The Complexity Science Hub launches Graduate Program in Austria

[Vienna, May 6 2024] — In collaboration with its partner universities, the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) is launching the Digital Innovation School in Vienna, Austria. Starting in the fall, the Digital Innovation School will offer a PhD program in complexity research. 

The interdisciplinary program is designed for students who are passionate about leveraging their skills to make a tangible impact on society and the planet. “With our PhD program, students will gain expertise in data, network, and complexity research that can help them address current challenges in sustainable development, economy, health, green transition, and society,” explains CSH president Stefan Thurner. The program emphasizes global collaboration and, as for all activities at the Complexity Science Hub, operates in English. 

No niches

The program welcomes applicants from diverse academic backgrounds, including natural and social sciences, mathematics, computer science, engineering, and related disciplines. Candidates should possess a strong quantitative foundation and a demonstrated aptitude for independent research.

A minimum of five outstanding students will be accepted into the program each year. There is no requirement for these students to choose a scientific niche. Rather, the program integrates a wide range of topics and disciplines, such as data, network, and complexity science, to quickly transfer ideas and tools from one area to another. 

Curriculum 

The program’s curriculum emphasizes independent thesis research, research exchanges with governmental and industrial partners, specialized coursework, and engagement with prominent guest lecturers. Additionally, students will benefit from mentorship from esteemed faculty members and access to state-of-the-art developments in research methods and technologies.

CSH operates the Digital Innovation School in collaboration with its partner universities, guiding students within each cohort to the partner university and courses most aligned with their interests. The partner universities include the Medical University of Vienna; Vienna University of Technology; Graz University of Technology; Vienna University of Economics and Business; Central European University; University for Continuing Education Krems; University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, and the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences.

Digital excellence

A central reason for the establishment of the Digital Innovation School is the growing need for specialists who can find solutions to current and future challenges facing society and the planet –- ranging from climate change to supply insecurity to online disinformation.

“We need to be able to use the best of the next generation to generate usable and actionable meaning out of the vast amounts of data that describe our world. We at the Complexity Science Hub, together with our member institutions, are creating opportunities to establish a tradition of digital excellence,” says Thurner.

Info sessions

Applications for the inaugural cohort of the PhD program are now open, with a deadline of May 31, 2024. To learn more about the program, interested students are encouraged to attend virtual information sessions scheduled throughout May. 

For more information about the Graduate Program in Complexity Science and to apply, please visit

About CSH

The Complexity Science Hub (CSH) is Europe’s research center for the study of complex systems. We derive meaning from data from a range of disciplines – economics, medicine, ecology, and the social sciences – as a basis for actionable solutions for a better world. Established in 2015, we have grown to over 70 researchers, driven by the increasing demand to gain a genuine understanding of the networks that underlie society, from healthcare to supply chains. Through our complexity science approaches linking physics, mathematics, and computational modeling with data and network science, we develop the capacity to address today’s and tomorrow’s challenges.