ExclusiveInterdisciplinary Transformation University: "Real innovations are at the borders between disciplines"

"We want to teach people who have a grounding in a discipline and enrich them with digital technologies, so they can go out into the world and transform organisations and disciplines by using more digital technologies and bringing data-driven and AI thinking into different areas", indicates Stefanie Lindstaedt, Founding President of the Interdisciplinary Transformation University Austria (IT:U), on 19/08/2025 in an interview with News Tank.

The new university was created in 2022 and started its first PhD programmes in October 2024 ('Digital transformation in learning' and 'Computational X'). It is launching its first Master's degree in October 2025 (Interdisciplinary Computing).

"The ministry told us they wanted a university to do things differently. And this has been our leading light, to think about how we can be different in research, teaching, and organisation", explains Stefanie Lindstaedt.

Teaching at IT:U differs from other universities: "Our educational model is centred around a project-based learning approach: Students engage with real-world challenges that translate to…