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54-662: UCLouvain (or Université catholique de Louvain , French for Catholic University of Louvain , officially in English the University of Louvain ) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university and one of the oldest in Europe (originally established in 1425). It is located in Louvain-la-Neuve , which was expressly built to house the university, and Brussels , Charleroi , Mons , Tournai and Namur . Since September 2018,

108-426: A Kot-à-projet (kap) is a kot whose inhabitants have similar interests and who organise activities for the general student population, they are similar to Fraternity and sorority houses , but smaller in size with only the committee living in the kot. Being small several Kots can be situated in the same, university owned, apartment building. One of them is "le kap contes", a kot promoting the art of storytelling. Another

162-524: A building site near the town of Ottignies , in the French-speaking part of the Province of Brabant (today's Walloon Brabant ). They bought a 9 km plot of beetroot farmland, which became the site from which the new town would arise. Construction started on 20 January 1969. Put under the direction of Raymond M. Lemaire , Jean-Pierre Blondel and Pierre Laconte , this urbanistic project saw

216-403: A diverse community as is found in any classic town. Moreover, one of the main points of the urban design of Louvain-la-Neuve was to make it people- rather than automobile-centred. As a consequence, the town centre is built on a gigantic concrete slab, with all motorized traffic travelling underground. This allows most of the ground level of the town centre to be car-free. Most buildings are built on

270-520: A great extent, it still lives following the rhythms of the university that is its raison d'être . However, with the construction of L'Esplanade shopping complex, the Aula Magna exhibition centre and auditorium, a large cinema complex, and five museums, it is beginning to grow beyond its academic roots. Louvain-la-Neuve was born as a result of the Leuven Crisis , which led to the split of

324-590: A green park, Le Parc de la Source. This location for the museum was originally chosen in 2001. The futuristic building was designed by the Pritzker Prize -winning French architect Christian de Portzamparc . On 22 May 2007 (the centenary of Hergé's birth), the first stone of the museum was laid. Two years later, in June 2009, the museum opened its doors to the public. The Hergé Museum contains eight permanent galleries displaying original artwork by Hergé, and telling

378-618: A large part of Belgium's elite and is still considered, with its Dutch-speaking sister, as a centre of excellence in many fields. In 2006, it was ranked 76th in the world universities ranking established by the Times Higher Education supplement (24th in Europe). In the 2011 QS World University Rankings the University of Louvain was ranked 125th overall in the world, moving up one place from its position of joint 126th in

432-555: A larger university structure. The network included: The first implementation of the Académie Louvain network was the creation of the Louvain School of Management , which could unite the faculties and departments of economics , management and business of all four universities, in 5 different cities. This specific choice was made because all four member universities offered degrees in this field. It also included

486-421: A new name: Catholic University of Louvain (Université catholique de Louvain). In a Catholic spirit inspired by Pope Gregory XVI , the promoter and first rector of the university, Monseigneur de Ram, wanted to create a shield that would repulse religion's enemies and block every doctrine weakening the base of Catholic society. The pharmacy school was founded in 1845 and the engineering school in 1865. In 1884

540-488: A train extension has been built from the nearby station of Ottignies , which allows passengers to travel to or from Brussels in under an hour. Louvain-la-Neuve is now a thriving, growing town. Construction work is constant as many more of the characteristic small two to five floor buildings made of red bricks are erected. Due to the large student population that leaves the town during weekends and holidays, Louvain-la-Neuve can be quite empty during those periods. Nevertheless,

594-403: Is an occasion for the numerous student associations in the town to compete in building silly bikes, set up some related activity, or simply provide beer and music to the tens of thousands of students coming from all over Belgium. In the morning, the activities end with a concert by some famous singer in the main square. This event gives a hint at how student life and traditions have developed on

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648-829: Is called "Kap Délices" which suggests varied activities such as theme buffets, cooking lessons, and material renting. The AGL (General Assembly of Louvain students) is the UCLouvain's Students' union . The body comprises an executive Committee, and a legislative Council. The Committee consists of ex-officio members: President, Vice-Presidents for Education & Welfare, VP for the Medicine faculty (situated in UCLouvain Brussels Woluwe ), General Secretary, Activities Officer, Communications Officer, Operations Officer, Foreign student's Officer, Cultural Officer, Editor-in-Chief & Deputy Editor-in-Chief as well as

