“I obtained a Bachelor in Chemical Engineering at the Monterrey Institute of Technology, Mexico’s most international university. During that programme I went on exchange to the US and Germany, studying at MIT in Boston and KIT in Karlsruhe. When I started working as a consultant for an accelerator for start-ups, my perspective shifted. I discovered that I liked data science and analytics. Later I got a job in Munich as a data scientist at Celonis for about a year. I gained practical experience working with data, but I felt the need to learn the basics and theory behind it, so I started looking for a master’s degree that was also related to business management, a programme at the conjunction of management and the technical side.”

Leuven as a hub for knowledge

“That is how I found KU Leuven’s Master in Business Engineering. The programme offered the possibility to combine business engineering with a major in data science and business analytics, a perfect match for me. Since I had little background in economy and only knew computer science from my professional experience, it was a great leap. However, the Flemish educational system allows you to study plenty of topics in your master’s if you are good enough and put in the effort. I also considered programmes elsewhere in Europe, but was granted a Mastermind scholarship by the Flemish government, which provides the tuition fee and extra benefits. Plus, I fell for the city of Leuven, which is a hub of like-minded people looking for knowledge, truly built for students. I knew little about the city and Belgium, and I am glad that I gave it a chance.”

“I arrived in Leuven in 2020 during the pandemic, so my first year was basically a lockdown year. Luckily, the situation was still rather normal at the start of the academic year, so I could attend the introductory events. I like to engage and took every opportunity to network and to get to know the faculty and my classmates. I can only recommend it, since KU Leuven cares about the well-being and connection of its students, both local and international. I appreciated the broad onboarding programme in English and the monthly newsletter for international students. The initiatives in times of covid with regard to well-being were helpful too. The lockdown made life harder, so I was glad to have connected from the start. New students should take advantage of all these opportunities, especially in the first weeks!”

Academics for…

“In my second year, things became a lot better. My post-pandemic agenda soon was brimming with activities and events by the faculty and student organisations. I truly enjoyed the normal student experience, since I believe studying is not just about knowledge. A lot of the value of a master’s programme comes from the extracurricular activities and contacts. The ‘Academics for’ initiatives are great to learn from other students. I attended workshops and conferences by Academics For Companies and Academics For Technology and by Emergent, a data scientists group at KU Leuven. The student representatives and Ekonomika point you towards trips and social events where you can connect with students from your own faculty. And the sports’ facilities and offer in Leuven are amazing. I also liked the typical ‘kot-life’, where you live together with several roomies in a residence or a house – so much nicer than your own apartment. Of course, it all depends on your personality as well and how much you want to integrate.”

“In any case, you should not feel afraid to reach out to the teaching and faculty staff. Contact them with questions and show interest in their subject. Such personal contacts not only build better relationships, they also open doors towards interesting master’s thesis subjects and extra information on topics you are interested in.”

Tailor your programme

“When it comes to the curriculum, the economics part was challenging but also flexible enough to select courses that work for you. I only had some basic economic knowledge via a minor in business engineering from my chemistry bachelor, and the content at KU Leuven is of a totally different level. My professional experience helped a lot to digest the theory. In addition to the compulsory courses, there are a substantial number of courses where you can decide what knowledge you want to gain. I used that in my favour to tailor my programme to what I had done before and what I wanted to be doing in the future.”

“That was the most valuable part for me: the opportunity to tune the programme to my needs through the major and minor. My favourite part of the major in data science and business analytics was the course Advanced Analytics in Big Data: challenging because the content was almost infinite, but also the most rewarding and up-to-date. Every week, you learned about the latest updates and newest inventions about the matter - quite unique.”

Opening international perspectives

“A few weeks after my graduation in August 2022 I started as a data scientist at Tomes GmbH in Freiburg, Germany. The company develops a system that automates the analysis of patient data for doctors, so they have less administrative work and more time to help and cure their patients. The job is similar to my previous one and Freiburg is one of my favourite cities in Europe, but sometimes I miss Belgium and my friends. Many of my fellow students also moved abroad after graduation, which shows the programme’s potential to open up international perspectives. A master’s degree is often indispensable if you want to work in Europe.”

“I became an ambassador because I want to spread the message about KU Leuven and how the Belgian educational system works, especially in (Latin) America. There, they are not very well known, but I definitely had a positive experience. When I applied, I found few peers who could give detailed or first-hand information, so I basically jumped in the water and saw what happened from there. I would love to help and inform prospective students from my region.”

In Belgium you pass or you fail

“An important difference with (Latin) America is the way in which courses are graded. I was used to a lot of homework and being continuously assessed. In Belgium, you usually only have one final exam to pass and if you fail, you have to do a retake. I found the attitude and strategy of some local students quite interesting. My approach was not to fail any exam, but some fellow students actually planned to fail for a course in the first exam period and to seriously study for the retake. Anyway, I am glad that the system works since I failed an exam for the very first time in my life at KU Leuven! As I had travelled back to Mexico, organising for the retake was not evident, so I got quite worried. However, I was heard at the faculty and managed to do it.”

Veerle De Grauwe