How is the selection of the final theses and projects organized?
Each institution selects its most promising final projects to compete for the Future Proef Award at the Flemish level. A jury of experts then evaluates these entries and chooses the finalists and the winners. The top prize — €3,000 — is awarded to the best master’s, bachelor’s, or associate degree thesis or project. Students or groups finishing in 2nd or 3rd place receive a cash prize of €500.
Pre-selection per institution
The Future Proef Award journey begins at the higher education institutions themselves. Each institution is free to organize its own selection process. A jury at the institutional level selects up to three final projects per educational level (associate degree, bachelor’s, and master’s) as local winners. Institutions offering arts programmes may additionally select up to two Master in Arts projects. Some institutions also organize an event to celebrate their winners after this preselection.
In autumn 2025, once all entries have been submitted, your institution will inform you about the procedure for its internal preselection. By the end of 2025, you’ll know whether your project has been nominated for the Flemish-level competition.
Selection at the Flemish level
Things get even more exciting at the Flemish level. Here, your final project competes with those of students from other higher education institutions. An independent jury reviews the selected projects per educational level and compares them to determine the best of the best.
The first selection is based on the completed justification forms (see ‘Registration’ for more details). In the next phase, an independent jury discusses a shortlist of final projects to decide who takes home the awards.
And then, finally… In April 2026, we’ll announce the winners of the third edition of the Future Proef Award.