University of Vienna

The University of Vienna is a public university in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, which makes it the oldest university in the German-speaking world and one of the oldest in the world still running continuously. It is one of the largest institutions of higher learning in Europe, with around 85,000 students and approximately 11,000 employees. In the academic year 2024 to 2025 it offered 185 degree programmes.

The university's character comes from a long history. It began as the Alma Mater Rudolphina, and papal assent only arrived in 1384, after which it grew into the biggest university of the Holy Roman Empire. The Jesuits ran it for a stretch from 1551, and Maria Theresa later brought it under the monarchy, with Joseph II liberalising it and making German the language of instruction. The main building on the Ringstrasse was built between 1877 and 1884. Women were admitted as full students in 1897, starting with Philosophy. The university is associated with 17 Nobel Prize laureates and has been home to figures such as Erwin Schrödinger, Karl Popper, Stefan Zweig, Sigmund Freud and Gregor Mendel.

Teaching is organised across a broad set of subjects, and the university is known for scholarship in the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences among others. The register lists programmes in Anthropology, Computer Science, Languages and Linguistics, Biology, Social Sciences and Psychology, Ecology, Chemistry, Data Analytics, History, Communication and Media, Development Studies and Cultural Studies.

The Austrian national register lists the University of Vienna in the category Universität, as a public institution seated in Vienna. It records 247 programmes of all kinds and languages, of which 58 are English-taught degree programmes: 5 Bachelor's, 50 Master's and 3 PhD or Doctorate.

For an international student, applying means going direct to the university, which sets its own application period and entrance procedure. Students from outside the EU and EEA need a Residence Permit for Students. At public universities, EU, EEA and Swiss students pay no tuition within the standard duration plus two semesters, while most other students pay a per-semester fee. Every student also pays the student union fee.