[larrybolt]

I'm still a student myself, but from the things I've heard and seen about the startup scene here, in Belgium, it's not that big as in the states.

It also seems that education is payed a lot more attention to than some other countries. Don't get me wrong, I understand the value of having a good education, but in the tech-world I cannot believe a certificate/diploma is worth more than visible passion and experience.

[showsover]

I'm from Belgium as well, and in the 3 years I'm working, I've worked for 2 startups, both in Ghent. There are quite a few startups here in this city, and it's not the biggest city in Belgium as well.

My education was a footnote on my CV, a good starter for the talk with recruiters. They generally know you know 'nothing' when you're fresh from school, so they have their expectations set accordingly.

[gcp]

I think your idea of what a "healthy start-up scene" is, is probably lacking quite some perspective. I don't want to write a political essay here, but generally speaking, Belgian law & regulations, infrastructure, politics, language barriers and the size of the country and distribution market are an extremely hostile environment for entrepreneurship, compared to say London or San Francisco.

This doesn't mean some people aren't trying anyway :)

[larrybolt]

This is a very good description, thanks! I reference this quite often lately to people asking about how it's over here.