The Non-Negotiable Requirements
All six must be met. Failing any one of them ends the application.
You must be a national of one of the 29 ICP Connect eligible countries.
Citizenship requirement. All 54-country list countries are eligible for ITP only. If your country is not on the 29-country list, the ICP Connect degree scholarship is not available to you. See the Eligible Countries page for the full list.
You must be resident in an eligible country at the time of application.
Living in a non-eligible country — even temporarily for study or work — makes you ineligible at the time of application. If you are currently abroad, wait until you return home before applying. The residency and nationality do not need to be the same country, but both must be from the eligible list.
You must not have previously studied at a Belgian higher education institution before January 1 of the intake year.
This is permanent, not time-limited. An exchange semester, a previous master's, or a previous VLIR-UOS scholarship at a Belgian university all disqualify you. This is one of the most surprising disqualifiers for people who had an exchange experience in Belgium.
You must not currently hold another scholarship or financial aid grant.
If you are currently receiving funding from another scholarship programme, you are ineligible for VLIR-UOS. The two cannot run concurrently.
You must not have previously received a Belgian government scholarship.
Any prior Belgian government scholarship — including from ARES (the French-speaking community's scholarship programme) — disqualifies you permanently. This is separate from the prior Belgian study rule.
You may only submit one ICP Connect scholarship application per year.
Applying to two or more programmes simultaneously triggers automatic rejection of all your applications. If you are unsure which programme to choose, choose one and apply to it only. You can try a different programme next year if not selected.
Age Limits by Programme Level
Age is calculated as of January 1 of the academic year you want to start — not as of the application deadline.
| Programme Level | Age Limit | Calculated As Of |
|---|---|---|
| Professional Bachelor's | 35 years old | January 1 of intake year |
| Initial Master's (2-year) | 35 years old | January 1 of intake year |
| Advanced Master's (1-year) | 45 years old | January 1 of intake year |
| ITP Training | 40 years old | Start date of training |
Note on age sources: Some older third-party sources cite 40 as the limit for initial master's programmes. The current official VLIR-UOS limit is 35. Always verify on the official site before submitting.
Mid-career option: Advanced master's programmes in governance, development evaluation, globalisation, human settlements, and anthropology are 1-year programmes with the higher 45-year age limit. If you are 36–45, these are your primary VLIR-UOS pathway.
Professional Background — Preferred but Not Always Mandatory
This rule does not appear in the eligibility checklist, but it shapes your chances significantly.
VLIR-UOS selection criteria strongly favour candidates with professional experience in higher education, government, or civil society. The scholarship is designed for "agents of change" who will return and apply knowledge in their organisations. Fresh bachelor's graduates with no work experience are at a disadvantage compared to professionals in relevant fields.
Not having work experience does not automatically disqualify you — but it weakens your position during the scholarship screening stage. If you are a recent graduate, being precise about how you will use the degree in a development context becomes especially important in your motivation letter.
For Private Sector Applicants
Private sector employment is not automatically disqualifying, but VLIR-UOS guidance notes that private sector applicants "may also be considered if they provide strong motivation." This means the burden is higher. You must explicitly explain how your private sector role connects to development impact, and how the degree will enable you to contribute to development goals. Vague statements about wanting to help communities will not be enough.
If You Started the Programme Without a Scholarship
Important Rule
If you enrolled in a VLIR-UOS programme as a self-funded student (without the scholarship), you cannot apply for the scholarship in subsequent years of the same programme. This is an explicit rule:
"If you decided to start the programme without a scholarship, you can no longer apply for a VLIR-UOS scholarship from the second year onward."
The only way to access the scholarship is to apply for it before starting the programme. There is no backdoor.