Decisive political action is needed to make 2026 a good year for universities and us students. After all, there are many challenges: On the one hand, life alongside studying is becoming increasingly unaffordable. While rents and prices for dorm rooms are skyrocketing, sustainable mobility is becoming more and more of a luxury, and inflation is affecting all areas of life, financial support options remain virtually unchanged. For students and those interested in studying, a university education is thus becoming more and more of a distant dream.
At the same time, the government’s austerity measures are gradually eating into higher education budgets: after universities had already been forced to cut 129 million at the beginning of the year, further cuts of 121 million are now being made as part of budget reallocations. The outlook for the upcoming negotiations on the higher education budget for 2028 to 2030 is therefore bleak. Yet more money is urgently needed to put an end to the chronic underfunding of our universities.
Politicians like to talk in grand terms. But when it comes to actually implementing measures, they are not always so consistent. The concerns of us students in particular tend to be overlooked time and again. We thought we’d provide a little help and give the federal government a few resolutions for 2026.
Ensuring sustainable financing for universities
A new higher education budget for 2028 to 2030 will be negotiated in the fall. More money is urgently needed, as our universities are chronically underfunded. A few decades ago, they received over 2% of gross domestic product, but today that figure is barely more than 1%. However, the fact is that every euro invested in universities pays for itself twice within a short period of time. We are calling for the government to fully fund universities and the scientific sector by increasing the higher education budget to 2.5 percent of GDP.
This is necessary to cope with the record number of first-year students and to ensure high-quality, autonomous teaching and research. Universities must become independent of third-party funding in order to preserve their freedom and diversity. We also call for investment in climate-neutral universities: sustainability and climate justice must be an integral part of university development, from energy supply to teaching and mobility. Universities have a responsibility to act as pioneers in securing our future. They can only fulfill this role with adequate funding.
Involve students in decisions!
Our higher education system depends on us students and our contributions. Accordingly, we must be involved in political decision-making processes. After all, decisions about higher education funding, study conditions, social security, and admission regulations affect students directly and in the long term. Nevertheless, our perspectives are often insufficiently taken into account at the federal level or only heard after the decision has been made. This recently became apparent in the development process for the Higher Education Strategy 2040, which addresses the future of our higher education system but in which student representatives are massively underrepresented.
The federal government must view students not merely as affected parties, but as experts on their own lives and study situations. Participation must not remain a formal act, but must be structurally anchored. Only then can political measures be designed in a way that is sustainable, socially balanced, and in the interests of all.
Bring back public funding for dorms – now!
Until 2010, dormitories were subsidised by the federal government, before the measure was removed from the budget without replacement. Now the government wants to bring the subsidy back. This is a long overdue step, as the dormitories urgently need more money and prices need to be reduced. It is no longer uncommon for private dormitories to charge €600, €700 or €800 for a room. At the same time, the proportion of income that students spend on housing is rising steadily and now amounts to around 43%, or even over 50% in dormitories.
However, the government is taking its time with the implementation. The project is not scheduled to be implemented until 2027. At the same time, no details are known about the amount or structure of the funding. In times of austerity, the risk is high that the project will degenerate into a symbolic measure. We demand that housing subsidies be reinstated in 2026 and provide real relief so that sufficient high-quality and affordable housing for students can be made available! In addition, it must be ensured that students benefit from the measure in the form of lower rents.
It’s time to take the climate crisis seriously!
While lecture halls are getting hotter, train travel is becoming unaffordable, and students have to count every penny, the government’s decisions are further exacerbating the climate crisis. Climate policy failures directly affect students—we depend on affordable public transportation, study in overheated buildings, and have to live with the long-term consequences.
The government is mainly making headlines for all the wrong reasons: Austria has dropped 12 places in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI). Headlines about the disastrous draft climate law bill, the Lobau tunnel, and price increases for public transport tickets highlight the lack of political commitment. For us at the ÖH, it is clear: we finally need a proper climate protection law with binding targets and sanctions for non-compliance, free public transport for all, and a halt to large-scale fossil fuel projects throughout Austria.
