About KU Leuven

The full breadth of intellectual discovery is to be found within our walls. KU Leuven is home to 15 faculties offering hundreds of degree programmes. No matter where our students' curiosity leads, KU Leuven reseachers are studying, analysing and pushing the boundaries of that field. All of which is conducted with the ethical rigour and financial resources necessary for true academic freedom.

About School of Arts

Within academia, artistic research is a young discipline. Although arts in the form of the artes liberales formed the backbone of medieval universities, they were not a standard part of the later research portfolio. The doctorate in the arts was not finally introduced to Europe until the 21st century, with the 2016 Florence principles helping to create a shared understanding. In 2020, the Vienna declaration put artistic research on the European research agenda. That same year, KU Leuven and LUCA School of Arts established the current Associated Faculty of the Arts.

The associated Faculty of Arts is an intensive collaboration between LUCA School of Arts and KU Leuven. Whereas LUCA, as a college, is responsible for bachelor and master degrees in the arts, KU Leuven, as a university, is authorized for doctorates. Artistic research is therefore situated at a crossroads, which explains the faculty's associated status. It is an "in-between space", in which the assets of the School of Arts and the Research University reinforce each other. Faculty members hold appointments at LUCA, at KU Leuven, or at both institutions simultaneously.