All about the admissions process

Here you can find out what is required when applying for a study degree programme and how to tackle the admissions process. We have also compiled some tips for the admissions interview.

The perfect application

A complete application for a course at FH JOANNEUM consists of a letter of motivation, a curriculum vitae, proof of university entrance qualification (e.g. high school diploma) and a copy of proof of citizenship or copy of passport. Register via JOANNEUM I online and upload your application.

You can apply for one degree programme per deadline. On the first three application deadlines, you can also submit an alternative application for a second degree programme for each deadline. All degree programmes that offer application deadlines in August and September are eligible as alternative applications.

In your letter of motivation, you should outline why you are interested in the course and why you feel you are a suitable candidate. Specify your hopes for your future career. Describe any experience you may already have acquired in the study topics and professional field. Tell us about yourself, your strengths and weaknesses and your personality.

Set out your curriculum vitae in chronological order and detail your education and any additional qualifications, attaching any certificates or documents as proof. Do you already have some professional experience? Have you already undertaken internships, holiday jobs or community work? Make sure you list all of these things. Your CV should provide us with an overview of your education and career path to date.

The Information Design and Industrial Design programmes additionally require applicants to submit a digital portfolio of work samples by the end of the application deadline.

Invitation to the admissions process

The admissions process consists of:

• Application
• Personal interview
• Online test (only for some courses, more information on the relevant course pages)
• Occupational aptitude test or creative exam (only for some courses, more information on the relevant course pages)

Personal interview

Once your application documents have been checked to ensure they are complete and valid, you will be invited to attend an interview. During the interview, you will be asked questions about your motivations, career wishes, expectations of the course, team skills etc.
The interview will be conducted by the head of degree programme and a lecturer from the institute. It will last around 20 minutes. The interview aims to determine whether the course is suitable for you and whether you have the required abilities. The interview will take place either online or on-site.

Online test

Degree programmes receiving a high volume of applications carry out an additional online test. The test will take place on a fixed date which will be communicated to you in good time and information will be provided on the relevant course page. The test will last around 30 minutes and will assess your general intellectual performance which will have a substantial influence on your success in the course. All details about the specifics of the test will be provided in plenty of time before the date.

You can prepare for the test by using the demo test ITB-ICOS Intellectual Competence Screening: www.itb-consulting.de/iona-demoportal/
Please read through the demo test carefully and complete the examples. This will enable you to envisage the nature of the tasks and questions and have an idea of what to expect.

Occupational aptitude test

An occupational aptitude test must be carried out on-site at FH JOANNEUM for the Physiotherapy and Logopedics programmes. All details can be found on the study degree program page.

Creative exam

An additional creative exam must be completed for the Bachelor’s degree programmes at the Department of Media & Design.

The Journalism and Public Relations (PR) programme requires applicants to write a spontaneous text in the field of journalism and PR. The creative exam will take place straight after the admissions interview and will last approx. 45 minutes.

The creative exam for the Information Design programme will be included as part of the interview. Here you can demonstrate your technical, cultural and design knowledge. The admissions committee will discuss issues from the fields of visual communications, new media, art and culture with you.

The creative exam for the Industrial Design programme requires you to demonstrate your design skills. You will address specified themes from the fields of creativity, spatial thinking, design understanding and presentation. The specific tasks will be assigned during the interview.

After the admissions process

After completing the admissions process, you will be informed as to whether you have received a place on the course. If you have been accepted, you will receive written confirmation and information about what you need to do before being enrolled as a student at the university. If you are not accepted, the application process for your alternative application will start automatically, provided you have submitted one.

Applicants who have only just missed out on a place are put on the waiting list and will be informed about where they are ranked. If you are among them, you still have a chance: if a candidate who has been allocated a place does not take up the offer, the place will be reallocated. And so the candidates on the waiting list move up the list.

New application

You have not been accepted onto the degree programme? No need to doubt yourself. Take some time and space to consider your options. Some students are accepted onto the course at their second attempt. They are often the ones who are particularly motivated and committed. After all, they know exactly what they want. A new application will be welcomed and there are no disadvantages to applying again. Think about whether the course you chose really suits you. Perhaps you might be better off choosing a different field.

All applicants who have not been accepted or who have been placed on the waiting list or received a letter of acknowledgement are welcome to apply for a different course by the next application deadline.