It was the first school of its kind on the continent. In 1941 it became an institution of higher education. 1941–45 it was called "Reichshochschule fuer angewandte Kunst", and in 1948 was taken over by the Austrian state as an academy. In 1970 it was awarded the title of a university and in 1998 it was renamed the Universität für angewandte Künste (University of applied arts).
