Informatics

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been causing a media frenzy about the potential benefits for the economy in general, and the world of work in particular. However, AI is not limited to chatbots and language models, but has many more diverse and more complex applications. And for the full range of possibilities to be exploited, it will require comprehensively trained AI engineers who can master practical challenges. Such mastery will only be possible by combining AI methodologies with other essential competences – such as computer science, software development, project management and various soft skills.

Automation Engineers develop, optimise and automate equipment. Or in other words: by means of sensors and special software they cause machines to perform intelligently. For example, they ensure cash machines dispense the right amount of banknotes, engines are high-precision and airbags are sure to open in a crash. Eco-engineers develop environmentally-optimised solutions for production plants, electric vehicles or solar- and wind power stations. Wels students recently invented Austria’s first pizza dispensing machine. They also recently programmed a regulation system for the hybrid drive of the BRP CanAm Spyder, a guidance system for single-track railways.

Fascinated by the constantly advancing development of mobility and how we will get from A to B in the future? Then Automotive Computing is the right course for you! It deals with the latest technologies, trends and concepts that will shape the way we get around: from automated driving and sustainable transportation solutions to intelligent traffic control. The key to solutions such as intelligent assistance systems, autonomous driving or mobility-based services (such as Uber) is software. Other fields of application for the know-how imparted by this degree program include dashboard design for vehicles, the use of intelligent mobility in logistics, precision farming, real-time kinematics and even support in disaster relief operations, giving graduates the opportunity not only to shape the smart mobility of tomorrow but also to make a valuable contribution in terms of efficiency and environmental friendliness.

Much of what we used to do offline is increasingly shifting to the digital space. An almost unmanageable variety of websites, platforms, apps and social networks make it possible to inform, learn, share, communicate and collaborate. All of this is difficult to imagine without the internet. The Bachelor's degree course in Communication and Knowledge Media sees this as a great opportunity and educates young people on how to become experts in communication and knowledge transfer on the internet. They can design web applications, implement them technically and adapt them to the needs of users. They understand how to design the content of digital media and use it successfully in communication, learning and work processes. Equipped with sound technical and social science skills, our graduates are in demand on the job market because they are able to understand digital media holistically and design them proactively.

Are you ready to help shape the digital future while taking important aspects such as inclusion, ethics and sustainability into account? Then the Design of Digital Products (DDP) Bachelor's degree program is just right for you! This innovative degree program combines design, applied computer science, business skills, project management and user experience design to teach you the multidisciplinary skills required in the digital age. At the same time, great emphasis is placed on promoting interdisciplinary communication, critical thinking and creativity. By developing these future skills, students acquire a versatile profile that complements their specialist knowledge in the design of digital products. Within various projects with partner companies and international partner universities, students learn to design digital solutions and use their IT skills to solve ecological, economic and social problems.

What do smartphones, modern cars and robots have in common? They are ’smart‘ thanks to in-built computer technology that delivers functions once considered the stuff of sci-fi movies. Such smart computers depend on the perfect combination of dedicated software and hardware. This key symbiosis is the chief focus of our degree programme in Hardware-Software-Design. This full-time degree programme offers a thorough grounding in informatics, IT and electronics. Students will develop competence in the design and creation of embedded systems, software application and chip design.

ChatGPT and Midjourney show how it's done - artificial intelligence can now be used to design innovative art and creative content. How to use AI professionally for these fields is one of the key areas of the Bachelor's degree in Media Technology and Design: Creative AI. The other specialisations on the course also lay the foundation for a career in the most exciting and sought-after areas of the digital media industry. In "Game Development" and "Web Development/UX Design", we train professionals for the modern, user-friendly design of websites and interactive media as well as for the realization of computer and video games. The focus is clearly on combining professional technology with smart content and creative design. We offer practice-oriented training with a focus on the creative use of current tools and techniques so that our graduates are well equipped for new opportunities and challenges of the industry.

Information technology today covers all aspects of the best healthcare provision. It has a crucial role in identifying the causes of illness, developing new drugs, and improving medical interventions. Graduates of our full-time degree program will be equipped to develop and deploy software medical doctors and molecular biologists need to fulfill highly complex tasks. Expertise in informatics, data science, life sciences etc. is highly sought after worldwide, not only in the health sector, the pharmaceutical industry and molecular-biological research, but also across the IT sector. After their first year, students choose to specialize in either medical informatics or bioinformatics.

