University of Vienna

History

Middle Ages to the Enlightenment

The university was founded on March 12, 1365, by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, hence the name "Alma Mater Rudolphina". After the Charles University in Prague (1347) and Jagiellonian University in Kraków (1364), the University of Vienna is the third oldest university in Central Europe and the oldest university in the contemporary German-speaking world; it remains a question of definition as the Charles University in Prague was German-speaking when founded, too. However, Pope Urban V did not ratify the deed of foundation that had been sanctioned by Rudolf IV, specifically in relation to the department of theology. This was presumably due to pressure exerted by Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, who wished to avoid competition for the Charles University in Prague.

The pope later granted an endowment to the university in 1365, while papal assent was finally received in 1384. This led to the University of Vienna and its Faculty of Catholic Theology being granted the status of a full university. The first university building opened in 1385. It grew into the biggest university of the Holy Roman Empire, and during the advent of Humanism in the mid-15th century was home to more than 6,000 students.

In its early years, the university had a partly hierarchical, partly cooperative structure, in which the Rector was at the top, while the students had little say and were settled at the bottom. The Magister and Doctors constituted the four faculties and elected the academic officials from amidst their ranks. The students, but also all other Supposita (university members), were divided into four Academic Nations. Their elected board members, mostly graduates themselves, had the right to elect the Rector. He presided over the Consistory which included procurators of each of the nations and the faculty deans, as well as over the University Assembly, in which all university teachers participated. Complaints or appeals against decisions of the faculty by the students had to be brought forward by a Magister or Doctor.[[File:Arkadenhof der Universität Wien-2 1200.jpg|thumb|The courtyard (Arkadenhof) of the [[Main building (University of Vienna)|main building]], constructed between 1877 and 1884]]Being considered a Papal Institution, the university suffered a setback during the Reformation. In addition, epidemics, economic stagnation, and the first Siege of Vienna by Ottoman forces had devastating effects on the city, leading to a sharp decline in enrollment. For Emperor Ferdinand I, this meant that the university should be tied to the church to an even stronger degree, and in 1551 he installed the Jesuit Order there. As time went on, conflicts between the Jesuit school and the university arose. This led Emperor Ferdinand II, in 1623, to pass a law that incorporated the Jesuit College into the university. It was only in the mid-18th century that the Jesuits lost influence over the university and when Empress Maria Theresa ensured that the university went under the control of the monarchy. The university would later focus on the education of physicians and civil servants. Her successor Joseph II continued her reforms and further liberalized the university, abolishing official attire and allowing both Protestants and Jews to enroll by 1782, as well as introducing German as the compulsory language of instruction the year later.

Modern history

Significant changes were instituted in the wake of the Revolution in 1848, with the Philosophical Faculty being upgraded into equal status as Theology, Law and Medicine. Led by the reforms of Leopold, Count von Thun und Hohenstein, the university was able to achieve a larger degree of academic freedom. The current main building on the Ringstraße was built between 1877 and 1884 by Heinrich von Ferstel. The previous main building was located close to the Stuben Gate (Stubentor) on Iganz Seipel Square, the current home of the old University Church (Universitätskirche) and the Austrian Academy of Sciences (Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften). Women were admitted as full students in 1897, although their studies were limited to Philosophy. The remaining departments gradually followed suit, although with considerable delay: Medicine in 1900, Law in 1919, Protestant Theology in 1923, and finally Roman Catholic Theology in 1946. Ten years after the admission of the first female students, Elise Richter became the first woman to receive habilitation, becoming professor of Romance languages in 1907; she was also the first female distinguished professor.

In the late 1920s, the university was in steady turmoil because of anti-democratic and anti-Semitic activity by parts of the student body. Professor Moritz Schlick was killed by a former student while ascending the steps of the university for a class. His murderer was later released by the Nazi regime. Following the Anschluss, the annexation of Austria into Greater Germany by the Nazi regime, in 1938 the University of Vienna was reformed under political aspects, and a huge number of teachers and students were dismissed for political and "racial" reasons. In April 1945, the then 22-year-old Kurt Schubert, later acknowledged doyen of Judaic Studies at the University of Vienna, was permitted by the Soviet occupation forces to open the university again for teaching, which is why he is regarded as the unofficial first rector in the post-war period. On 25 April 1945, however, the constitutional lawyer Ludwig Adamovich senior was elected as the official rector of the University of Vienna.

