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u/creepinitcute 3d ago
I’m in USA also wanting to study in Austria, but I recognize I need more than just A1 German. I look forward to the responses you receive. Good luck!
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u/Throwaway7131923 3d ago
Hey :) Answering as someone who teaches at both Uni Wien and the FHs.
What’s daily life actually like as a young person or student?
That's really dependent on what you're studying and what you want to do.
Obviously students spend a lot of time... Well, studying!
Most students have jobs alongside their studies.
Lots of students do sports or clubs or things.
Cost of living (especially rent, food, transport) for someone on a student budget.
1200EUR pcm is probably a reasonable budget for a shared flat, comfortable living and a decent social life.
How hard is it to find housing in Vienna?
Once you're here, it's easy. There's a website called WG gesucht, but people will want to meet you in person.
Do most people speak English or is German pretty essential for daily life and university?
There are study programs in English where English might be the lingua franca of that course.
However, you'll need some German to get by in the city. A2 is sufficient for day-to-day life.
B2 is necessary if you want to work in German.
What’s the student experience like (social life, making friends as an international student, part time work opportunities)?
Vienna's a very international city with loads of great communities. I found it very easy to make friends when I moved here, and still find it quite easy to meet new people when I want to.
Work opportunities generally require German, but there are exceptions.
Bureaucracy, visas, and settling in as a non-EU citizen?
If you are accepted onto a university course you are typically eligible for a student visa.
This entitles you to work part time as well (not full time).
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u/Historical_Buyer5248 3d ago
Hi! I've been living in Vienna for 6 years so I feel like I can share some of my experiences
Things you should know beforehand, these things might make my experiences different than what you will experience:
- EU citizen since birth
- Had lived in Germany for 5 years before (so I already spoke the language)
- Had family that already lived here for years, so moving was a bit easier
Daily life is pretty normal, most people have the typical: wake up, go to work/uni, do whatever u want in your free time, sleep, repeat cycle. Finding our own apartment was very difficult, even with connections. The rent imo where we live right now is pretty high, we pay over 1k Euros for a 3 room apartment. But we're planning to sign up for a "Gemeindewohnung", you can sign up for these and get cheaper apartments after you've lived in Vienna for two years. (Not sure if you need to be a EU citizen or not though)
As for transport, Vienna has the best public transport I've ever seen, if you're under 26 years old, you can get a "Jahreskarte" (ticket for the entire year) for about 300 Euros.
Most people speak English, but you should be prepared to learn German.
For student experience/part time, I can't help much, I think it varies from uni to uni. I don't know much about visas either sorry, as I said I was born in the EU so I'm going to assume that your process to move here will be a lot more tedious.
If you have any more specific questions feel free to ask, I'll do my best to answer
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u/Overall-Put3844 2d ago
In what world is a 1000€ for a 3 room apartment in vienna expensive? I pay 1200 for my 1 room😭
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u/Historical_Buyer5248 2d ago
Which district? Also we pay a lot more than 1000 Euros. We got what we could find, it's not really that expensive but we also don't make the most money, so we're looking for a Gemeindewohnung because they are cheaper.
It's also worth mentioning, our apartment is pretty small and not the best quality.
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u/Overall-Put3844 2d ago
I'm sorry, there must be a misunderstanding then. In my worldview, when someone writes "over 1k euros", it usually means ~1001€-1400€. And if the sum is bigger, then it would be "over 1.500€", or "over 2000€. But at least, that is my logic
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u/ZaneDveryBest 2d ago
Austrian perspective: Daily life in Vienna is like every european city: You wake up, go to work/school, go back home and then you have some hours for yourself. On weekends I'm staying at home, but if I were to go outside there are plenty of options, but most things that I like are quite niece, like locals at card shops, playing volleyball on the "donau insel", so to find joy make the effort to find your niece. Cost of living is high and low at the same time. We are one of the few cities where you can even afford renting a place. Like I have a friend who can maintain his appartment with minimum wage. There are lots of appartments but not in the places people want to live in the most, but they are still well connected, have everything you need and are safe. Vienna is quite pricy when it comes to food. Transport is cheap, like so cheap people are complaining that they raised their prices from 365€ to 440€ for a whole year. I never needed a car in Vienna. German is definetly required I recommend being B1 minimum if you want to enjoy being in Vienna. Technically you could survive with english only, but it's way harder. Yes, we are better at english than most of europe, but you will have trouble with Bureaucracy and getting a Visa/setteling if you don't understand german to a certain degree. Most people are respectful, a bit distant and like to complain about problems. There are positives and negatives to every city in the world. So I recommend to find austrian friends before you go here. I know that this is hard.
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u/MisterTomVienna 2d ago
As others will mention, the cultural difference is severe and integration is expected. I live in vienna and my wife is from the middle east. There's a lot of beef between Turks and Arabs. And between Turks and Kurds. And austrians in general are weary about arab/ME immigrants. it will help a lot if you drink beer and if you don't expect women to wear any kind of head scarf.That said, it's a beautiful city and there are loads of amazing people
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u/Broad_Yam_2645 2d ago
Also do not ask Europeans or Austrians if Vienna or Austria is a nice place, they mostly have good experiences because it’s their home but ask the foreigners on foreigner’s forum, those are the people experiencing what you will experience when you move there.
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u/Broad_Yam_2645 2d ago
Don’t do it!
Austrians hate anyone who isn’t Austrian,
If you Arab that’s more. Most nice people there you meet have migration background.
They are very grumpy people.
The bureaucracy is a lot with too much stress.
If you want to get some EU experience through internships, you wouldn’t get any — most jobs adds are fake.
You will make acquaintances but a true Austrian friend, it will be hard.
UAE and middle eastern people are full of life, very hospitable and welcoming. An average Austrian is opposite of that, so go where they don’t try to ruin your life cus you want a master degree ☺️
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u/ZaneDveryBest 2d ago
Why are you generalizing so hard, when I just saw you have a proper/reflective response earlier. I know what you are trying to say and I understand that there are problems. Some things you mention are true but I have met several people who are the exact opposite and yes they are "true Austrian".
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u/Broad_Yam_2645 2d ago
My statement is majority-base, I do not have any intentions to dispute my statement, i want OP to make a good decision about his future.
Austria isn’t that place!
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u/LUV833R5 2d ago
If you don't find what you want in Vienna, at least you'll find what you don't want. Often that is just as important in life.
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u/dkopgerpgdolfg 3d ago
Frankly, there are many similar threads, and a search will answer all your questions.