IST Austria

About IST

The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria) is a PhD-granting research institution dedicated to cutting-edge research in the computer, mathematical, physical and life sciences. Located in Klosterneuburg on the outskirts of Vienna and established jointly by the federal government of Austria and the provincial government of Lower Austria, the Institute was inaugurated in 2009 and will grow to about 90 research groups by 2026.

Application Process

The IST Austria Graduate School offers a fully-funded, structured PhD program in computer, mathematical, physical and life sciences. English is the language of communication and instruction at the institute. Students from all nationalities are welcome to apply. An initial stage of rotations and cross-disciplinary coursework encourages broad exposure to important scientific approaches and problems, allowing students to lay a solid foundation for intensive research in the second phase of the PhD program.

In detail - research groups at IST

Chris Wojtan // Computer Animation

We develop geometric and numerical algorithms for problems in computer animation, geometry processing, and computational physics. Our latest research develops efficient and robust numerical algorithms for simulating fluid dynamics and controlling large-scale physics simulations.

Read more »

Bernd Bickel // Computer Graphics

Our group is interested in computer graphics and its overlap into animation, biomechanics, material science, and digital fabrication. Our main research objective is to push the boundaries of how digital content can be efficiently created, simulated, and reproduced with advanced manufacturing devices.

Read more »

Dan Alistarh // Distributed Algorithms

My research focuses on distributed algorithms and concurrent data structures, and spans from theoretical topics such as algorithms and lower bounds, to practical implementations. Currently, our main research objective is develop new theory, algorithms, and systems for scalable machine learning.

Read more »

PhD Program - Basics

The program is designed for students to complete their studies in 4-5 years. All students making reasonable progress are fully funded until the time of their thesis defense.
For more information on the PhD program, please visit our PhD-Pages for prospective students

For more details on research areas covered by the IST Austria PhD program, see our research groups.

IST Austria processes applications to its PhD program once a year. The application portal is available from Fall to January for a start in September. For more details on how to apply and application deadlines, please see our admissions page

Live in Klosterneuburg

IST Austria is located in Klosterneuburg, a historic city northwest of Vienna. The campus is located in the middle of the beautiful landscape of the Vienna Woods, only 18 kilometers from Vienna’s city center.

Read more.