ARES Scholarships in Belgium for Developing Countries

Objectives

The ARES scholarship program is designed to build human capital in developing countries by funding postgraduate study in Belgium, with the expectation that graduates return home and apply their expertise in ways that benefit their origin countries. This is not a talent-acquisition program for Belgium — it is a development cooperation instrument. The ideal candidate is someone who already has roots in a developing country, ideally in a professional or civic role, and who plans to return after completing a master's degree to work in government, public institutions, NGOs, or development-oriented sectors. ARES is looking for candidates who represent an investment: people whose advanced training will have a multiplier effect on their home communities rather than on Belgian or European labor markets.

Eligibility, plainly

In practice, this scholarship is restricted to nationals of specific developing countries that ARES has designated as partner countries — applicants must verify their nationality against that list before spending time on an application, because this is a hard cutoff. Candidates must be applying to a master's program at one of the Belgian universities partnered with ARES, and the field of study must fall within the program's eligible disciplines, which span economics, agriculture, education, finance, arts, and technology. The funding package is comprehensive — covering travel, visa, insurance, subsistence, and registration — but tuition fee coverage at the master's level depends on the specific program type, so applicants should confirm whether their target master's program qualifies for full tuition support. There is typically an age limit and a requirement that applicants are not already residing in Belgium or another developed country, meaning diaspora applicants or those currently studying abroad may be ineligible.

Requirements

What a strong applicant looks like

A competitive applicant holds a bachelor's degree in a relevant field — such as agricultural economics, public finance, education policy, or information systems — with strong academic results, and has at least two to three years of professional experience in their home country in a role connected to development, public service, or civil society. They can point to a specific gap in their expertise that the Belgian master's program directly addresses, and they can articulate a concrete post-study plan tied to an employer, institution, or project back home. ARES selection committees respond to applicants who are already embedded in their home country's development ecosystem — someone working for a ministry, a national university, an NGO, or a rural development program — rather than recent graduates with no professional track record seeking their first international credential.