page_title: University of Klagenfurt
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: University of Klagenfurt / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt: Lecture hall A , HS A Foto Copyright by Johannes Puch www.johannespuch.at Deutsch: Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt: Hörsaal A, HS A Foto Copyright by Johannes Puch www.johannespuch.at
context_page_description: The University of Klagenfurt is a federal Austrian research university and the largest research and higher education institution in the state of Carinthia. It has its campus in Klagenfurt.
  Originally founded in 1970 and relaunched in 1993, the university today holds faculties of humanities, management & economics, technical sciences, and interdisciplinary studies. It is listed in the ARWU, THE, and QS global rankings and holds rank 52 worldwide in THE's Young University Rankings 2020.
  The university has defined two research priority areas, Networked and Autonomous Systems and Social Ecology, with the latter spawning three ERC Grants. It has launched a new initiative, Humans in the Digital Age, in 2019, hosting an ERC Grant on cybersecurity.
  It also holds a number of central facilities such as the Robert Musil Institute, the Karl Popper Kolleg, the University Cultural Centre, the build! Gründerzentrum, the University Sports Centre, and the Klagenfurt University Library.
  Oliver Vitouch, a cognitive psychologist and former faculty member of the University of Vienna and the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, is the university's Vice-Chancellor.
context_section_description: With the Protestant collegium sapientiae et pietatis founded in 1552, Klagenfurt hosted one of the oldest gymnasiums in Austria (today's Europagymnasium), directed by Hieronymus Megiser from 1593 to 1601, but had no ancient university tradition.
  In 1970, the Austrian parliament passed a federal law allowing the establishment of an Educational Science College in Klagenfurt. The first doctoral degree was conferred in 1972. In 1975, new laws on higher education came into force, with the name of the college being changed into Universität für Bildungswissenschaften (University of Educational Sciences).
  In 1993, a fundamental relaunch took place: The institution's name was changed to Universität Klagenfurt (University of Klagenfurt), and a Faculty of Humanities and a (new) Faculty of Economics, Business Administration, and Informatics were inaugurated. The Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies was inaugurated in 2004.
  The university adopted the official cognomen Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt in 2004 (with its legal name still being Universität Klagenfurt). It was extended with a fourth, technical sciences faculty in 2007 (with a focus on Informatics, Information Technology, and Networked & Autonomous Systems), engaging in research operations in collaboration with the Lakeside Science & Technology Park. In 2012, the number of students passed the 10,000 mark.
  In 2015, the university established commencement speeches at its graduation ceremonies. Among the speakers so far are Sabine Herlitschka, Josef Winkler, August-Wilhelm Scheer, and Johanna Rachinger. Presidents of Austria Heinz Fischer (formerly) and Alexander Van der Bellen (incumbent) are recurrent guests at doctoral graduations sub auspiciis Praesidentis.
caption: Lecture Hall A (South Wing)
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