The student blocus in Belgium: how to prepare for it

What is the blocus?

In higher education in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (French-speaking Belgium), the blocus is the class-free period between the end of a term and the start of the exams. You no longer discover new material: you revise it, practise and get ready for the exams.

The word is Belgian student vocabulary; elsewhere, you would simply call it the revision period or study week before exams. Several institutions support this period with supervised study rooms or study-skills workshops: ask your institution's student success service.

When is the blocus in Belgium?

The academic year has three terms, starting on 14 September, 1 February and 1 July. Each one ends with an assessment period: in January, in June, then in August-September for the resit session.

The blocus comes right before the first two sessions. For example, at UCLouvain (Faculty of Science, 2026-2027), classes end on 19 December, the blocus runs from 20 December to 3 January and exams from 4 to 23 January. In the second term, the blocus runs from 16 to 30 May, before the session from 31 May to 26 June.

Dates, and even session names, change from one institution to another: the June session is called the "2nd session" at UCLouvain, but "first session, second part" in the 2026-2027 calendar of ULB's LTC faculty. Always check your faculty's official calendar.

Planning your blocus

A blocus plan starts from the exams, not from an ideal week. It should say what to revise each day and leave room for whatever takes longer than expected.

1. Write down each exam with its date, time and format as soon as the timetable is published.
2. Estimate each course's workload: chapters, exercises, past exams, summary sheets.
3. Spread the days according to the order of the exams and how hard each course is.
4. Keep buffer slots every week to absorb delays.
5. The day before an exam, plan a short review rather than new material.

What does a realistic blocus day look like?

A good blocus day alternates focused work, real breaks and lighter tasks. It doesn't need to be perfect to count: a bad morning is fixed by moving a task, not by giving up on the day.

• Morning: the subject that takes the most energy, in blocks of 25 to 50 minutes with short breaks.
• Lunch: a real break, away from the desk and the screen.
• Afternoon: exercises or past exams, or a second course to change pace.
• Late afternoon: a lighter review and a five-minute recap, with tomorrow's first task.
• Evening: time without studying and a regular bedtime.

How many hours a day should you study?

There's no number of hours that works for everyone. The right amount depends on how much material you have, how hard the courses are, how much time is left before the exam and how long you can stay focused.

Rather than aiming for a symbolic total, measure your actual focused time for a few days: it's the most reliable way to know whether your plan holds. And keep breaks, meals, exercise and sleep, because the blocus isn't won by studying non-stop.

January, June, August: three different blocus periods

January: the blocus is short and falls during the end-of-year holidays. It's often the first one for first-year students. Put the holidays in your plan rather than letting them catch you off guard.

June: the session mostly covers second-term courses and comes at the end of the year, when tiredness builds up. Some calendars even plan a "pre-blocus" during the spring holidays.

August-September: the resit session lets you retake the exams you didn't pass, according to your institution's rules. Its preparation stretches over the summer: start from the exams to retake, spread them over the weeks available and keep some rest before the new year.

How Blocus Tracker helps during the blocus

Blocus Tracker links your plan to the work you actually do: you add your exams and goals, start the Timer on the right course, and each session is saved with its real time. In the evening, you see what really moved forward and adjust the following days.

If your institution provides a calendar link (Canvas, Moodle, Brightspace…), you can also connect it to the Planner to find your deadlines.

• Planner: your exams with their countdown, and daily goals with a duration.
• Timer: an open or Pomodoro session on the course you're revising.
• Time actually studied: per day and per course, against the daily goal taken from your plan.
• Adjustment: you postpone what isn't done and can export your plan to your calendar.