Federation University Australia (Fed Uni) is a public, multi-sector university based in

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. Within months of Vi ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Australia. The university also has campuses in Ararat,

Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

, Stawell,

Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...

, Berwick, and

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, as well as online

technical and further education Technical and further education or simply TAFE (), is the common name in English-speaking countries in Oceania for vocational education, as a subset of tertiary education. TAFE institutions provide a wide range of predominantly vocational co ...

(TAFE) courses and Horsham's higher education nursing program. Federation University is the fourth oldest tertiary education institution in Australia, having begun under predecessor institutions in 1870, during the

Victorian gold rush The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria, Australia approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony, and an influx of population growth and financial capit ...

. With the merger between the University of Ballarat and

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has ...

's Gippsland campus in 2013, the university changed its name to Federation University from 2014.

History

1870–2013

Tertiary education Tertiary education, also referred to as third-level, third-stage or post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank, for example, defines tertiary education as including univers ...

at Ballarat began in 1870, making it Australia's fourth oldest tertiary institution.

2014–present

On 6 September 2013, the

Victorian Parliament The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria that follows a Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the King, represented by the Governor of Victoria, the Legislative Assembly and ...

passed legislation to establish Federation University Australia, The name change officially began in 2014. The then Vice-Chancellor justified the name change as an attempt to broaden the reach of the university nationally and internationally, and in fairness to the campuses outside Ballarat. The name was also the preferred name within the university, compared to 'State University of Victoria', 'Eureka University', 'Robert Menzies University' or 'Vida Goldstein University'.

Buildings and architecture

The former

Ballarat Gaol The Ballarat Gaol, a former maximum security prison for males, females and children, is located in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. Replacing temporary structures including prison hulks in the Bay of Port Phillip and holding yards in Ballarat, th ...

, a maximum security prison that operated from 1862 until 1965, was located on the site of the university's School of Mines (SMB) campus, at the southern end of Lydiard Street. The area is known for being a well preserved Victorian era street. While the prison was mostly demolished in the 1960s, the old prison walls, gate and guard towers, as well as the residences of the governor and warden, still exist. One of the bedrooms was used by

Bella Guerin Julia Margaret Guerin Halloran Lavender (23 April 1858 in Williamstown, Victoria – 26 July 1923 in Adelaide, South Australia), known popularly as Bella Guerin, was an Australian feminist, women's activist, women's suffragist, anti-conscrip ...

, who in 1883 became the first woman to graduate from an Australian university. The campus also includes the old School of Mines buildings.

Academia

Undergraduate studies

Students can undertake undergraduate degrees across a wide range of study areas, which are: * Humanities and social sciences * Engineering * Business * Science and mathematics * Education and early childhood * Nursing, midwifery and paramedicine * Psychology * Performing arts * Visual arts * Information technology * Occupational health and safety * Sport, outdoor and physical education * TAFE

Research

Researchers – academics and post-graduate students – undertake work within various centres, as well as within the disciplines. The research priority areas of the university are information forensics and security, transformative and preventative health, dynamic landscapes, history and heritage, and improving policy and practice in VET. The research centres are: * Australian Retirement Research Institute (ARRI) * Centre for Biopsychosocial and eHealth Research and Innovation (CBeRI) * Centre for eResearch and Digital Innovation (CeRDI) * Centre for Gippsland Studies (CGS) * Centre for Informatics and Applied Optimisation (CIAO) * Centre for Multimedia Computing, Communications, and Artificial Intelligence Research (MCCAIR) * Geotechnical and Hydrogeological Engineering Research Group (GHERG) * Researching Adult and Vocational Education (RAVE) * Water Research Network * Visiting Friends and Relatives Research There are also research facilities at Ballarat Technology Park, the Gippsland Enterprise Centre and Nanya Station in rural NSW.

Rankings

In 2017, FedUni was ranked within the top 20% of Australian universities in humanities for teaching quality, learner engagement, learning resources, skills development, and student support. Nationally, the university is ranked 31 in Australia (out of 40) and 1526 in the world. Across the university, for postgraduate research the university is rated above the national average by former students with 78.8% satisfaction. For undergraduate studies, the university is rated above national average by former students with 83.3% satisfaction. Historically, the former University of Ballarat achieved a maximum five-star rating for teaching quality in the Good Universities Guide consecutively from 2010 to 2014. Federation University has been ranked four-stars for graduate placement by the Good Universities Guide, but is not ranked in international university guides. This placed the university in the top tier of Australian regional universities.

