WISO · Business & Social Sciences
Aufnahmeverfahren Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften
For applicants to WU Vienna's German-taught Bachelor's Program in Business, Economics and Social Sciences (known informally, and by WU itself, as WISO), whenever the number of applications exceeds the available places.
WISO is not a VWU Ergänzungsprüfung. It's the informal name, also used officially by WU itself, for WU Vienna's Bachelor's Program in Business, Economics and Social Sciences and for its selection procedure (Aufnahmeverfahren). Unlike the VWU supplementary exams, it isn't a bridging exam tied to a specific admission letter: it's a general competitive-admission process for anyone applying to this WU bachelor's program, triggered whenever demand exceeds the number of places WU offers for this program each year.
In the cycle described here, the procedure runs in three stages: online registration, a non-graded online self-assessment, and, only if applications exceed capacity, an on-site multiple-choice exam. WU has changed the exact format from cycle to cycle in the past, so treat the details below as the current cycle's format rather than a fixed rule.
- Format
- Online registration → ungraded self-assessment → on-site exam, held only if applications exceed capacity
- Exam duration
- 2 hours, on-site, multiple-choice with partial credit
- Registration fee
- €50
- Places
- Roughly 2,700–3,700 (varies by year)
- Cycle described
- 2026/27
What the entrance exam covers
- Economics fundamentals, based on WU's own introductory reading (Fuhrmann, Introduction to Business and Economics)
- Financial mathematics, accounting basics, business management and business informatics/digitalization: a more detailed breakdown from third-party exam-prep analysis (wiso-insider.com), not WU's own official topic list
- German reading comprehension; unofficial exam-prep sources describe the required level as advanced
- General mathematics from WU's own numbered topic list (Themen 01–13): logic, algebra, functions, derivatives, probability and more
How to prepare
- Work through WU's official introductory economics reading and its numbered math topic list before the exam
- Practice algebra, functions, derivatives and probability at exam pace, not just the topics you already find comfortable
- Train German reading comprehension on economics-flavored texts under time pressure
- Take the online self-assessment seriously even though it isn't graded: its subject content overlaps with the on-site exam
- If you're also preparing for other VWU or WU exams, plan your economics and German prep together
Frequently asked questions
Who actually has to sit the WISO entrance exam?
Only applicants to WU's Business, Economics and Social Sciences bachelor's program, and only when the number of applications exceeds the available places for that cycle. If demand doesn't exceed capacity, WU has in some past cycles admitted everyone based on the self-assessment stage alone, without an on-site exam.
Is the on-site exam always held?
No. In at least one past admission cycle, WU cancelled the on-site test entirely because enough applicants completed the self-assessment and a motivation statement by the deadline. Whether your cycle needs the on-site exam depends on how many people apply, so check WU's own procedure page close to your admission cycle.
What does the on-site exam actually test?
In the cycle described here: an on-site, multiple-choice exam with partial credit, covering economics fundamentals, German reading comprehension and WU's own general-math topic list.
When is the registration fee due?
It's paid during online registration, which typically runs from early March to mid-May. The amount is listed in the key facts on this page.
How is our exam simulation put together?
For the WISO entrance procedure the WU publishes only the duration (2 hours) and the three sections (economics, German, mathematics). How many tasks fall to each section, how the points are distributed and where a pass mark would sit are not published. The task format (one situation, five independent statements) and the scoring rules (the WU partial-credit system) are official as well, and we reproduce both unchanged. Our own assumption is the composition alone: 27 tasks, the three sections weighted equally, 120 minutes. It is derived from the published structure of the sister procedure WiRe (35 tasks at 2 points plus 20 at 1.5, 100 in total), because the scoring document is word for word the same for WISO and WiRe. Figures circulating online with weights of 40/30/30 and an English section are not used here: they contradict the WU’s own published information in three separate places.
How current is the information on this page?
It reflects WU's official procedure page for the admission cycle named on this page. WU has adjusted the exact format (for example, whether a motivation letter or an on-site exam is used) from cycle to cycle in the past, so confirm the current year's format on WU's own site before you rely on it.
Sources
The three-stage structure, exam duration and fee above reflect WU's official procedure page for the admission cycle named above. The broad topic areas (economics fundamentals, German reading comprehension, math Themen 01-13) are from that same official page; the more detailed breakdown (financial mathematics, accounting, business management, business informatics/digitalization, and the 'advanced level' German qualifier) comes from third-party exam-prep site analysis (wiso-insider.com), not from WU's own topic list. WU has changed the exact selection format in past cycles (for example, using a motivation-letter stage instead of an on-site exam in at least one earlier year), so treat this as the current cycle's format rather than a permanent rule, and check WU's own page for the cycle you're applying to.
Trainer in progress
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