Application deadline:

• Non-EU citizens: 30 June 2024
• European citizens: 31 July 2024

The tuition fee for the Full-time MBA is €41.500 

This includes: 

• Full tuition 
• Electives 
• Textbooks and course materials 
• Transport and accommodation for the European trip 
• Executive coaching sessions 
• Use of campus facilities 
• Alumni membership during the programme 
• One year of full online access to the Financial Times 

Living expenses in Brussels: €800 - €1.100 average monthly 

Financing your MBA

Joining a Vlerick programme can be a significant financial investment. But there are many options available – and we’re here to help you explore what types of support you might be eligible for.  

Scholarships

We award scholarships mostly on a merit basis. We look at personal and professional achievements, international outlook and added value to the class – as well as admissions test and interview results. Our scholarships range from 10% to 50% of the tuition fee and they are awarded on a first come first served basis. So the earlier you apply, the greater your chance of getting a scholarship.

• Female leadership: For women looking to become business leaders of the future.
• Diversity scholarship: For participants from diverse backgrounds, who have a global mindset and cultural awareness.
• Academic scholarship: For candidates with a strong academic record – and a GMAT score over 680 or a GRE scaled score of 160 or more for the verbal part, and 162 or more for the quantitative part.
• Future leader scholarship: For candidates who demonstrate exceptional leadership potential.
• Entrepreneurship scholarship: For candidates with a strong track record of entrepreneurship or the potential to launch their own business when they graduate.
• MBA event scholarship: For candidates who have met one of our representatives face-to-face at regional MBA events.
• Regional scholarship: We offer these to candidates who plan to continue to work in their region after graduation.
• Sector-specific scholarship: If you want to grow your career in one of our key research areas –healthcare, retail and consumer goods, financial services or energy – you can apply for a sector-specific scholarship.
• The Dirk Kuijper endowment fund: This fund promotes the international elements of our MBA programme.
• EU Indian scholarship: If you’re a permanent resident of India with a GMAT score of at least 650 or with a GRE-scaled score of 157 or more for the verbal part, and 159 or more for the quantitative part, you can apply for a scholarship towards your Full-time MBA.
• Vlerick spirit scholarship: This is for dynamic applicants who are open and willing to learn from peers with very different and diverse cultural and professional backgrounds.
• One Vlerick (Opportunity & Equality) scholarship: We value social diversity and we encourage individual commitment. For this partial scholarship, of up to 50%, you need to either represent diversity (eg, be a first-generation university student, belong to a minority group or an underprivileged community) or actively promote diversity and inclusion, by engaging in long-term initiatives that have a clear social impact.

To apply, write an essay as part of your online application form. You don’t have to say which scholarship you’re applying for. 

Loans 

You could also consider getting a loan to cover your programme fees.

• Regular loans: You can use a loan to pay for part or all of your tuition fees. Remember to explore any options available in your home country, as well as loans from specialist providers.
• Prodigy Finance loans: Prodigy Finance provides loans for international students at the world’s top business schools. These loans could cover your living expenses and 100% of your tuition fees, minus any scholarship you may be awarded. Learn more.

Paying in instalments  

You can also pay your tuition fees in four separate instalments due September, November, February and April. If you want to pay in instalments, we’ll ask you to sign a contract and pay an admin fee of €250.

There are four steps to applying for your full-time MBA programme at Vlerick: 

1. Check your eligibility 

What you need:

• A degree from an accredited university 
• At least three years’ full-time work experience 

2. Submit your application 

Complete your personal details and upload the necessary documents via our application tool. We process applications on a rolling basis – candidates who don’t need a student visa can apply until the end of July. If you need a visa to study in Belgium, it’s best to apply by the end of June.  

3. Go through the admissions process 

You can apply with our internal admissions test VBAT (Vlerick Business Admissions Test) or take either GMAT/GMAT Focus (minimum 600/minimum 565) or GRE (minimum 157 verbal, 158 quantitative). 

If you are taking the VBAT, we will contact you to schedule a personal appointment for the online test. The admissions interview takes place after you have passed the test. 

The interview takes place online and takes about 30 minutes. We want to make sure the programme is a good fit for you – so the interview is your opportunity to showcase your experience and personality and let us know why you and Vlerick are a great match.

Start preparing for your admissions test and interview – discover our tips and tricks. 

4. Get your results 

Within five days of your interview, we’ll let you know our decision. If your application is successful, you’ll be offered a place on the programme. To accept the offer and reserve your seat, you must pay the required commitment fee towards your tuition. If your application is rejected, we’ll give you individual feedback – and you can apply again the following year.

Discover what it’s like to study in Belgium – as well as practical information on how to organise your stay.