Question in the title. I’m looking to study engineering in the french speaking region as a non eu foreigner, but after I graduate, is it hard to find a job?

I read on [emploi.wallonie.be](https://emploi.wallonie.be) that the employer needs to apply for the employee and that it’s often accepted when a worker can’t be found on the local job market, but it also says that “highly qualified people” (like researchers, IT specialists) are the most often accepted.

​

(En français)

J’aimerais bien faire des études d’ingénieur dans la région francophone en tant qu’étrangère non européenne, mais après avoir obtenu mon diplôme, est-ce qu’il est difficile de trouver un emploi ?

J’ai lu sur [emploi.wallonie.be](https://emploi.wallonie.be) que l’employeur doit déposer une demande pour l’employé et qu’elle est souvent acceptée lorsqu’un travailleur peut pas être trouvé sur le marché local de l’emploi, mais il est indiqué que les “personnes hautement qualifiées” (comme les chercheurs, les informaticiens) sont les plus souvent acceptées.

4 comments

  2. Most of those jobs are in the Dutch speaking part. Also the better universities.

    So to increase your chances start already in the North part of the country.

  4. Hello! I studied a Bachelor and a Double Masters in Business Engineering/Management and started working in Finance 6 months ago (I was a non-EU foreign student).

    If I’m honest with you: it was a very hard and long process. But, totally worth it. Here is some advise if you want to work here as non-EU student after graduating (I’ll let you read the legal process online , otherwise just ask me , I can resume it for you in other post)

    1) Start looking for a Job much more before than the rest. Keep in mind that companies (at least in Business/ Finance) like to keep things simple. You will need a work permit to be able to work here, so versus a national or EU , hiring you will always represent extra work and extra money.

    2) Fight frustration: sometimes you will be rejected only because of this. Sometimes I arrived to final rounds in interview processes and was rejected because they do not sponsor work permits for juniors. So start your process by asking this information 😉!

    3) If you speak fluently Dutch or French (or even both) that’s a very good advantage. English is important, especially in Brussels but French and/or Dutch are still required in the majority of openings.

    4) Practice, practice and practice: Your chances will be higher if you do an internship. After you do some months there, maybe they will be interested in hiring you and doing the work permit process. So when looking for internships start looking already for companies willing to sponsor you after.
    (The majority of my non-EU friends found their job this way).

    5) Before coming to study here and deciding of Belgium, read about the process. The KU Leuven website explains it very well: https://www.kuleuven.be/english/stuvo/working-volunteering-career/transition-to-the-job-market/working-non-eea
    Also, a good news for future students is that from the 15th August 2021, Belgium started a “search year” visa for non-EU students after graduation. You can read more about it in the KULEUVEN website.
    Of course there are also National websites with the official information.

    6) Your chances are of course much more higher if you have a highly qualified degree. But as I said in (1), some companies like to keep it simple, so remember to be fast because like you many other will be studying the same degree. It’s not to scare you but rather to let you know that you need to be fast and apply to many openings.

    Belgium is a beautiful country ! I hope you like it here and that you will be able to find something after studying. Otherwise, I will say a final advise will be to be open-minded about studying in other EU countries. For example Germany and France give automatically a 1 year work visa permit for non-EU if you graduate from a Bachelor or a Masters (that’s something to keep in mind too, if your main objective is to work in Europe later). I believe Belgium is working on a similar law, but not sure if it was already accepted.

    Good luck 🔥!

Leave a Reply