DIPLOMA PROGRAMME

The Diploma Programme is a one-year postgraduate training course in the theory and practice of international relations. Emphasis is placed, above all, on interdisciplinarity, the implementation of theoretical knowledge in practice, and multilingualism. With the Diploma Programme students acquire the academic, practical and language skills necessary for a successful career in the international arena.

Applicants for graduate-level positions in the Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs are required to have completed a BA, Diploma, Magister, MA or PhD degree at an Austrian university or equivalent institution abroad. Those who hold a BA are additionally required to complete the Diploma Programme of the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna (DA) or an equivalent postgraduate programme at a foreign institution of higher education (e.g. Johns Hopkins University SAIS Bologna Center or Collège d’Europe, Brugge). However, in light of the general requirements for the selection procedure for graduate-level positions in the Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, completing the Diploma Programme of the Diplomatic Academy is strongly recommended.

https://www.bmeia.gv.at/das-ministerium/karrieremoeglichkeiten/laufbahn-im-bmeia/hoeherer-auswaertiger-dienst/

• Target group:
  • Graduates (university or college) of all disciplines and nationalities
• Language of instruction
  • English, with some courses in German and French
• Degree awarded
  • Diploma of the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna
• Duration
  • one year, full-time

The course covers

• political science and international relations
• structure and functioning of international organizations and the European Union
• economics and international economic relations
• international law, institutional and material European law
• contemporary political history with emphasis on the states of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe
• language training at the highest levels in English, French and German

Skills Training

• rhetoric
• presentation skills
• negotiation skills
• media relations

Study Trips

The principal destination is Brussels where students can examine European institutions at first hand. Additional study trips (for example to Ukraine/Poland or Bulgaria) is offered to all programmes.

Language Training

A challenging and multifaceted language training in English, French and German is included in the curriculum of the Diploma Programme. Classes take place in small groups. Participants are prepared for internationally recognized language certificate examinations (Cambridge Proficiency, Cambridge Advanced, DELF, DALF, ÖSD).
Students who wish to take the entrance exam for the Austrian Foreign Ministry (examen préalable) are offered additional courses in English and French preparatory for this exam.
In cooperation with the Language Centre of the University of Vienna the DA offers training in the official languages of the UN: Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish.