Education in Austria

Education in Austria has free public schools. Every child must go to school for nine years. After these nine years, students can choose different paths. These paths include learning a trade, studying technical skills, or preparing for university. These paths usually take one to four more years to finish. The rules for primary and secondary education are in the School Act of 1962.

The Federal Ministry of Education manages money and oversight for primary, secondary, and, since the year 2000, tertiary education. The government decides the rules for education. Each state looks after the schools in its area.

Laws about education in Austria are very important. To change these laws, two-thirds of the parliament must agree. This helps keep the education system strong and steady.

General education

See also: List of schools in Austria

In Austria, children must go to school for nine years. The first four years are in elementary school. After that, they spend four more years in either a lower secondary school or a grammar school.

Students who want to start an apprenticeship and do not plan to get a higher education degree spend one year at a polytechnic institute. After finding an apprenticeship, they go to vocational school for three years. They can do this in blocks of time or once a week during normal school. At the end, they take a final exam.

Students who want to earn a higher education degree spend four to five years at a higher education school or a vocational school that prepares them for university. Most of these schools need an entrance exam or good marks from their previous school. The final exam for these schools is called matriculation (Matura), which lets students go to university. Some subjects, like medicines, may need extra exams.

About 10% of schools in Austria are private, including primary and secondary schools as well as some teacher training schools. The Roman Catholic Church runs the most private schools in the country.

Private schools

History

Before 1774, learning in Austria was mainly handled by the Catholic Church. Leaders Maria Theresa and Joseph II changed this by making priests official teachers. They helped spread ideas about health, farming, and good citizenship.

In 1774, Empress Maria Theresa made school required for all children aged six to twelve. This was a big step, even though not all families followed the rule right away. Schools were built in towns and villages. Books and training for teachers were also improved. Religion and good values stayed important in lessons along with reading, writing, and math.

After World War II, Austria worked to make education fair for everyone, no matter their family background. Before 1962, children had to choose at age ten between different school paths. This often depended on their parents’ money and job. The 1962 law tried to fix this by letting children decide later and giving more choices. Today, more girls and boys from all kinds of families can go to university. However, some people still argue about the best way to organize schools for young students.

Matura

In Austria, students finish their school with exams called Matura, or Reifeprüfung. After these exams, they get a document called Maturazeugnis.

In gymnasiums, students have 3–4 written exams and 2–3 oral exams. They also write a paper and talk about it. Vocational schools have Matura exams after five years. The grades are numbers from 1 (excellent) to 5 (failed).

Students take written exams in German, Mathematics, and a language like English, French, Spanish, or Italian. Some people think the Matura should change to be more creative.

Higher education

See also: List of universities in Austria

Universities

Rules for tertiary education come from laws from 1966 and 1975. The federal Ministry for Science and Research helps manage universities.

Austria has 22 public and 17 private universities. The University of Vienna, founded in 1365, is the oldest and largest. More people can go to university now, including many women.

Fachhochschulen (Universities of Applied Sciences) since the 1990s

In the 1990s, Austria started Fachhochschulen (Universities of Applied Sciences). These schools teach practical skills. Students usually finish a bachelor's degree in about three years. In 2025, there were 21 of these schools in Austria.

Private Universities since 2001

Private universities began in 2001. This means they can give out academic degrees. In 2025, there were 17 private universities in Austria.

The Gehrer-Schüssel reforms

The former Minister of Education, Elisabeth Gehrer, made changes to universities. These changes gave universities more freedom but also brought new challenges.

Academic degrees

In Austria, students pick a field of study and usually graduate after four to six years. Since the 1970s, the first degree was the Magister. In engineering and agriculture, it is the Diplom-Ingenieur.

Many universities now offer Bachelor and Master degrees. A Bachelor's takes three years and a Master's takes one to two years. In Medicine, students earn a doctorate after at least six years. Students often write a research paper called a Diplomarbeit. Since the 1990s, postgraduate degrees like LL.M.s and MBAs have been introduced.

The debate on reform

People in Austria often talk about how to make their schools better. Some think the current system, which puts students in different types of schools, helps show what students can do. They worry that changing this system might lower standards.

Others think this system is too strict and does not give all students the same chances to succeed. Because of these different ideas, talks about education in Austria can become very strong, with people feeling very strongly about what works best for students. Some people even want schools to do more than one thing at the same time, which can make it hard to agree on changes.

Main article: Austria: Country Studies Federal Research Division