Students Leaving Secondary Education Without a Diploma in the Brussels Dutch language schools

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Johan Leman, 14 October 2026

What is the profile of students who leave secondary education without a diploma in Dutch-language education in the Brussels-Capital Region? And how has the situation evolved across the different categories?

A study by Edwin Verdoolaege, geographer and education expert, put at disposition of Foyer, shows the following trends between 2010 and 2024 (in %):

In 2010, the proportion of first-generation students from non-Dutch-speaking backgrounds who left school without a diploma stood at 43.0%. In 2024, the figure for this group was still 33.9%: in 2024, one in three first-generation students from non-Dutch-speaking backgrounds completed secondary education without a leaving certificate.

In 2010, the rate among students of non-Dutch-speaking origin belonging to the second and third generations was 25.3%. In 2024, it was still 22.3%: between one in four and one in five students of non-Dutch-speaking origin, whether from the second or third generation, fail to obtain a secondary school-leaving diploma.

In 2010, the rate among Dutch-speaking students was 13.3%. By 2024, it had reached 13.9%. This means that approximately one in ten students of Dutch-speaking origin do not obtain a secondary school-leaving diploma.

It is known that these figures are more favourable for girls than for boys.

Conclusion

Within the group of exclusively Dutch-speaking students in Brussels, the proportion leaving secondary education without a diploma has remained stable.

Among the second and third generations in Brussels, there has been a slight improvement within each group.

Among first-generation students from non-Dutch-speaking backgrounds, the rate remains the highest, although a decline can be observed.

Those working to improve this situation would do well to understand these developments and explore how the problem might be addressed, probably through a wide range of initiatives. The approaches needed may well differ for each of the three groups…

 

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