702-719: Is in UCLouvain Brussels Woluwe , Woluwe-Saint-Lambert , Brussels , where the faculty of medicine is installed. The UCLouvain hosts Belgium's largest university museum in Louvain-la-Neuve; the Musée L . It exhibits part of the university's 32,000 piece wide collection of art and scientific objects including works of Dürer , Van Dyck , Goya , Rodin , Picasso , Magritte or Alechinski , sculptures , archaeological and ethnographic objects or specimens of natural history . The UCLouvain FUCaM Mons campus also owns

756-419: Is in no way an obligation to be baptized in order to be a part of a Cercle or to frequent them. The calotte is a Belgian student cap worn by students attending Catholic universities. They are emblems of student folklore dating back to the late 19th century. Nowadays, most calottes are passed by way of a ceremony known as the coronae. How they are passed and what must be known or done to deserve it depends on

810-457: Is now home to more than 130 innovative companies and their 4500 employees, 1 business incubator and 3 business centres. The Hergé Museum is dedicated to the life and work of the Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi (1907–1983), who wrote under the pen name Hergé , creator of the series of comic albums, The Adventures of Tintin . It is located in the centre of Louvain-la-Neuve, on the edge of

864-605: Is updated every few months to host new exhibitions (with diverse titles such as Tintin, Hergé and Trains and Into Tibet with Tintin ). Acad%C3%A9mie Louvain Académie Louvain ( French pronunciation: [akademi luvɛ̃] ) was a network of French-speaking catholic universities in Belgium active between 2004 and 2015. It was formed following the Bologna process to reform higher-level education, creating

918-579: The Académie Louvain . Within this group, member universities have coordinated their masters programmes in the fields of economics, management, political sciences and sciences as well as the doctoral programmes in all disciplines. In September 2018, the University of Louvain (or UCL until then) and Saint-Louis University, Brussels de facto merged, founding the UCLouvain , a denomination they currently share. In 1425, Dukes of Brabant created

972-748: The Catholic University of Leuven . Following the elections prompted by this affair, the expansion of the French-speaking part of the Catholic University of Leuven was voted upon and approved on 18 June 1968. A few weeks later, the separation was made official. It resulted in the creation of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KU Leuven), the Dutch-speaking university, that would stay in Leuven , and

1026-689: The Catholic university of Mons ( FUCaM ) located in Mons and Charleroi . The negotiations for a full merger aborted by an insufficient vote by the general assembly of the FUNDP in December 2010. The result was a merger between the University of Louvain and the FUCaM in Mons , effective from 15 September 2011. The Mons campus is denoted UCLouvain FUCaM Mons. The three universities still collaborate in consortium,

1080-536: The Dutch-language section became the independent Katholieke Universiteit Leuven , which remained in Leuven, while the French-speaking university was expelled to a greenfield campus and town, Louvain-la-Neuve , 30 km south-east of Brussels, in a part of the country where French is the official language. This separation also entailed dividing existing library holdings between the two new universities. With

1134-566: The ICHEC Brussels Management School , a college based in Brussels . After almost three years of active collaboration within the network, the rectors of the four catholic universities decided on 12 March 2007 to open negotiations with the aim of merging the four establishments into one single university. Each site was to become a site of "UC Louvain". The merger among the four was aborted on 17 December 2010 after

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1188-589: The Université catholique de Louvain (UCL, which has two campuses in Brussels ) decide to merge and form a new university called UCLouvain. This last merger is yet to be formally endorsed by the French Community of Belgium that organizes all state funded education, but will de facto take effect in September 2018. The Académie Louvain was formally dissolved on 26 February 2016 as a consequence of