A large degree of participation by students and university staff was realized in 1975, however, the University Reforms of 1993 and 2002 largely re-established the professors as the main decision-makers. However, also as part of the 2002 reform, the university, after more than 250 years of being largely under governmental control, finally regained its full legal capacity. The number of faculties and centers was increased to 18, and the whole of the medical faculty was separated into the new Medical University of Vienna.

Campus

The University of Vienna does not operate from a single, unified campus. Historically, the university’s activities were centred in Vienna’s First District, near the Jesuit Church. Today, its academic facilities are distributed across more than sixty locations throughout the city.

The university’s main building on the Ringstraße serves as its symbolic and administrative centre and is commonly referred to as the Hauptuni (main uni). Most major university facilities and large lecture halls are located in close proximity, particularly in the First and Ninth Districts. These include the New Institute Building (Neues Institutgebäude, NIG), the Althanstraße University Centre (UZA), the Campus on the site of the former General Hospital, and the Faculty of Law (Juridicum). Additional university facilities are located elsewhere in the city, including the Botanical Garden in the Third District, which also houses the Department of Biochemistry and associated research centres.

Library

The University Library of the University of Vienna comprises the Main Library and the 50 departmental libraries at various university locations throughout Vienna. The library's primary responsibility is to the members of the university; however, the library's 350 staff members also provide access to the public. Use of the books in the reading halls is open to all persons without the need for identification, which is only required for checking out books. The library's website provides direct access to information such as electronic journals, online indices, and databases.

History

Rudolf IV had already provided for a publica libraria in the Foundation Deed of 12 March 1365, where the valuable books bequeathed by deceased members of the university should be collected. Through many legacies, this collection was subsequently greatly increased and became the basis of the old Libreye that was accommodated in the same building as the student infirmary. In addition, there were libraries in the separate Faculties and in the Duke's College.

From the 17th century onwards, interest in the old library, with its manuscripts and incunabulae, went into decline and the modern library in the Jesuit College came to the fore. In 1756, the oldest university library was finally closed down and its books, 2,787 volumes, were incorporated into the Court Library, of which Gerard van Swieten was then director. After the dissolution of the Jesuit order (1773), the new "Academic Library" was created out of the book collections of the five Lower Austrian Colleges and many duplicates from the Court Library. This was opened on 13 May 1777, the birthday of Maria Theresa of Austria, in the building of the Academic College. Initially, the stock consisted of some 45,000 books, and during Emperor Joseph II's dissolution of the monasteries, this was soon considerably extended. In contrast to its antecedents, the new library was open to the general public. Between 1827 and 1829, it acquired the classicist extension (Postgasse 9) to the Academic College, in which it was to be accommodated until 1884. In this year, the main library, with some 300,000 books, moved to Heinrich von Ferstel's new Main Building on the Ring, where stacks for some 500,000 volumes had already been prepared. With an annual growth of up to 30,000 volumes, the surplus space was soon filled. Book storage space had to be extended continuously. One hundred years later, the complete library, including departmental and subject libraries, comprised more than 4.3 million volumes. Today, Vienna's University Library is the largest collection of books in Austria, still facing problems of space. In addition to the Main Library, which alone has to cope with an annual growth of 40,000 volumes, it includes about 40 Subject Libraries.

Statistics (2024)

• Book inventory: 7,812,026 (of which 2,934,233 belong to the Main Library)
• E-Journals: 161,476
• E-Books: 2,132,742
• Search queries in the online catalogue: 11,349,382
• Borrowings and renewals of books: 2,915,628
• Oldest book: Bible from the Dorothean monastery, 1392 ("Biblia manuscripta"; entry in the online catalogue: https://ubdata.univie.ac.at/AC16383568)

Organization

The University of Vienna, like all universities and academies in Austria, once featured a system of democratic representation. Power in the university was divided equally among three groups: students (the largest group), junior faculty, and full professors. All groups had the right to send representatives to boards, who then voted on almost every issue. From 2002 on, the government of Austria, headed by chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel, reformed the university system, transforming the institutions into legal entities, but also concentrating power in the hands of the full professors. The reform also introduced a board of governors and tuition fees. In 2013, those amounted to about €381 per semester for students from Austria, the European Union as well as some non-EU countries, while students from developed non-EU countries usually pay double that amount. The reforms also separated the medical departments into separate medical schools, such as the Medical University of Vienna.

