How to Apply to Universities in Austria: Requirements, Deadlines and Portals

Where and how to apply

Austria has no single central application portal covering every university. You apply directly to each institution through its own admissions office, using the application form published on that university's website. Fachhochschulen and private universities run their own separate procedures and deadlines, so check each program page individually rather than assuming one national timetable applies everywhere.

Some fields with limited places, including medicine, psychology, and architecture, run competitive entrance exams (Aufnahmeverfahren) with their own earlier registration windows. Register for these as soon as the university opens applications, since exam dates and prep windows are fixed months in advance.

Deadlines

The general admission period (Zulassungsfrist) for a first bachelor or diploma program at a public university runs until September 5 for winter semester and February 5 for summer semester, according to Study in Austria , the government student information platform. This is the legal cutoff, not a recommended date. Submit earlier, since foreign document checks and, for non-EU applicants, visa processing take time the general deadline does not account for.

Programs with entrance exams or capped places set their own earlier deadlines, often months before the general cutoff. Master and PhD programs also set individual deadlines decided by each department, so confirm dates directly on the program page rather than relying on the general dates above.

Required documents

For a bachelor program, EU/EEA applicants need a passport copy and a secondary school leaving certificate that would qualify them for university admission in their home country. Non-EU/EEA applicants need the equivalent certificate plus, in many cases, formal recognition that it matches the Austrian Matura standard.

• Passport copy

• School leaving certificate (original and copy)

• Proof of German proficiency, or English for English-taught programs

• For master applicants: a completed bachelor degree of at least 180 ECTS in a related field

• For PhD applicants: a master degree in the field matching your research proposal

Foreign certificates must be presented in original and copy, officially legalized, and accompanied by a certified translation if not already in German or English, per Study in Austria .

Recognition of foreign qualifications

If your prior degree or school certificate comes from outside the EU, Austrian universities often require formal recognition before they process your application, handled through ENIC-NARIC Austria , the national contact point for academic recognition. This formal process, called Nostrifizierung, typically takes 3 to 6 months and costs around 150 euros, so start it 3 to 4 months before your application deadline if your prior education is from a non-EU country.

EU/EEA qualifications generally move through the process faster since many are automatically comparable under European recognition frameworks, but confirm this with your target university's admissions office rather than assuming automatic acceptance.

Application fees and residence permits

Austrian universities do not charge a separate application fee for most programs, only the tuition and student union fee you pay once admitted. If you come from outside the EU/EEA, apply for a student residence permit (Aufenthaltstitel Studierender) at the Austrian embassy in your home country after you receive your acceptance letter, since this permit process runs alongside, not instead of, your university application.

Step-by-step summary

1. Choose your program and check its specific deadline and language requirement

2. Start document recognition (Nostrifizierung) early if your prior education is non-EU

3. Gather and legalize your documents, with certified translations if needed

4. Submit your application directly to the university's admissions office

5. If from outside the EU/EEA, apply for your residence permit once accepted

6. Pay the tuition fee (if applicable) and student union fee to confirm enrollment