Student demographics and engagement

In 2017, 80% of undergraduate students study full-time and on campus, which is unique for a regional university, and 35% of students are international students.

Facilities

Campuses

In addition to the following campuses, the university also had joint-degree programmes with international colleges, including

PLK Vicwood KT Chong Sixth Form College Po Leung Kuk Vicwood K. T. Chong Sixth Form College (KTC) is a government-subsidised sixth form college in Yau Tsim Mong District, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was established on 26 July 1991 to provide quality education to secondary pupils matriculat ...

in Hong Kong.

Ballarat

*Camp Street Campus – located in central Ballarat, this campus houses the Arts Academy. The campus consists of the Old General Post Office Building, the Old Courthouse, and several newer buildings which were completed in 2002. *SMB Campus – located in central Ballarat and incorporates the original School of Mines Ballarat and the Old Ballarat Gaol. The campus offers training from certificate level through to advanced diploma and degree-level study.

Western Victorian campuses

Wimmera The Wimmera is a region of the Australian state of Victoria. The district is located within parts of the Loddon Mallee and the Grampians regions; and covers the dryland farming area south of the range of Mallee scrub, east of the South Aust ...

Campus – offers TAFE courses and a higher education course in nursing.

Mt Helen Campus

Located in Mt Helen, 10 km south of Ballarat. The university's largest campus, it has three residences,

Peter Lalor Peter Fintan Lalor (; 5 February 1827 – 9 February 1889) was an Irish-Australian rebel and, later, politician who rose to fame for his leading role in the Eureka Rebellion, an event identified with the "birth of democracy" in Australia. ...

South Hall,

North Hall, and

Hall. Its programs include the Institute of Education, Arts and Community; Institute of Health and Wellbeing: Institute of Innovation, Science and Sustainability. Gippsland Heather

Gippsland Campus

The Gippsland Campus is located in the township of Churchill in the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges. The campus is home to over 2,500 students and approximately 400 staff. The campus was formerly Monash University, Gippsland Campus, but became part of Federation University Australia on 1 January 2014.

Berwick Campus

The Berwick Campus is located south-east of the Melbourne city centre. It was transitioning itself from the Monash University, Berwick campus in 2017 and completed its transition in early 2018. The exact location of the building is 100 Clyde Road Berwick VIC 3806. The university has four buildings naming 901, 902, 903, and 930 as well as additional buildings for on-campus living. Nursing has the highest enrolment rate at the Berwick Campus, with a focus also on education courses, IT, and psychology.

Brisbane Campus

The Brisbane Campus, situated in the centre of Brisbane city and offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programs in information technology, business and allied health.

Technology park

The university has a technology park with the mission to facilitate the development of technology-based companies or companies that benefit from the technological resources of the university. The following organisations operate in the park. *

Ambulance Victoria Ambulance Victoria (AV), a Victorian agency of the Department of Health and Human Services, is the statutory provider of pre-hospital emergency care and ambulance services in Victoria. Ambulance Victoria was formed on 1 July 2008 with the merger ...

Country Fire Authority The Country Fire Authority (CFA) is a volunteer fire service responsible for fire suppression, rescues, and response to other accidents and hazards across most of the state Victoria, Australia. CFA comprises over 1,200 brigades organised in 2 ...

* Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority (ESTA) * Global Innovation Centre * Greenhill Enterprise Centre * IBM South East Asia * IBM Regional Software Solutions Centre * ID Research * State Revenue Office More than 1350 people are employed by tenants at the technology park and approximately half of those holding Federation University Australia qualifications. Recently IBM decided to expand its workforce with the construction of a new $10 million building on the park.

Research institutes and centres

*Centre for eResearch and Digital Innovation *Health Innovation and Transformation Centre *Future Regions Research Centre *Centre for Smart Analytics *Centre for New Energy Transition Research *Collaborative Evaluation and Research Group *Geotechnical and Hydrogeological Engineering Research Group

Notable alumni

Kate Allen (triathlete) Katherine Jessie Jean "Kate" Allen (born 25 April 1970, in Geelong, Australia) is an Australian-Austrian triathlon, triathlete. She won the gold medal in the women's triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Early life Kate Allen grew u ...

Martin Andanar Jose Ruperto Martin Marfori Andanar (born August 21, 1974) is a Filipino television news personality, news anchor, radio commentator, podcaster, and voice-over artist. He served as the secretary of the Presidential Communications Office of the ...

, press secretary of the Philippines under Duterte administration *

Aunty Donna Aunty Donna is an Australian surrealist comedy group formed in Melbourne in 2011. The group consists of performers and writers Mark Bonanno, Broden Kelly, and Zachary Ruane alongside writer and director Sam Lingham, director Max Miller, and co ...

