WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) is celebrating a number of anniversaries in 2023. The university was founded 125 years ago, and 10 years ago it moved to Campus WU, next to Prater Park. 2023 also marks the 40-year anniversary of WU’s ZBP Career Center. WU was a true pioneer when it decided to establish a career center in 1983. Since then, the WU ZBP Career Center has become Austria’s largest job placement hub for business, economics, and law graduates. The center’s mission has not changed over the years: getting graduates off to a successful start in their careers.

The idea of providing job opportunities to students directly at WU was born in the 1980s, out of a cooperation with the University of Cambridge. When it was founded, the WU ZBP Career started out as a small association. At that time, it was the first organization in Austria authorized to offer private job placement services.

Sought-after expertise

As a result of close cooperation with WU professors and the commitment of numerous personalities from business and politics, the association was eventually turned into a business. Over the last 40 years, it has built a strong presence as key player in the recruiting market for young WU graduates. Today, the WU ZBP Career Center employs 20 people, who are intimately familiar with the latest developments in the HR sector and offer professional consulting services. Thousands of WU graduates use these services to get started in their careers. As WU Rector Edeltraud Hanappi-Egger points out, “With its strong international orientation, WU has always taken bold steps in the Austrian university landscape. The early establishment of a career center was clearly one of them. Today, the WU ZBP Career Center is a sought-after model for other universities in Austria and abroad, who are happy to use the expertise available at the ZBP for designing their own career services.”

Changing requirements

“Over the last 40 years, the WU ZBP Career Center has seen many ups and downs in the job market, and right now there’s a lot going on. The demands of future employees have changed dramatically, and companies need to respond. Time and again during our history, we have also developed new career formats to meet changing demands. With over 2,000 one-on-one consultations per year, we provide graduates with the support they need to kick-start their careers. Of course, the tools we’re using today are completely different from those we used 40 years ago – but our basic approach has absolutely proven effective. It’s tried and true, and it guarantees WU students a successful start in their career development,” says Ursula Axmann, head of the WU ZBP Career Center.

300 companies – 3,000 job postings

Every year, 250 to 300 companies accept the ZBP Career Center’s invitation to present themselves directly at WU. They use the opportunity to get in touch with students or approach them with specific job offers. Popular formats include the Career Calling event, the Long Night of Companies, and the Campus Recruiting Days. The WU ZBP Career Center also runs a job portal with employment opportunities aimed exclusively at business, economics, and law students, where soon-to-be graduates can choose the job that is right for them from 3,000 openings posted each year.

More information: https://www.zbp.at/