Mobile applications, smartphones, tablets and similar devices have become indispensable in our private and professional lives. Companies like TikTok, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, Spotify and Netflix would be inconceivable without these technologies. However, these applications are not limited to communication and entertainment alone. Mobile technologies are increasingly used in highly professional services such as finance, mobility, and healthcare. Another driving factor is the Internet of Things (IoT). As devices and services become more interconnected, mobile devices and applications are crucial interfaces for people. This is particularly important in the context of new developments. New developments in the field of interaction, whether it involves novel display technologies, natural language communication, or high-performance optical recognition systems, will drastically simplify the interaction with these applications.

New IT security challenges in the areas of cloud security, IoT, smart technologies, artificial intelligence and big data need to be mastered in the corporate environment as well as in the private and public sectors, and new threats in the areas of social engineering and hacking need to be addressed. Networks must be secured against unauthorised access, attacks detected and forensically analysed. The development of security-critical, fail-safe systems and procedures, as well as the creation of a secure environment for communication and the protection of corporate knowledge and personal data are vital. Based on over 20 years of experience in IT security education, these new challenges have been particularly emphasised in a redesigned curriculum since 2020.

Software is at the heart of information technology (IT), and all applications – whether for mobile phones, PCs or even modern cars – depend on instructions based on specially written programmes. This Bachelor’s degree programme provides a thorough grounding in the theory and practice of sophisticated software development, including relevant tools, methodologies, and teamwork and networking skills. Graduates will be equipped to not only develop but also implement, evaluate and adapt software at the cutting edge of all areas of application. After their first year, full-time students can choose between two key areas in which to specialise: Business Software or Web Engineering. Part-time students specialise in Web Engineering.

Digitalization and the use of artificial intelligence have become indispensable in today's industry. Automation technology is a strong beneficiary and at the same time innovation driver behind these technologies - also in Austria! The master's degree program in automation technology enables students to specialize individually in their later working life or field of interest through elective courses. Special emphasis is placed on the proximity to companies and also to research. Starting in the 2nd semester, students can work at least 2 days a week in addition to their studies and put their ideas into practice. In addition to the elective subjects, the necessary cornerstones of a modern automation solution are anchored in the curriculum with the topics of digital factory, control technology and IT security.

Advancing digitisation requires organisation to find innovative solutions to new problems. In a global, networked and digital knowledge society, web-based media, intercultural competence and lifelong learning play just as important a role as internal and external communication. This is why the interdisciplinary Master's in Communication and Knowledge Media combines communication science, educational and psychological topics with content from the fields of web design, web programming and user experience design. Thanks to its wide range of compulsory elective modules, the course allows students to set their own individual focus in the fields of communication, web, learning and/or organisation, with a stronger focus on technical or social science areas.

Being able to extract relevant information from huge amounts of data is more important than ever these days. This applies to the most diverse areas of our society, be it industry, finance or biomedical research: we are dealing with unmanageable and rapidly growing data everywhere. Data scientists have to filter out the crucial information from these volumes of data and process it in a generally understandable way. In the Master's degree program Data Science and Engineering, students learn how to process this data, gain knowledge from it and statistically evaluate and visualize this information. This enables them to draw valuable conclusions and generate new knowledge.

Embedded systems provide the intelligence and performance in almost all modern devices. Their development requires a broad range of IT skills - namely expertise in hardware and software, including sensors and networking with the environment. The Master's degree program Embedded Systems Design teaches precisely this know-how. After completing this course, you will be able to realize precisely those intelligent and networked products ("smart systems") that are involved in developments such as the Internet of Things (IoT), smart homes or digital production. Such high-tech innovations require professionally developed embedded systems consisting of modern electronic and software components, integrated sensors and digital communication technology for data exchange in the network.

The energy transition has many facets: be it electro-mobility, the implementation of energy communities, the increased use of renewable energy and its storage, sector coupling, increasing energy efficiency, smart metering, demand-side management and much more. Much is currently in the making and the success or failure of all projects will depend on how well we manage to harmonise technological progress, the necessary standardisation and legislation as well as the economic framework conditions. This is precisely where the part-time Master's degree programme in Energy Informatics comes in. Students acquire in-depth knowledge of technological developments in the energy sector, learn how to use IT and programming in a targeted manner and gain an insight into the legal and economic framework conditions.

