The Diplomatic Academy of Vienna (DA;

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: ''Diplomatische Akademie Wien''), also known as the Vienna School of International Studies, is a

postgraduate Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate ( bachelor's) degree. The organization and ...

professional school based in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, with focused training for students and professionals in the areas of international affairs,

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

, law,

languages Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

and

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics anal ...

. The school confers

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...

degrees,

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

s and postgraduate diplomas upon its graduates. It is an affiliate member school of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs in Austria. The Diplomatic Academy's director (since 2017) is Ambassador Emil Brix (b. 1956 in Vienna), an Austrian diplomat and historian.

History

The academy was originally established by Empress

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position '' suo jure'' (in her own right) ...

in 1754 as the

Oriental Academy The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of ''Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the ...

, for the purpose of training young diplomats to represent the Habsburg Empire abroad. The school was renamed multiple times and reorganized over the centuries, and it eventually gained independent public institution status in 1996. Given its roots, the Diplomatic Academy claims to be the oldest school of its kind, one that is dedicated to professional foreign affairs training.

Academics

The academy offers graduate degrees only. Students may choose to pursue a two-year program that leads towards either a Master of Advanced International Studies (MAIS) or a Master of Science in Environmental Technology and International Affairs (MSc ETIA) degree. The MAIS program is run in conjunction with the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hi ...

, while the MSc ETIA courses are offered in partnership with the

Technical University of Vienna TU Wien (TUW; german: Technische Universität Wien; still known in English as the Vienna University of Technology from 1975–2014) is one of the major universities in Vienna, Austria. The university finds high international and domestic recogn ...

. A one-year "Diploma Programme" is also available to postgraduates.

Directors of the academy

* Heinrich Pfusterschmid-Hardtenstein, 1978–1986 *

Alfred Missong jun. Alfred Missong jun. (14 January 1934 – 23 January 2017 in Vienna), was an Austrian diplomat. Life Alfred Missong is the son of the Austrian catholic publicist Alfred Missong. Diplomatic career After working as a free correspondent in East ...

, 1986–1994 *Paul Leifer, 1994–1999 *Ernst Sucharipa, 1999–2003 * Jiří Gruša, 2004–2008 *Hans Winkler, 2008–2017 * Emil Brix, 2017–present

Notable people

A number of prominent figures in politics, economics and law have associations with the Diplomatic Academy: * Celso Amorim – former Brazilian Minister of Defence and

Foreign Minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

and ambassador to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. Amorim graduated from the academy in 1967. * Jiří Gruša – Czech poet and former Czech ambassador to Austria. Served as the academy's director from 2005 to 2009. *

Valentin Inzko Valentin Inzko (born 22 May 1949) is an Austrian diplomat who served as the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2009 to 2021. He also served as the European Union Special Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2009 to 201 ...

– Austrian diplomat, former

High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina The High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, were created in 1995 immediately after the signing of the Dayton Agreement which ended the 1992–1995 Bos ...

. Graduated in 1974. * Jan Kickert (born 1964) – Austrian Permanent Representative to the United Nations. * Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović – 4th

President of the Republic of Croatia The president of Croatia, officially the President of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Predsjednik Republike Hrvatske), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the military and chief representative of the Republic of Croatia both within the ...

. * Heinz Schaden – Austrian Social Democratic Party politician and former mayor of

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

. Attended DA in the 1980s. * Kurt Waldheim – former

President of Austria The president of Austria (german: Bundespräsident der Republik Österreich) is the head of state of the Republic of Austria. Though theoretically entrusted with great power by the Constitution, in practice the president is largely a ceremonial ...

and Secretary-General of the United Nations. Graduated from the academy (then known as the Vienna Consular Academy) in 1939. *

Igor Lukšić Igor Lukšić (Serbian Cyrillic: Игор Лукшић, ; born 14 June 1976) is a Montenegrin politician who served as the 4th Prime Minister of Montenegro from 2010 to 2012, following the resignation of Milo Đukanović. He was succeeded by Đ ...

– Foreign Minister of

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and former Prime Minister. Graduated in 1999.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Schools of international relations Diplomatic training