, absurdist sketch comedy troupe *

William Baragwanath William Baragwanath (1878–1966) was an Australian surveyor, geologist and public servant. In 1922 he was appointed director of the Geological Survey of Victoria, and in 1932 Secretary for Mines. He discovered fossils of ''Baragwanathia'', a g ...

, geologist *

Phillip Bellingham Phillip Bellingham (born 24 February 1991) is an Australian cross-country skier from Mount Beauty, Victoria. He represented Australia at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea ...

, winter olympian *

Steve Bracks Stephen Phillip Bracks (born 15 October 1954) is a former Australian politician and was the 44th Premier of Victoria. He first won the electoral district of Williamstown in 1994 for the Labor Party and was party leader and premier from 1999 ...

, former Premier of Victoria *

Sandy Blythe Robert Alexander "Sandy" Blythe, OAM (24 February 1962 – 18 November 2005) was an Australian wheelchair basketball player. He became a paraplegic due to a car accident in 1981, and went on to participate in the Australia men's national whe ...

, wheelchair basketball player * Dr Cyril P. Callister, inventor of Vegemite *

Darren Cheeseman Darren Leicester Cheeseman (born 8 June 1976) is an Australian politician. He has been a Labor Party member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly since November 2018, representing the seat of South Barwon. He previously held the federal seat o ...

, politician *

Peter Crisp Peter Laurence Crisp (born 22 May 1954) is an Australian politician. He was a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly from 2006 to 2018, representing Mildura. He was formerly a Wentworth Shire Councillor. Early life Crisp holds an enginee ...

, politician *

Jacqueline Dark Jacqueline Lisa Dark (also Jacqueline Moran) is an Australian operatic mezzo-soprano. She was born in Ballarat and attended the University of Ballarat from 1986 to 1988, receiving a Bachelor of Science (Physics) and a Graduate Diploma of Educat ...

, opera singer *

David Davies (artist) David Davies (21 May 1864 – 26 March 1939) was an Australian artist who was associated with the Heidelberg School, the first significant Western art movement in Australia. Biography Born and raised in Ballarat, Victoria, Davies attended art ...

Jack Gervasoni John Hogan 'Jack' Gervasoni (29 September 1929 – 9 February 1992) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and captain-coached Northcote in the Victorian Football Association (VFA). ...

, Australian Rules footballer * Keith Hamilton, former Minister for Agriculture and former Minister for Aboriginal Affairs * Ben Hardman, politician *

Will Longstaff William Frederick Longstaff (25 December 1879 – 1 July 1953) was an Australian painter and war artist best known for his works commemorating those who died in the First World War. Birth and education Born in Ballarat, Victoria (Australia), Vi ...

, artist *

Brad McEwan Brad McEwan (born 28 April 1971) is an Australian television presenter and sports journalist. McEwan has previously been a sport presenter on the Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne editions of ''10 News First'' and is best known for his hosting du ...

Ten Network Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...

sports reporter *

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (born 23 March 1953) is an Indian billionaire entrepreneur. She is the executive chairperson and founder of Biocon Limited and Biocon Biologics Limited, a biotechnology company based in Bangalore, India and the former chai ...

, businesswoman and associate of

Biocon Biocon Limited is an Indian biopharmaceutical company based in Bangalore. It was founded by Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw in 1978. The company manufactures generic active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) that are sold in approximately 120 countries, i ...

Steve Moneghetti Stephen James "Steve" Moneghetti, (born 26 September 1962), is an Australian long-distance runner and physical health consultant, represented Australia on many occasions. Moneghetti has a degree in civil engineering, a graduate diploma in educ ...

, Olympic marathon runner *

Richard W Richards Richard Walter Richards, GC (14 November 1894 – 8 May 1986) was an Australian science teacher who joined Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition in December 1914 as a physicist with the Ross Sea Party under Captain Aeneas M ...

, physicist and Antarctic explorer * Henry Sutton, inventor *

Libby Tanner Elizabeth Tanner (born 1970) is an Australian stage and television actress and theatre director best known for her roles as Bronwyn Craig in the television series '' All Saints'' and as Bridget Westfall in '' Wentworth''. Early life Tanner gre ...

, actress *

Wes Walters Wes(ley) Walters (1928-2014) was an Australian artist and winner of the Archibald Prize. Walters was born in Mildura, Victoria, in 1928. He was a realist portrait painter and abstract artist who painted nearly 200 portraits of leading Australian ...