Budapest/Vienna March 12, 2018 -- Central European University (CEU) and the City of Vienna announce that they are in negotiations about a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that would enable CEU to open a satellite campus site in Vienna, complementing its home campus in Budapest and its American site at Bard College in New York State. As the largest German-speaking university city close to CEU’s home base in Budapest, Vienna offers ideal conditions for a new site. On the basis of the MoU, the Otto Wagner area will be examined as a possible location. The MoU commits CEU and Vienna to conclude a 99-year lease, making for a long-term commitment to the city.
“Vienna is a global hub for universities, companies and international organizations. Establishing a campus there will give CEU’s faculty and students exciting new opportunities. We look forward to working with the City and the Austrian government to make a CEU Vienna a reality.” said CEU President and Rector Michael Ignatieff. "Even as we develop a CEU Vienna, Budapest will remain our home base. We are committed to resolving our long-term future in Budapest through the New York State-Government of Hungary draft agreement. We hope that the Hungarian government will sign and ratify it as soon as possible.”
"For Vienna as a university city, cooperation with the CEU offers the opportunity of the century," said Mayor Michael Häupl. “CEU is a symbol of the awakening in the Central and Eastern European EU member states, and with its social and humanities focus would complement the Viennese university landscape well,” said the Vienna Mayor with conviction. In Vienna, students and teachers find not only perfect research and study conditions, but also a high quality of life and a safe environment at affordable prices."
Central European University is a graduate institution, offering U.S.- and Hungarian-accredited Master’s and doctoral programs in the social sciences and humanities, business and economics, environmental sciences and policy, law, network science, cognitive science and mathematics. CEU’s graduates, who now number nearly 15,000, come from over 100 countries. Founded in 1991 and endowed by George Soros, its mission is to promote critical inquiry, world-class research and intensive teaching that promotes the values of an open society: free politics, free institutions and free minds.
For additional information contact:
Colleen Sharkey
International Media Relations Manager, Central European University
M: +36 30 916 2273
E-Mail: sharkeyc@ceu.edu
Mario Dujakovic
Media spokesperson of Renate Brauner, Executive Councillor for Finance, Economy and International Affairs, City of Vienna
T: +43 1 4000 – 81218
M: +43 676 811 881218
E-Mail: mario.dujakovic@wien.gv.at
Uschi Kainz
Communications, Vienna Business Agency
T: +43 1 4000 – 86 583
M: +43 699 140 86 583