1242-416: The Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), which had to move to the future site of Louvain-la-Neuve, except for the French-speaking medical faculty, which moved to Woluwe-Saint-Lambert (often called "Louvain-en-Woluwe"), in the suburbs of Brussels . The first blueprints of Louvain-la-Neuve were made in a hurry and under dramatic times. After much deliberation, the university administration agreed on

1296-417: The 15,000 students living in town during the academic year. The town was created with the sole purpose of hosting the Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain). As such all the grounds are property of the university. Consequently, the university was able to play an important role in the conception and planning of the town. They decided that the town should not be only inhabited by students, but rather draw

1350-637: The 2009 THE–QS World University Rankings (in 2010 Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings parted ways to produce separate rankings). An overview of the THE-QS Rankings: QS World University Rankings Cercles are Student Societies or Fraternities based around each faculty. The Cercles, along with the Régionales (which are based around their respective regions of origin) coordinate and manage most of

1404-622: The Alps during the Winter Break). Every Cercle and Régionale has its own customs and traditions, but some are practiced by all: The Baptême ( French : baptism ) is a hazing ceremony used by most to induct new members, who then participate in a number of trials and activities involving eggs and other foodstuff, paint, demeaning chants etc. Baptized members (les Baptisés) are among the most common type of members, and some Cercles and Régionales try to only accept new members this way, although it

1458-1005: The Catholic University of Leuven split into the Dutch-language Katholieke Universiteit Leuven , which stayed in Leuven, and the French-language Université catholique de Louvain , which moved to Louvain-la-Neuve in Wallonia , 30 km southeast of Brussels. Since the 15th century, Leuven/Louvain , as it is still often called, has been a major contributor to the development of Catholic theology. The Catholic University of Leuven , based in Leuven (" Louvain " in French), 30 km east of Brussels , provided lectures in French from its founding in 1834, and in Dutch from 1930. In 1968,

1512-535: The Catholic University of Louvain celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. In 1968, as a result of linguistic issues, the university was divided into two different universities: one French speaking, which moved to the province of Walloon Brabant , and one Dutch speaking, which remained in the same location. In 1970, these two universities were established by law as the Katholieke Universiteit te Leuven and Université catholique de Louvain . In 1971,

1566-585: The Catholic University of Malines (Université catholique de Malines). A law passed on 27 September 1835 stated that there would be only one university funded by the State of Belgium in Louvain. The same year, shortly after the suppression of the State University, the Catholic University of Belgium moved to Louvain. It took advantage of the reputation of the city as an ancient university centre and adopted

1620-562: The Cercle or Régionale. One thing that is universally known, is that there is a lot of singing involved. Cercles are notorious for their generally high output of alcohol (especially beer) and low level of cleanliness. Students tend to wear old clothes that they don't mind damaging or dirtying as a consequence, and the overall ambiance is more akin to a rave or a frat-party than a nightclub or sports bar. Student accommodation in Belgium comes in

1674-818: The Institute for European Studies (IEEB) and the Marie-Haps Faculty of Translating and Interpreting of autonomous UCLouvain Saint-Louis Bruxelles campus are not attached to their corresponding counterparts of UCLouvain. While the main campus of the University of Louvain is based in Louvain-la-Neuve , it also comprises a campus in Brussels, UCLouvain Brussels Woluwe , in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert , which until recently

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1728-680: The University of Louvain (Université de Louvain), which was suppressed under Joseph II , reopened in 1790, and was finally closed under the French Republic in 1797. In 1817, the State University of Louvain ( Université de l'Etat de Louvain ) was founded, which closed 15 August 1835. In 1834, the Catholic bishops of Belgium created the Catholic University of Belgium (Université catholique de Belgique) in Mechlin , also known as

1782-525: The centre of Baianism , Jansenism and Febronianism in Europe. A new university, the State University of Louvain, was founded in 1817 and abolished by the law in 1835. A new catholic university was founded in Mechlin in 1834, the Catholic University of Mechlin and moved to Leuven in 1835 that is frequently, but controversially, identified as a continuation of the older institution. In 1968