IT systems of the future will need to instinctively respond to user needs and competencies. This cutting-edge, part-time degree programme gives graduates of information technology studies the chance to refine their skills in developing more accessible and user-friendly technologies. The interdisciplinary curriculum draws primarily on social sciences and IT, including areas such as interaction design, natural-user interface development, image processing, as well as prototyping. Graduates will learn problem solving and full-spectrum consultancy skills that are key to the conceptualisation and deployment of practical applications in this dynamic field.

The increasing complexity of information technology is making unceasing demands on data control and co-ordination. Planning, developing and implementing sophisticated systems to meet company targets is a serious challenge for IT managers. Access to data anywhere, anytime, common usage of information and user-friendliness are prime objectives. This requires experts with software development, AI, business intelligence and analytical IT skills as well as know-how in management, law and team leadership. This part-time Master’s degree programme equips students with exactly these skills and is particularly suitable for people with a first degree in information technology, who aim at taking up management positions in the IT business.

Due to the constantly growing number of information processing systems, the security aspects closely linked to these systems and the ever-increasing threat potential, a comprehensive consideration of security measures and their management for these systems and the information processed is essential. The content of the Master's degree course in Information Security Management (ISM) is based on internationally recognised standards and draws on the 15 years of expertise of the Department of Secure Information Systems (with Bachelor's and Master's degree courses) in the field of IT security training. Thanks to the part-time study format with blocked attendance weeks in each semester and the intensive use of distance learning and examination elements, ISM is an ideal supplementary course for students with several years of professional experience.

As digital technologies and media continue to permeate more aspects of our everyday lives, the need for intuitive and natural interfaces with integrated, intelligent functionality is becoming even greater. Our Interactive Media program focuses on preparing graduates for challenging roles in the development of innovative technologies and the production of complex projects in the ever evolving media industry. The graduate program features both a broad selection of specialised courses in the field of Interactive Media and a substantial project-based component that enables students to develop their own individual focus. In addition to providing a solid industry-oriented education, the program seeks to hone students’ communication skills and refine their systematic approaches to problem-solving and engineering for interaction.

Mobile computing is very often associated with the programming of apps. If you look at the curriculum, you will quickly realize that this apparent limitation is not the case. Instead, the course allows students to immerse themselves in the latest areas of information technology, coupled with some more than forward-looking application domains, such as automotive computing or smart energy. The Mobile Computing degree programme is therefore aimed at all those who like to deal with new and innovative IT topics and practice and professionalize the practical applicability in the context of application-oriented exercises, projects or ultimately in the Master's thesis.

Robotics has become an indispensable part of the current production world and is also leading to disruptive developments and enormous progress in other sectors such as agriculture or medical technology. However, robotics is only half the story. In order to develop an intelligent system, not only the machine itself is required, but also state-of-the-art sensor technology and a great deal of computer science. Robotic Systems Engineering offers an optimal education in the areas of the latest software algorithms and technologies for the implementation of complex automation tasks with robots. Holistic engineering approaches are taught, which digitally support man, machine, software and hardware from the first idea to the running operation.

While cyber security is increasingly developing into a key technology of the modern communication society, the availability of comprehensively trained specialists with know-how in the technical, organisational and legal environment is increasingly lagging behind current requirements. The Master's degree course in Secure Information Systems provides a combination of precisely this knowledge. In addition to comprehensive basic training, it offers the opportunity for individual in-depth study and specialisation in various areas of IT security and organizational information security. In particular, new technologies such as quantum computing and the use of artificial intelligence in cyber security applications are also taught. In addition to the professional, practice-oriented training, independent work, a scientific approach and the development of communication skills are central concerns.

The development of powerful software systems, designed to meet specific requirements and pursue innovative technological approaches, requires knowledge and additional skills that go beyond the bachelor's level. To use the analogy of building a house, not only software craftspeople, i.e. developers, are needed, but also software architects. The aim of the Master's degree course in Software Engineering (SE) is to enable you to manage challenging projects in the areas of software development and architecture, as well as offer you the opportunity to specialise in topics such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, modelling and simulation or data analytics.