Probably the most familiar nuclear engineering application is the production of electricity by means of nuclear power. Over 30% of electricity in the EU and roughly 55% in Belgium is provided by nuclear power. Moreover, at a small absolute but high relative scale, Belgium developed almost all kinds of nuclear activities on its territory: power plants, fuel production, radioelement production, engineering companies, accelerator design and fabrication, waste management, safety management, nuclear medicine, research and higher education.

BNEN, the Belgian Nuclear Higher Education Network organises a one-year (60 credits) advanced Master’s programme in Nuclear Engineering. BNEN is organised by a consortium of six Belgian universities and the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN. The primary objective of the BNEN programme is to educate young engineers in nuclear engineering and its applications, and to develop and maintain high-level nuclear competencies in Belgium and abroad. BNEN catalyses networking between academia, research centres, industry and other nuclear stakeholders. All teaching activities take place at SCK CEN. Course units are English-taught and organised in a modular way: teaching in blocks of one to three weeks for per module allows optimal time management for students and lecturers, facilitates registration for individual modules, and allows easy access for international students.

The Belgian Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering programme is embedded in the European ENEN association, a non-profit international organisation of universities and research centres for the preservation and further development of higher nuclear education and expertise.

The BNEN one-year programme was created in close collaboration with representatives of the utility companies and power plants. It teaches students all aspects of nuclear technology and its applications, creating nuclear engineering experts in the broadest sense. The programme consists of a compulsory part of general course units, which needs to be complemented with three elective course units. These elective course units are used to either broaden or deepen a theme. Exercises and hands-on sessions in the specialised laboratories of SCK CEN complement the theoretical classes and strengthen the development of nuclear skills and attitudes in a research environment. Various technical visits are organised to research and industrial nuclear facilities.

Master's dissertation

The Master's dissertation is an essential part of the programme, during which the students have to apply the competencies they have acquired throughout the year on a specific research project of their choice. The topics can be chosen from a wide array of nuclear engineering related topics, directly linked to the R&D programme of SCK CEN, research conducted by professors at the partner universities, or operational problems in industry.

The objective of the Master of Nuclear Engineering is to offer present/future professionals and researchers a solid background in the different disciplines of nuclear engineering.