WU Vienna University of Economics and Business (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien)

WU (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien), the Vienna University of Economics and Business, is a public university for business, economics and business law, founded in 1898 as an export academy. It teaches one bachelor's in English — Business and Economics (BBE), with 240 places and an October start only — and nine English-taught master's degrees. Non-EU students pay $810 (€726.72) per semester plus the $29 (€26.20) ÖH students' union fee. BBE places are filled through a spring selection procedure with an in-person exam in Vienna; WU says details of the 2027/28 round will be published in mid-November 2026.

WU holds the EQUIS, AACSB and AMBA accreditations, a combination it says fewer than 1% of universities worldwide have. Almost 21,000 students from about 110 countries study on Campus WU next to the Prater park, opened in 2013. It is a large public university: deadlines are strict and nobody chases you to meet them.

WU fits you if you:

• want an English-taught business and economics bachelor's at an EU public university with low fees;
• are ready for a competitive exam in English, maths and basic economics;
• plan a strong English-taught master's in finance, marketing, supply chain or economics;
• can travel to Vienna for the exam and show a year of living costs for the residence permit.

The language decides the whole route: German-taught degrees need C1 German by enrolment, English-taught ones need no German at all.

BBE opens with a 12-ECTS introductory and orientation phase; the core courses total 93 ECTS across business, economics and quantitative methods. From the third semester you take 65 ECTS of specialisations and electives and write a 10-ECTS bachelor's thesis. You choose one of five majors: Business Administration, International Business Administration, Economics, Economy, Environment, Politics, or Business Information Systems. Selected students can add a year in Australia for a double degree with Queensland University of Technology.

WU says its BBE graduates work in multinational companies, consulting, marketing and HR departments, accounting firms and financial institutions, and some start their own businesses; the degree is also a basis for an international master's at WU or elsewhere.

Selection runs once a year in spring, and successful applicants can only start in the following winter semester (October). The same rules and dates apply to EU and non-EU applicants. The table shows the completed 2026/27 round; WU will publish the 2027/28 dates in mid-November 2026.

The exam is multiple choice with partial credit and has three parts: English (reading, vocabulary and grammar at B2), business and economics based on chapters 1–6 of Fuhrmann's Introduction to Business and Economics (2019), and maths from logic and equations to differentiation, optimisation and the binomial distribution, at Austrian school-leaving level. A formula sheet is provided and approved calculators are allowed. If fewer than 240 people register, no exam is held and everyone meeting the formal requirements can enrol.

English for enrolment: IELTS Academic 6.0, TOEFL iBT 85 (4.5 on the scale used from 21 January 2026), PTE Academic 70, or Cambridge First or higher. You need it by personal enrolment, not at registration.

For school certificates from outside the EU, WU checks how far your qualification differs from the Austrian Matura. If the gap is substantial, it can prescribe supplementary exams, taken in the Vienna University Preparation Programme (VWU) before admission to the degree.

• Legalisation depends on the issuing country: an apostille for Hague Convention states such as Russia, Kazakhstan or India, and country-specific rules elsewhere (China, Nigeria and Pakistan each have their own). The apostille must confirm the signature of the issuing official; a notarised copy alone is not accepted.
• Translation into German or English by a sworn court interpreter, done after legalisation and covering every stamp and note.
• National entrance exam results where your country has one; WU lists, among others, Azerbaijan, Brazil, China, Iran, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Türkiye, Ukraine and Vietnam.
• A CV showing your education without gaps, a passport copy and an English certificate.

Legalisation can take weeks, admission processing at least 12 weeks and the residence permit up to 90 days, so start the paperwork while you register for selection, not after the exam.

English-taught master's programmes select on documents, sometimes with interviews, in application rounds. For an October 2027 start, Business Communication, Digital Economy, Economics, Marketing, Quantitative Finance, Strategy, Innovation and Management Control and Supply Chain Management list three deadlines: 8 October 2026, 8 January 2027 and 8 March 2027.

• a relevant bachelor's degree (Quantitative Finance asks for exams in economics and finance or in maths, statistics and computing);
• C1 English: IELTS Academic 7.0, TOEFL iBT 100 (5 on the new scale), or Cambridge Advanced or Proficiency;
• proof of aptitude, in a form that varies by programme;
• International Management/CEMS sets its own language requirements.

The English bar is much higher than for BBE: an IELTS 6.5 will not get you through a master's application.

As a public university, WU charges the fees set by Austria's Universities Act, identical for every programme.

Laid out like this, a student under 24 needs at least $12,680 (€11,340) for the first year. The living-cost figure already assumes rent of up to $430 (€386.43) a month; dearer rooms raise the amount you must show, and flights and rental deposits come on top.

The "Residence Permit – Student" is decided by the provincial residence authority, in Vienna the MA 35 office. Nationals who need a visa apply in person at the Austrian embassy or consulate in their country of residence; visa-exempt nationals may apply in Austria.

• Timing: OeAD advises applying at least three months before entry, and six months ahead for a first application. The authority has 90 days to decide, plus 90 more if it asks for further documents.
• With an entrance exam: WU issues a conditional admission notice; you apply with it, receive a four-month D visa after approval, sit the exam, then submit the final admission notice. If the exam is long before the semester, a short-stay C visa for the exam is an alternative.
• File: passport, photo, admission notice, 12 months of funds in an account in your name accessible from Austria with proof of origin, at least three months' accommodation, health insurance, and a police certificate under three months old, legalised and translated.
• Work: up to 20 hours a week, with a work permit the employer obtains from the AMS employment service.
• Renewal: yearly, with at least 16 ECTS passed per academic year.
• After graduation: a 12-month extension to look for work or start a business, then a switch to a Red-White-Red Card.

WU has no entry scholarships for international applicants. Enrolled students can apply for merit-based scholarships, awarded once a year on credits earned and grade average, and the International Office funds exchange semesters and internships abroad. Austrian federal student aid is listed on stipendium.at and grants.at. WU also states that, in light of the EU's 20th sanctions package against Russia, accepting funds from the Russian government in research and innovation is prohibited and, consequently, funding provided by the Russian state to WU students is not permitted for the duration of their studies.

Consider other options if you:

• want to start an English-taught bachelor's in February;
• cannot travel to Vienna on the single exam date;
• want a small private school with close support — compare MODUL University Vienna;
• want a German-taught degree but are below C1 German with no time for a preparatory year.

Common mistakes:

• missing the spring registration window: late BBE registrations are never accepted;
• relying on older guides that describe an online BBE exam — the 2026/27 exam was in person only;
• notarising a copy instead of legalising the original, or translating before legalisation;
• sitting IELTS General Training instead of Academic, or applying for a master's with 6.5 instead of 7.0;
• showing funds for one semester when the permit needs 12 months up front.

Comparing Vienna options? See our guide to studying in Austria or the University of Vienna profile.