1836-416: The democratization of university education already stretching existing structures, plans to expand the French-speaking part of the university at a campus in Brussels or Wallonia were quietly discussed from the early 1960s, but it was not anticipated that the French-speaking section would become an entirely independent university and lose all of its buildings and infrastructure in Leuven . The first stone of

1890-703: The extended collection of the Convent of the Black Sisters in the city-center of Mons , where the university has placed its Ateliers des FUCaM campus. UCLouvain Saint-Louis Brussels also owns a classical and modern art collection, primarily paintings recovered from its original campus in Mechelen . The University of Louvain educates around 27,261 students from 127 nationalities in all areas of studies at its different campuses. It has educated

1944-561: The first foundation stone was laid in Louvain-la-Neuve, a new city constructed for the French-speaking university. Evolution of the number of students at the University of Louvain, including the FUCaM in Mons that integrated the UCL in 2011, Saint-Louis University, Brussels that formally integrated the university in 2023. The faculties of Philosophy, Arts and Human Sciences, Economic, Social, Political and Communication Sciences (ESPB), Law (DRTB),

1998-444: The first students and inhabitants arrive in 1972. At this time, there were only around 600 permanent residents of the town, who were joined during the day by some students of Applied Sciences, the first faculty to open. With the completion of university buildings and the ongoing residential development, the town experienced rapid growth, with 10,477 inhabitants recorded in 1981. The final goal is to reach 30,000 inhabitants, in addition to

2052-426: The form of a " kot ", a term having Belgian Dutch origin. A "kot" can be translated as den or hut. The French way to form the plural of "kot" is "kots" (in Dutch, the plural of "kot" is "koten"). In the bilingual region of Brussels, where there are both Dutch- and French-speaking universities and their students, it is common that "for rent" signs are in French only, with the French plural of "kot". Unique to UCLouvain

2106-435: The fourth week of October. Due to the recent terrorist attacks in Europe and the existing risk of new ones, the 2016 edition was cancelled. The starting concept was simple, to race for 24 hours on a bike. Nowadays, competitors are separated in three categories: Racers, that race seriously; folk bikes, including decorated bikes and home built contraptions; and charity racers raising money for humanitarian causes. The festival

2160-645: The merger with Saint-Louis University, it also comprises an independent campus specialized in education and research of social and human sciences in the center of the City of Brussels , UCLouvain Saint-Louis - Bruxelles and the Marie-Haps Faculty of Translating and Interpreting in Ixelles ' European quarter , next to the European Parliament (4150 students). UCLouvain's main medical implementation

2214-553: The new campus at Louvain-la-Neuve was laid in 1971, and the transfer of faculties to the new site was completed in 1979. According to a 2007 agreement, the University of Louvain was to absorb three smaller French-speaking catholic colleges: the Facultés universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix ( FUNDP ) located in Namur , the Facultés universitaires Saint-Louis ( FUSL ) located in Brussels (later called Saint-Louis University, Brussels) and

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2268-430: The newly born campus, reviving some long lost customs as the traditional Catholic Belgian students hat, the calotte . The 24 hours have also been at the center of some more political issues. In 1999 it was cancelled due to the death of a drunken student who had fallen from the dalle in 1998. This happened again at the 2006 edition when a student was found dead in the early morning in the streets of "the dalle". The event

2322-415: The outset, the objectives pursued by the development of Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park were to develop cooperation between industry and the Université catholique de Louvain and to contribute to regional economic development. Particular emphasis is placed on environmental-friendliness, as well as the quality of the premises and their surroundings. The main area of activity are: Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park

2376-657: The president of the council. Quinzaine a university produced newsletter, La Savate produced by the AGL and the monthly l'étincelle by the Kot-à-projet KAP Etincelle. Cercles also produce publications. The 24 Hour Cycle (24h Vélo) is, nominally, a bicycle endurance road race held in October, organised by CSE Animations (Centre Sportif Etudiant). While there is an elite race with teams of two, Student groups enter novelty themed multi-bike vehicles, in

