The bull of 1 January 1586, published on 15 April 1586, was approved by Pope Sixtus V.[3] For most of its existence it was controlled by the Catholic Church, and was closed in 1782 by Emperor Joseph II in an attempt to gain state control over educational institutions.

Joseph II transformed it into a lyceum, where civil servants and medical personnel were trained.

The faculties offer a wide range of undergraduate (BA, BSc), graduate (MA, MSc), and doctoral degree (PhD) programmes, as well as special teaching degrees in their specific areas of expertise.

Students enrolled in one of these programmes attend lectures and seminars at both universities and are awarded a combined degree at the end of their studies.

The establishment of the Department for Slovene Language and Literature at the University of Graz, for example, laid the foundation for scholarly studies of Slovenian culture, literature, and language bundled in the so-called Slovene studies.

Evidently, relations between the Catholic Church, especially the local bishop, and the university's Faculty of Theology remain strong, yet general policy is not influenced by these connections.