Programmes

Students at the university can select from 181 degree programs: 55 bachelor programs, 110 master programs, 3 diploma programs, and 13 doctoral programmes. In the academic year 2013/14, the university awarded 7,745 first degrees (Bachelors and Diplomas), 1,424 Master's degrees, and 568 Doctoral degrees. The university offers a number of Master's programs in English, including quantitative economics, management and finance, science-technology-society, environmental sciences, Middle European interdisciplinary master programme in cognitive science, European master in health and physical activity, English language and linguistics, Anglophone literature and culture, East Asian economy and society, economics, botany, ecology and ecosystems, molecular biology, microbial ecology and immunobiology, European master in urban studies, masters in European and international business law, mathematics, etc.

Some 6,900 scholars undertake research and teaching activities at the university. Of these, approximately 1,000 engage actively in projects financed by third parties. The main fields of research at the university cover a wide spectrum of subjects: Catholic and Protestant theology, law, economic sciences and computer science, philological-cultural studies and historical-cultural studies, social sciences and psychology, life sciences and natural sciences, mathematics, sports sciences, and teacher education.

Faculties and centres

The University of Vienna consists of 15 faculties and 5 centers:

1. Faculty of Catholic Theology

2. Faculty of Protestant Theology

3. Faculty of Law

4. Faculty of Business, Economics and Statistics (not to be confused with the Vienna University of Economics and Business)

5. Faculty of Computer science

6. Faculty of Historical and Cultural Studies

7. Faculty of Philological and Cultural Studies

8. Faculty of Philosophy and Education

9. Faculty of Psychology

10. Faculty of Social sciences

11. Faculty of Mathematics

12. Faculty of Physics

13. Faculty of Chemistry

14. Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy

15. Faculty of Life sciences

16. Centre for Translation studies

17. Centre for Sport science and University Sports

18. Centre for Molecular biology

19. Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science

20. Centre for Teacher Education

Academic reputation

url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/university-vienna }}

The University of Vienna has the highest ranking in Mathematics and in Arts and Humanities. In Mathematics it is placed 31st in the world according to the Shanghai-Ranking. In Arts and Humanities it is placed 35th and 54th in the world according to the THE and QS ranking respectively. Outstanding subjects include Geography (ranked 28th globally in 2013), Linguistics and Philosophy (both 46th globally) and Law (ranked 73rd globally). It is rated high in academic reputation and number of international students, but low in terms of faculty-to-student ratio and citations per faculty. In the THE ranking for 2026, the University of Vienna came in at number 95, making it the first Austrian university to break into the top 100.

An overview of the QS World University Rankings by subjects:

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings by subjects:

The Shanghai-Ranking in Mathematics:

Notable people

Faculty and scholars

Nobel Prize Laureates who taught at the University of Vienna include Robert Bárány, Julius Wagner-Jauregg, Hans Fischer, Karl Landsteiner, Erwin Schrödinger, Victor Franz Hess, Otto Loewi, Konrad Lorenz and Friedrich Hayek.

The University of Vienna was the cradle of the Austrian School of economics. The founders of this school who studied and later instructed at the University of Vienna included Carl Menger, Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk, Friedrich von Wieser, Joseph Schumpeter, Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek.

Other famous scholars who have taught or teach at the University of Vienna are: Theodor W. Adorno, Alexander Van der Bellen, Manfred Bietak, Theodor Billroth, Ludwig Boltzmann, Ulrich Brand, Franz Brentano, Anton Bruckner, Rudolf Carnap, Conrad Celtes, Adrian Constantin, Viktor Frankl, Sigmund Freud, Karl Samuel Grünhut, Eduard Hanslick, Edmund Hauler, Jalile Jalil, Leon Kellner, Hans Kelsen, Adam František Kollár, Johann Josef Loschmidt, Franz Miklosich, Oskar Morgenstern, Otto Neurath, Johann Palisa, Pope Pius II, Karl Popper, August Reinisch, Elise Richter, Baron Carl von Rokitansky, Rudolf von Scherer, Peter Schuster, August Schleicher, Moritz Schlick, Ludwig Karl Schmarda, Christoph Schreuer, Joseph von Sonnenfels, Josef Stefan, Olga Taussky-Todd, Hans Thirring, Walter Thirring, Walter G. Url, Leopold Vietoris, Carl Auer von Welsbach, and Wilhelm Winkler.

