Paris Lodron University of Salzburg

The Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS), with over 18,000 students and 2,800 employees in research, teaching and administration is the largest educational institution in both the city and province of Salzburg.

As an integral part of the cultural and economic life of Salzburg, it is a meeting place between teachers and students, scientists and the public.

The name of our university reflects its founding by Prince Archbishop Paris Lodron in 1622. Since the re-establishment of the University of Salzburg in 1962, it has developed into a modern and lively university that meets the highest requirements with its four faculties in teaching and research.

The Paris Lodron University of Salzburg is the largest educational institution in the Salzburg region. Presently, over 18,000 students are enrolled and it employs approximately 2,800 staff members in research, teaching and administration. As an integral part of both cultural and educational life, the University serves as a meeting place for teaching staff, students and academics, as well as the general public. Since our re-establishment in 1962, the University has developed into a modern, vibrant institution whose four Faculties—Theology, Law, Cultural and Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences—meet the highest standards of teaching and research.

The origin of the University of Salzburg dates back to the Baroque period: the Alma mater, Paridiana, was founded in 1622 by Archbishop Paris Lodron: the year 2022 will celebrate its 400th anniversary. Support of the University was provided by a confederation of 33 Benedictine abbeys of South Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Salzburg. Until its dissolution in the wake of the annexation of Salzburg to Bavaria in 1810, theological and philosophical, as well as juridical and medical lectures were held at the University.

The University of Salzburg was re-established in 1962. The resumption of the operation of the Faculty of Philosophy, as well as the inauguration of the first Rector occurred in the year 1964. Only later was the University expanded to include a Faculty of Law. Today, the University of Salzburg is divided into four faculties: Catholic Theology, Law, Cultural and Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences, as well as the Interdisciplinary departments.

The development plan is a university-wide strategy paper in which the major projects are scheduled for the next few years. The plan is used not only for conveying the University’s profile, but also it demonstrates how the university seeks to achieve high-quality studies, internationally received research, an attractive staff-to-student ratio, the promotion of young scientists, and ensure the realisation of social objectives.

The Intellectual Capital Reports of the Austrian Universities serve as "the holistic representation, evaluation and communication of intangible assets and performance processes of the university and its effects. They should be used as qualitative and quantitative bases for the preparation of the performance agreement for the enactment and implementation of the goals and objectives of the performance agreement. The intellectual capital is - based on predefined indicators - an inventory of available knowledge.

The University of Salzburg continuously produces excellent results in both basic and applied research, documented by the growing number of publications and third-party funded projects. The university’s different departments, research clusters, centres and Christian Doppler laboratories work on a multitude of research projects, many of them with an interdisciplinary approach. For the benefit of both students and young scientists, our university is guided by the principles of research-oriented teaching.