Around 24,800 members of the WU community and 40,500 external persons not affiliated with WU hold a library card authorizing them to use the WU libraries. The main users are members of the WU community, who account for 80% of the people who access the libraries. Since the University of Vienna temporarily closed its own library’s main reading room for renovation work, the number of external users signing up for a WU library card has spiked once again. “With its modern campus and excellent libraries, Campus WU offers an ideal environment for studying. The study areas in the Central Library that offer a view of the Prater park are particularly popular. It’s important to us to offer all library users the best possible conditions for studying. Extending the opening hours is an important step towards meeting this demand,” says WU Rector Sausgruber.

Longer study hours for all library users

Going forward, the Central Library in the LC building will remain open two hours longer on all Saturdays and on the Sundays before exam weeks, extending its opening hours until 10pm. A second exam prep week with extended opening hours will also be introduced preceding WU’s four major exam weeks held throughout the year. This has been an important demand raised by the WU branch of the Austrian Students’ Union (ÖH). During the additional exam prep weeks, the library will be reserved exclusively for WU students from 8am to 4pm. After this study period, the library will be open to everyone until midnight from Monday to Friday, and until 10pm on the weekends. If exam prep weeks are held during university break periods, the libraries will be open to all users without restrictions – but also with extended opening hours until midnight or 10pm. In addition, the PC labs in the LC building will be open to WU students around the clock.

Fit4Research

The WU University Library not only offers a comprehensive selection of literature and specialist data and information, but it also organizes numerous courses and consulting sessions to teach information literacy skills. In 2024, 261 courses were held, including training courses on how to properly cite sources in academic work, how to carry out legal research, and on academic reading and writing skills. A total of 6,339 people took advantage of these opportunities.

Click the following links for details about the new opening hours and general information about the library.

Press contact:
Cornelia Moll
Press Relations Officer
Tel: + 43-1-31336-4977
Email: cornelia.moll@wu.ac.at