Nobel laureates

There are total 17 Nobel Prize Laureates affiliated to the university as follows:

Alumni

Some of the university's better-known students include: Kurt Adler, Franz Alt, Wilhelm Altar, Maria Anwander, Napoleon Baniewicz, Ilse Barea-Kulcsar, Bruno Bettelheim, Rudolf Bing, Lucian Blaga, Hedda Bolgar, Michael Brainin, Josef Breuer, F. F. Bruce, Elias Canetti, Ivan Cankar, Otto Maria Carpeaux, Friedrich Cerha, Felix Ehrenhaft, Olga Ehrenhaft-Steindler, Mihai Eminescu, Stephen Ferguson, Paul Feyerabend, Heinz Fischer, O. W. Fischer, Ivan Franko, Sigmund Freud, Adolf Albrecht Friedländer, Alcide De Gasperi, Nathan Michael Gelber, Hilda Geiringer, Kurt Gödel, Ernst Gombrich, Franz Grillparzer, Karina Grömer, Werner Gruber, Karl Samuel Grünhut, Pamela Gutman, Hans Hahn, Jörg Haider, Michael Haneke, Friedrich Hayek, Leo-Ferdinand Henckel von Donnersmarck, Theodor Herzl, Anneliese Hitzenberger, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Edmund Husserl, Marie Jahoda, Max Jammer, Elfriede Jelinek, Percy Julian, Karl Kautsky, Elisabeth Kehrer, Leon Kellner, Hans Kelsen, Hryhoriy Khomyshyn, Jan Kickert, Rudolf Kirchschläger, Gertraud Knoll, Arthur Koestler, Jernej Kopitar, Karl Kordesch, Arnold Krammer, Karl Kraus, Bruno Kreisky, Richard Kuhn, Hermann F. Kvergić, Paul Lazarsfeld, Ignacy Łukasiewicz, Gustav Mahler, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, Lise Meitner, Gregor Mendel, Karl Menger, Franz Mesmer, Egon Orowan, Franz Miklosich, Alois Mock, Wolf-Dieter Montag, Matija Murko, Paul Niel, Joachim Oppenheim, Eduard Pernkopf, Anton Piëch, Ioan Nicolidi of Pindus, Pope Pius III, Hans Popper, Karl Popper, Otto Preminger, Wilhelm Reich, Peter Safar, Monika Salzer, Mordecai Sandberg, Mordkhe Schaechter, Karl Schenkl, Max Schloessinger, Marianne Schmidl, Andreas Schnider, Arthur Schnitzler, Albin Schram, Joseph Schumpeter, Wolfgang Schüssel, Peter Schuster, John J. Shea, Jr., Mihalj Šilobod Bolšić, Maria Simon, Felix Somary, Marian Smoluchowski, Adalbert Stifter, Countess Stoeffel, Yemima Tchernovitz-Avidar, Eric Voegelin, Maria Wähnl, Kurt Waldheim, Calvin Edouard Ward, Otto Weininger, Slavko Wolf, Eduard Zirm, Stefan Zweig, and Huldrych Zwingli. File:Zwingli Hans Asper.jpeg|Huldrych Zwingli File:Gregor Mendel 2.jpg|Gregor Mendel File:Sigmund Freud, by Max Halberstadt (cropped).jpg|Sigmund Freud File:Hans Kelsen (cropped).jpg|Hans Kelsen File:Photo of Gustav Mahler by Moritz Nähr 01.jpg|Gustav Mahler File:Erwin Schrödinger - Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe (1-E-939).jpg|Erwin Schrödinger File:Friedrich Hayek portrait.jpg|Friedrich Hayek

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