Diploma Programme: Entrance Examination

Candidates for admission to the Diploma Programme are required to sit an entrance
examination at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna or at an Austrian representation abroad.

Candidates are admitted to the entrance examination provided they fulfil the following
requirements:

 a degree from an accredited institution of higher education (university, college)

 a very good command of English, a good command of German or French or at least a
basic knowledge of the third language (German or French)

Please find the following information on the next pages:

 Preparing for the Entrance Examination
 Recommended Literature
 Examples of Questions Set
Preparing for the Entrance Examination

The purpose of the entrance examination is to establish whether a candidate has the appropriate
qualifications for the successful completion of the Diploma Programme. As the number of places at
the DA is limited, candidates are admitted in the order of their ranking in the entrance exams. The
results of the entrance exams are only valid in the year in which they were sat.

The entrance examination is divided into written and oral sections. You can take it either at the
Diplomatic Academy in Vienna or at an Austrian embassy or consulate abroad.

In the written section, there are three 90-minute exams in each of the following areas:

 international relations and history in the 19th and 20th century

 economics and international economic relations
 international law and European law

Additionally and where appropriate, language skills in English, French and German are tested in a
90-minute written exam in each by means of grammar tests, translations, essays, summaries and a
short oral exam.

The main oral exam takes place before a commission. Candidates are questioned in at least two of
the three languages of instruction at the DA on the same three areas stipulated for the written
exam as well as on general knowledge.

A reading list, together with recommended reading, is available to help you prepare for the
entrance examination. You are also strongly advised to read on a regular basis relevant reports and
analyses in newspapers and specialized magazines such as International Herald Tribune, The
Financial Times, Le Monde, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, The Economist, Foreign Affairs etc.
Recommended Literature

International Relations
 Battistella, Dario: Théories des relations internationales, Presses De Sciences Po, 2003
 Brown, Chris: International Relations Theory, 3rd edition
 Kegley, Charles & Eugene Wittkopf: World Politics: Trend and Transformation, 5th edition,
St. Martin’s Press, 1995
 Knapp, Manfred & Gert Krell (Hg): Einführung in die internationale Politik, 3. Aufl.,
Oldenbourg 1996
 Baylis, John & Steve Smith (Eds.): The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to
 International Relations, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004, 3rd edition
 Carlnaes, Walter, Thomas Risse & Beth A. Simmons, (Eds): Handbook of International
Relations, London: Sage, 2001
 Burchill, Scott, Andrew Liklater, Richard Devetak, Jack Donnelly, Matthew Paterson,
Christian Reus-Smit & Jacqui True: Theories of International Relations, Basingstoke:
Palgrave, 2005, 3rd edition

International Law
 Dixon, M.: Textbook on International Law (Blackstone Press Limited)
 Seidl-Hohenveldern / Stein: Völkerrecht (Heymanns)

European Law
 Cartou, L.: L’Union Européenne (Dalloz)
 Mathijsen, P.: A Guide to European Community Law (Sweet&Maxwell)
 Thun-Hohenstein, C., F. Cede & G. Hafner: Europarecht (Manz, Wien)

Economics
 Samuelson, P.A. & W. Nordhaus: Economics (only basic concepts, fundamental concepts of
macroeconomics, microeconomics, supply, demand and product markets, economic role of
government, international trade and the world economy) (McGraw Hill)

History
 Duroselle, J.B.: Introduction à l'histoire des relations internationales (Pocket, 1997)
 Craig, Gordon A.: Geschichte Europas im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert (Beck)

Surveys of diplomatic history

 Duroselle, J.B.: L’Europe de 1815 à nos jours (PUF, 1997)
 Kissinger, H.A.: Diplomacy (Simon and Schuster, 1995)

Comprehensive surveys
 Thomson, David: Europe Since Napoleon (Penguin, 1990)
 Breunig, Charles: The Revolutionary Era, 1789-1850 (Norton, 2002)
 Gilbert, Felix & David Clay Large: The End of the European Era, 1890 to the Present (Norton,
2002)
 Rich, Norman: Age of Nationalism and Reform, 1850-1890 (Norton, 1977)
  Hobsbawm, E.J.: The Age of Revolutions, 1789-1848 ( Abacus, 1998) – (L’Ere des révolutions,
1789-1848); (Europäische Revolution 1789 bis 1848)
 Hobsbawm, E.J.: The Age of Capital, 1848–1875 (Abacus, 1988) – (L’Ere du capital, 1848-
1875)
 Hobsbawm, E.J.: The Age of Empire, 1875-1914 (Abacus, 1989) – (L’Ere des empires, 1875-
1914); (Das imperiale Zeitalter, 1875-1914)
 Hobsbawm, E.J.: The Age of Extremes: The Short 20th Century, 1914-1991 (Abacus, 1995) –
(L’âge des extremes: Le Vingtième Siécle, 1914-1991)

Postwar Europe
 Judt, Tony: Postwar (Heineman, 2005)

Austria
 Cullin, M. & F. Kreissler: L’Autriche contemporaine (A. Colin)
 Dachs, H.: Handbuch des politischen Systems Österreichs (Manz)
 Hanisch, Ernst: Der lange Schatten des Staates. Österreichische Gesellschaftsgeschichte im
20. Jahrhundert, (Ueberreuter 2005)
 Sully, Melanie: A Contemporary History of Austria (Routledge 1990)
 Steininger, Rolf & Michael Gehler: Österreich im 20. Jhdt., 2Bd. (Böhlau 1997)

Last updated: September 2009

Examples of Questions Set
You may answer in English, French or German

International Relations and Contemporary History

 The international role of the United States in the twentieth century.
 China’s importance in Asia in the twentieth century.
 Austria’s development in the twentieth century.
 The peace treaties after World War I and their international consequences.
 The consequences of the Second World War.
 The political importance of Islam in the modern world.
 The European Idea: its origins and the attempts to turn it into reality.
 Analyse the pros and cons of the enlargement of the European Union.
 What, in your opinion, are the economic and political prerequisites for a peaceful
relationship between states?
 The meaning and limits of the right to self-determination in the twentieth century, using
examples from outside Europe.
 Characterize the role of a great foreign affairs politician of your country in the twentieth
century.

International Law and European Law

 What are the sources of international law?
 What do you understand by "subjects of international law"?
 Name the tasks of the Security Council of the United Nations.
 What tasks do the tribunals set up by the Security Council of the UN in Den Haag and Arusha
have?
 Name some of the decisions of the International Court of Justice and sketch out their most
important points.
 Explain the concept of "extra-territoriality".
 What are the implications of the principle of "non-intervention"?
 What do you understand by the "right of self-determination of the peoples"?
 What are the tasks of a diplomatic officer?
 What do you understand by "diplomatic privilege"?
 What role did the European Parliament assume after the Treaties of Amsterdam and Nice?
 What do you understand by the "second pillar" of the EU?
 Describe NATO and briefly discuss its (future) role.

International Economics
 What do you know about J. M. Keynes?
 What are the functions of money?
 What are the main determinants of economic growth?
 Describe Ricardo’s theory of comparative advantage.
 Why should governments try to control air and water pollution?
 What is the difference between gross investment and net investment?
 Describe the government expenditure multiplier.
 How are exchange rates determined in a floating-exchange-rate system?
 How will an increase in income tax affect the demand for and the price of cars?
 What is your "opportunity cost" of studying at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna?