From the academic year 2006/07 on, the Institute of Sociology at the University of Vienna offers 12 months per year of studying in Vienna for postgraduate students of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) at the Royal Holloway College of the University of London.
Either one person for 12 months or two each for 6 months are invited to a research time in Vienna within their master or PhD thesis. The Viennese institute provides potential supervisors and their supervision seminars, where postgraduate students meet to discuss the working process on their thesis. Usually the working language at the Viennese Institute is German, but the potential supervisors are as well willing to communicate in English. A scholarship will be provided by the European Union's student exchange programme Socrates/Erasmus, but travelling and accommodation have to be organised by the students themselves.
The University of Vienna (Universität Wien) was founded in 1365 by Duke Rudolf IV and is therefore one of the oldest universities in Europe. The University is proud of having been the home of several Nobel Prize Laureates.
63,000 students from 130 countries are currently enrolled at the University which offers more than 135 Bachelor, Master, Diploma and Doctoral programmes in the fields of study covered by its Faculties.
Research and education at the University of Vienna encompasses a broad spectrum of scientific disciplines, ranging from theology, jurisprudence, economics, computer science, to the humanities and to the social and natural sciences.
The University participates in the SOCRATES/ERASMUS programme (more than 300 bilateral agreements), is a member of the UNICA network and has partnership agreements with 50 more universities all over the world.
Although in Austria important empirical and theoretical studies in the field of sociology (e.g., by Paul Lazarsfeld or Otto Neurath) took already place before the Second World War, the time of National Socialism obliged many leading social researchers to emigrate and as a consequence it took until 1950 as the first professorship in sociology was founded at the University of Vienna. Since then, firstly a sociological department at the Faculty of Economics was established and some years later as well one at the Faculty of Philosophy.
In the context of reorganisations at the University of Vienna in connection with the process of Bologna - which are still going on - these both institutes were merged in 2000. Presently this new Institute of Sociology is part of the Faculty of Social Sciences, consists of twenty full time scientists (4 professors, 7 associate professors) and is located in an own building next to the main university buildings in the centre of Vienna.
Institute's research covers a broad area of different subjects, mostly done in small groups or on individual basis, e.g., health care related themes, social change in Austrian society and former Eastern bloc countries, migration to Austria or family structure respectively policy.
As studying programmes currently the institute offers on one hand side a 4 years diploma programme oriented at the traditional continental style of studying organisation and on other hand side a complete three-step-system according to the Bologna model: a 3 years bachelor, a 1 year master and a 2 years doctorate. As reorganisation in the studying programmes at the Viennese University is not completed yet, there is a future perspective to offer additionally specialised 2 years master, e.g., in organisation or health sociology.
Basic course information in English >>
Contact person at the Institute of Sociology: Rudolf.Forster@univie.ac.at
Academic year
The academic year begins with October, 1st and continues until June, 30th. It is divided in two semesters, a winter and a summer semester, each of four months. February is holiday as a whole, as well as two weeks around Christmas and Easter.
Student Point - Studying Information in English
http://www.univie.ac.at/studentpoint/index.php?Sprach_ID=2
Local Information about the University of Vienna for international students
http://international.univie.ac.at/loadpage.php?pid=490