Studienbeihilfe spürbar erhöhen und Zugang erleichtern
The coalition agreement promises easier access to student grants. In 2026, we can likely expect nothing more than an adjustment for inflation. It is clear to us that this is not enough. There is a gap of over €500 between the maximum possible benefit and the at-risk-of-poverty threshold of around €1,661. This is because, in its current form, the student grant is too low to effectively protect students from poverty. Currently, only 12% of all students receive the grant, while 6 out of 10 live below the poverty line. It can be assumed that this situation will continue to worsen in the wake of the far-reaching austerity measures of recent months. At the beginning of the academic year, the cost of public transport in Vienna rose significantly for students, and the Klimaticket also became more expensive. Many students are at risk of falling into poverty or being forced to drop out if no further mitigation measures are taken.
We call for an increase in the maximum rate to the poverty risk threshold and an expansion of the group of recipients so that students are not forced into dependency on part-time jobs and their studies do not depend on their parents’ financial support.
Redesign StEOP and make curricula fit for the future
The introductory and orientation phase (StEOP) is outdated. Instead of providing genuine orientation, it primarily creates uncertainty and academic pressure for students. Knockout exams at the beginning of their studies quickly discourage many first-year students. This is particularly true for students from working-class and financially disadvantaged families, for whom the path to higher education is already fraught with numerous hurdles. We need a StEOP that recognizes and takes into account these different circumstances, thereby giving everyone a fair start to their studies. In order to provide genuine orientation, the StEOP must create a basis for informed study decisions. After the introductory phase, any choice of study program must be possible and should not count as a change of study program!
At the same time, major social crises and challenges such as the climate crisis must be firmly anchored in our curricula. After all, our universities are the places where knowledge about the climate crisis is generated in the first place. They are the institutions where research findings, opportunities, and resources for combating the climate crisis are developed. This research must be advanced, become an integral part of teaching, and also be communicated loudly and clearly to the public.
Ensuring essential health care services for students
Health should not be a privilege. Nevertheless, many health services in Austria are still subject to fees. In 2026, for example, the federal government’s free HPV vaccination program for people under 30 will come to an end, meaning that many young people will once again face high costs if they want to protect themselves against cancer. In many cases, tests for sexually transmitted diseases are not covered by health insurance, even though infections are on the rise worldwide. And when it comes to mental health, young people, and thus many students, are left to fend for themselves. We are a long way from offering free therapy in Austria.
The federal government must use the new year to finally make essential health services such as these accessible to the general population! We demand free psychotherapy, free testing for sexually transmitted diseases, and an extension of the free HPV vaccination campaign for people under 30.
What we have planned for the ÖH in 2026
As your student union, we will continue to be your loud voice in 2026, fighting not only for better studies but also unconditionally for a better life for all students. At the same time, we want to create important services that support you in your everyday student life and promote progressive social policies.
In the summer semester, we want to create new counseling and information services on student financial aid so that as many students as possible can apply for it. Although student financial aid is still far too low and exclusive, it can make everyday student life much easier. We will publish a transparent online data platform that will show the current status of universities on their path to climate neutrality. We are also working on concepts for affordable cafeterias and affordable housing for students, which will be presented in the summer semester. Another issue that will keep us busy in 2026 is the introductory and orientation phase (StEOP), as its revision is stipulated in the government program. We will present a concept here to incorporate our priorities into the development process.
In addition, we are expanding our discrimination reporting service: “ÖHschauthin” will be expanded to cover numerous forms of discrimination and will offer students an even more comprehensive contact point in the future. We also have big plans in the area of mental health and want to further expand the ÖH helpline, which offers students advice and support in crises or mental health issues and provides easy access to therapy. And we want to present an action plan against right-wing extremism at universities in order to counteract the rise of right-wing groups at universities. In 2026, OC4CC will continue to support students and teachers in addressing the climate crisis in their courses. With Campus of Change, the climate lecture series is entering its next round—at even more universities—and the ÖH’s first queer-feminist lecture series will follow in the winter semester.
We’ll keep making noise and look forward to everything that lies ahead in the coming year!