2430-554: The shape of a Van or Whale for example, for prizes. The quality of these designs range in terms of artistic merit, and ability to stay intact over the duration of the race. A 240-minute race also takes place for teenagers. The event is probably best known for what happens off the track. Concurrent with the race is Belgium 's largest student event, with concerts and stands lasting the full 24hrs. 50°40′10.6″N 04°36′44.15″E  /  50.669611°N 4.6122639°E  / 50.669611; 4.6122639 Louvain-la-Neuve To

2484-545: The slab ( la dalle ), and the pedestrian area is expanding even far from the town centre featuring many mixed use overpasses and traffic calming solutions. This constitutes an early example of the 15-minute city , with the Agora, Main square and train station in a tight central triangle reachable by foot within 15-20' from the outermost districts. The town is clustered around this center in four districts: Biéreau, Lauzelle, Hocaille and Bruyères . A fifth district, Baraque , that

2538-406: The story of his life and career. Although his most famous creation, The Adventures of Tintin , features prominently, his other comic strip characters (such as Jo, Zette and Jocko , and Quick and Flupke ) are also present. The exhibitions also include examples of Hergé's diverse and prolific output working as a graphic designer in the 1930s. The museum houses a temporary exhibition gallery, which

2592-559: The student life both day and night is well developed, centered around Student Unions, "project flats" ("kot-à-projet"), regional pubs, etc. Celebrating its 40th edition in 2017, the 24 heures vélo (24-hour bike ride) is the biggest student party in Belgium. The event, which regularly draws upwards of 40 000 students to the city, is organized by a student group called the CSE Animations (Centre Sportif Etudiant) and runs annually from 1:00pm Wednesday to 1:00pm Thursday usually during

2646-736: The students' animation and nightlife. Most Cercles run small bars to fund their activities, and also jointly operate a larger nightclub, "La Casa". Cercles and Régionales are run exclusively by member students known as the committee. These members are elected every year, usually by voting from all members (active or otherwise) wishing to participate, although some Cercles restrict the number of possible voters in some cases. Aside from promoting student folklore and coordinating student animation, Cercles also offer academic aid to students in their respective faculties and organize more cultural activities, such as visits to museums and/or other cities, conferences, and low-cost trips for students (for example skiing in

2700-545: The ultimate vote on the board of UNamur failed to attain the required 80% (30 in favour and 14 against). FUCaM merges with the Université catholique de Louvain separately on 15 September 2011 becoming the UCL Mons . In 2013, the merger process being cancelled, the FUNDP in Namur and FUSL in Brussels decide to change their names and respectively become the University of Namur and Saint-Louis University, Brussels . In 2017, Saint-Louis University, Brussels and

2754-461: The university uses the branding UCLouvain, replacing the acronym UCL, following a merger with Saint-Louis University, Brussels . The original University of Louvain ( Universitas Lovaniensis ) was founded at the centre of the historic town of Leuven (or Louvain ) in 1425, making it the first university in Belgium and the Low Countries , and abolished by law in 1797. This university was

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2808-454: Was also threatened in 2005 and 2006 because of a student associations strike and other organisation problems. Created in 1971, Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park is the first of its kind in Belgium and is the biggest one in Wallonia (the French-speaking part of Belgium ). It covers 2.31 square kilometres spread over the area of the town of Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve and the municipality of Mont-Saint-Guibert (30 km away from Brussels ). From

2862-789: Was called "Louvain-en-Woluwe" hosting the university's sector of medical science and primary academic hospital (8000 students), a campus in Mons called UCLouvain FUCaM Mons (2300 students), a minor installation in Charleroi with 133 students (as of 2011) at UCLouvain Charleroi , an architectural school in Tournai , UCLouvain Tournai, with 540 students (as of 2011), and an architectural school in Brussels , UCLouvain Bruxelles Saint-Gilles, with 570 students (as of 2011). With

2916-454: Was not planned by the university has expanded on the north side of the town. It is distinct from the rest of the town in the willingness of its inhabitants to live outside of the common architectural framework (small cobblestoned and pedestrian streets) used in the other parts of the town. Louvain-la-Neuve's location 30 km (19 mi) south of Brussels at the crosspoint of several important roads makes it easily reachable by car. Moreover,

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