In 2006, deaf students founded the platform “study now” in order to find tutors for deaf students to support them in their courses. At the same time, an awareness campaign for lecturers and other members of the universities was started in order to draw attention to the problems of this group of students.
In cooperation with VÖGS (Austrian Deaf Student Association) a concept was developed, which was presented to the former Ministry of Science by the group. As a result, a working group of affected experts was established in 2007. The Institute for Higher Studies compiled a comparative study of the situation of deaf students in European countries. The results recommended an urgent improvement of the studying conditions for this group of students.
 

In 2009, the Technical University of Vienna, with its previous experience with deaf students in various study programmes (architecture, spatial planning and computer science) and the knowledge that equal access to studies is only possible for deaf students by providing study content in Austrian Sign Language, agreed to carry out a pilot project, which was commissioned by the Ministry of Science. The existing concept was revised, a financial plan was prepared and submitted to the Ministry of Science.

On June 9, 2010, the pilot project was presented to the public. This was the kick-off for the Service Point GESTU, which was carried out until June 2012 under the direction of Dr. Wolfgang Zagler and the former Disability Representative of the TU Vienna, Mag. Marlene Fuhrmann-Ehn, at the Institute “integrated studying” of the TU Vienna. The name of the project GESTU stands for “Gehörlos und Schwerhörig Erfolgreich Studieren” (“Successful Studying for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students”) and has its own sign name, which is similar to the German sign for “success” but is performed with both hands and resembles the applause in sign language.

Since late 2012, GESTU has been managed as a service point for deaf and hard of hearing students within the framework of the service agreements of the Technical University of Vienna. The service point is responsible for degree students of the universities in Vienna.
With the Service Point GESTU, for the first time in Austria there is a basic structure that enables deaf and hard of hearing students’ equal access to regular studies.
Due to increasing demand in other provincial states, a second Service Point GESTU was installed at the University of Technology Graz in 2022, which has been supporting deaf and hard of hearing students at all universities in Graz since then.