BUILDING YOUR CAREER IN A BOOMING TECH AREA

Are you looking for exciting professional challenges and continuing education opportunities in a place you love to live? A place where your work, student, and private life are in balance with each other and new perspectives abound? If so, then Villach might be just the perfect place for you! It’s a fantastic city for creating a satisfying life and healthy lifestyle, a great career, and with access to first-class education - all in a stunning natural environment.

Located centrally in the beautiful Alps-Adriatic region in southern Austria, near Slovenia and Italy, Villach has always been an important transportation hub and a vibrant center of art, culture, science, and technology. In this region, tradition is balanced with open-mindedness and a high quality of life, all complemented by the advantages of an innovative economic location.

VILLACH AS AN INNOVATIVE ECONOMIC HUB 

International companies and their highly qualified employees have played a particularly important role in Villach’s success story. It has recently become clear just how important the region has become in the European technology scene - Infineon Technologies Austria invested €1.6 billion building Europe’s most modern microchip factory in Villach, and the city was chosen as one of only three locations for Silicon Austria Labs. Large and established multinational corporations such as 3M, Imerys, Flowserve and Lam Research, as well as innovative small and medium-sized companies in the technology and service sectors characterize the diversified economic structure. Villach’s prosperous economic scene offers a diverse variety of career options for people from all over the world and the companies, from global market leaders to hidden champions, offer their employees a multitude of benefits, as well as an outstanding exceptional quality of life.

CITY OF SCIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE

For years the City of Villach has supported research and the establishment of new businesses, living up to its reputation as a dynamic technology hotspot. Alongside the great education and scientific work happening at the Carinthian University of Applied Sciences, groundbreaking cooperation between industry and science has supported successful research on promising future technologies.

In addition to being the home of the largest research unit in the field of microelectronics, the industrial company with the highest research rate in Austria has been settled in Villach since 2014.

The Silicon Alps technology and innovation cluster, which connects stakeholders in the field of electronic-based systems in the south of Austria, has its offices at the High Tech Campus Villach. The latest flagship project in the region, located in the Technology Park Villach, is the Villach branch of Silicon Austria Labs (SAL) - a world-class research center and pioneer in electronic based systems. The core of SAL in Villach is Carinthia Tech Research, which has been carrying out research here since 1997.

In addition to independent research bodies such as SAL, in-house research institutions, such as Kompetenzzentrum Automobil- und Industrieelektronik (Center of Excellence for Automotive and Industrial Electronics) and Imerys Technology Center Austria, form the core of the region’s innovation scene.

The Carinthia University of Applied Sciences (CUAS), with campuses in Villach and the nearby cities of Spittal, Feldkirchen, and Klagenfurt, offers over 37 academic courses in the fields of Management, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Health Science and Social Work, and Engineering and IT. There is frequent cooperation between CUAS and local companies or regional industrial partners on innovative research projects - for example, the digital.lab, which supports both public authorities and enterprises in mastering the digital transformation process. In addition, CUAS helps coordinate and host various research-related events in the Villach region, such as Austria’s only Women in Data Science Conference and the yearly Innovation Congress at Villach’s Congress Center.

As an interesting counterpoint to the otherwise technology-focused Carinthian research landscape, the Austrian Research Center for Primatology at Landskron’s “Monkey Mountain” is an important biological research station.

CARINTHIA’S SUPPORTIVE START-UP SCENE

Every year, around 2,400 new businesses are established in Carinthia, and entrepreneurs of all ages benefit from special funding and other comprehensive support programs in the province and the City of Villach.

The start-up initiatives build! Startup Incubator or Smart Lab Carinthia, located in the High Tech Campus Villach, offer support to help entrepreneurs get off to a great start. The build! Startup Incubator, for example, is a development center that offers funding programs, networking, coaching, workshops, and modern infrastructure to young founders working towards independence. 

Another helpful institution for start-ups and business owners is the City of Villach’s First Stop Relocation Services. This department offers comprehensive information about and support with siting a business, as well as helping entrepreneurs get networked with all relevant development partners.

The open technology laboratory OTELO, which serves as an experimental and free space in the technology scene, is another important and helpful organization. Attractive co-working spaces in both the city center (Co-Quartier) and the more rural parts of the city (BizFarm) facilitate straightforward working and networking. With the Business Beach it is also possible to work at the lake, and the “Gründergarage” provides comprehensive infrastructure for start-ups.

ARRIVING IN VILLACH

The Villach region has been one of the most popular vacation destinations in Central Europe for more than a century, attracting visitors with a high-class mixture of adventure, nature, and history. While the short distances to many European towns and sites certainly add to Villach’s appeal, the city’s immediate surroundings also offer an abundance of recreational activities. 

One great way to learn all about what Villach has to offer is to get in touch with the Carinthian International Center (CIC), a place where people new to the area can easily meet locals and other expats, as well as get all kinds of information about the city and region. This organization has successfully served Carinthia’s constantly growing international community for several years, offering a diverse yearly program which includes cultural events for young and old, outdoor community events, as well as parties and various other gatherings.

The CIC also has a professional services branch, CIC Service GmbH, through which local companies and individuals offer comprehensive support with moving, official bureaucratic processes, and adjusting to life in your new home of Villach.

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

If you are interested in working or studying in Villach, you can find out more about current job openings at our partner companies or the various studying programs at CUAS Villach.