The University of Canberra (UC) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are "the key sites of Knowledge production modes, knowledge production", along with "intergenerational ...

with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from

Belconnen Town Centre Belconnen Town Centre is the town centre of the district of Belconnen in the Australian Capital Territory. Is located on the south-western shore of Lake Ginninderra. Belconnen Town Centre contains several Federal and Territory government depa ...

, and from Canberra's

Civic Centre A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains of one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, ...

. UC offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses through five

faculties Faculty or faculties may refer to: Academia * Faculty (academic staff), professors, researchers, and teachers of a given university or college (North American usage) * Faculty (division), a large department of a university by field of study (us ...

: Arts and Design; Business, Government and Law; Education; Health; and Science and Technology.

History

The University of Canberra was first established in 1967 as the Canberra College of Advanced Education. It then became the University of Canberra under sponsorship of

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

in 1990.

Foundation stone

The foundation stone was unveiled by Prime Minister

John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician, farmer and airman who served as the 19th Prime Minister of Australia, prime minister of Australia from 1968 to 1971. He held office as the leader of the leade ...

on 28 October 1968. The stone is displayed near Building 1 on the Bruce campus. The inscription reads:

Stonefest

An annual celebration, called Stone Day, was first held in 1971. It has since evolved into a popular music festival. Stone Day traditionally took place after classes finished at the end of Semester 2, but before exams. The day before was known as Stone Eve. Stone Day involved a music festival with local bands. Over the years, the Stone Day program grew larger, expanding to a whole week in 1976, and became Stoneweek. In the 1980s and 1990s, Stoneweek was a popular Canberra entertainment event and one of Australia's most popular music festivals. In 2000, the festival became Stonefest. Beginning in 2012, Stonefest was not held for a number of years at the University of Canberra. In 2014, UC created a mini-music Stonefest festival with a DJ and numerous activities, however it was not received well. In 2019, Stonefest returned, with both local and international acts, but did not run in 2020–2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, returning in 2022.

Campuses and buildings

Bruce

University of Canberra Concourse and Building 8

The university's main campus is located in the suburb of

Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...

and covers of buildings, ovals, gardens, lawns, car parks, roads, walkways, and sculptures. The campus is notable for its native gardens and the presence of

kangaroo Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

s. There are over 29 buildings dedicated to teaching, research, and administration for the disciplines, faculties and business units. These buildings are concentrated around the main concourse. Each building is numbered and many do not hold any title or namesake. At the northern end of the campus is the University of Canberra Hospital which focuses on rehabilitation.

Facilities

The

Refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monastery, monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminary, seminaries. The name ...

is located in Building 1, operated by UCX (the student union). It provides a food court, general shop, pool tables, and lounges, and is also a concert venue. Upstairs there are study rooms which can be booked by students and staff. The Hub is located under the main concourse, providing a café, hairdressing salon, tattoo parlour, 87.8 UCFM student radio station studio, and social enterprise hub. A bar, convenience store, and several eateries are also available near the student residences. A sport and fitness centre is located in Building 29 with gym facilities and is home to Brumbies Rugby administration. There are basketball and squash courts nearby in Building 4, and various sporting ovals.

Other sites

The university has satellite campuses in the following locatio

* Queensland ** TAFE Queensland Brisbane (South Bank) ** TAFE Queensland Brisbane (Mount Gravatt) * Sydney ** University of Canberra Sydney Hills campus (Castle Hill) ** TAFE NSW Northern Sydney (RTO)

Governance and structure

University Council

The governing body of the University of Canberra is its University Council. The current Chancellor (education)#Australia, chancellor is

Lisa Paul Lisa Marian Paul is the seventh chancellor of the University of Canberra and a former senior Australian public servant and policymaker. She was the Secretary of the Department of Education and Training until February 2016. Personal life Lisa ...

, , a former senior Australian public servant and policymaker who was a long-serving Secretary of the Department of Education and Training. Professor Stephen Parker is the interim vice-chancellor (VC), having previously served as VC 2007–2016. Parker took over from Professor Lucy Johnston who was the interim VC following the sudden departure of Professor

Paddy Nixon Paddy Nixon is a computer scientist and former Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Canberra (2020–2023). From July 2015 to February 2020, Nixon was Vice-Chancellor and President of Ulster University and on the board of Univer ...

who served as VC from 6 April 2020 to 15 December 2023. The incoming VC, from February 2025, is

Bill Shorten William Richard Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian former politician and trade unionist. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Leader of the Opposition (Australia), Leader of the Opposition from 2013 to 2019. He also ...

. Prior to Professor Nixon, Professor

Deep Saini Hargurdeep Saini ( Punjabi: ਹਰਗੁਰਦੀਪ ਸੈਣੀ) is an Indian-Canadian scientist and university administrator.Advances in Agronomy, pp ix, Volume 68 By Donald L. Sparks, San Diego tc.: Academic Press, cop. 2000. He is the pre ...

was VC from 1 September 2016 to 21 December 2019.

Faculties and departments

The five faculties are: ;Arts and Design Arts and design specialises in architecture,

landscape architecture Landscape architecture is the design of outdoor areas, landmarks, and structures to achieve environmental, social-behavioural, or aesthetic outcomes. It involves the systematic design and general engineering of various structures for constructio ...

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...

communication studies Communication studies (or communication science) is an academic discipline that deals with processes of human communication and behavior, patterns of communication in interpersonal relationships, social interactions and communication in differ ...

, culture and heritage, journalism, creative writing and poetry,

international studies International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

, and

media arts New media art includes artworks designed and produced by means of electronic media technologies. It comprises virtual art, computer graphics, computer animation, digital art, interactive art, sound art, Internet art, video games, robotics, 3D ...

. The faculty has two schools: School of Design and the Built Environment and School of Arts and Communication. ;Business, Government and Law The Business Government and Law Faculty provides courses in accounting,

applied economics Applied economics is the application of economic theory and econometrics in specific settings. As one of the two sets of fields of economics (the other set being the ''core''), it is typically characterized by the application of the ''core'', i.e ...

business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

business informatics Business informatics (BI) is a discipline combining economics, the economics of digitization, business administration, accounting, internal auditing, information technology (IT), and concepts of computer science. Business informatics centers arou ...

, construction, economics, finance, law, management, marketing, politics, sociology,

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a Group decision-making, decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to Problem solving, solve or address relevant and problematic social issues, guided by a conceptio ...

, tourism, and

urban and regional planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...

. The Faculty has three schools: Canberra Business School, Canberra Law School, and Canberra School of Politics, Economics & Society. ; Education The Education faculty offers courses designed to cover all stages of teacher development with courses in early childhood, primary and secondary. ;Health The Faculty of Health prepares a wide range of allied health professionals, including in

counselling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of c ...

exercise science Exercise physiology is the physiology of physical exercise. It is one of the allied health professions, and involves the study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to exercise. Exercise physiologists are the highest qualified exercise ...

nursing Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

and

midwifery Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period (including care of the newborn), in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many cou ...

, nutrition and

dietetics A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of ...

occupational therapy Occupational therapy (OT), also known as ergotherapy, is a healthcare profession. Ergotherapy is derived from the Greek wiktionary:ergon, ergon which is allied to work, to act and to be active. Occupational therapy is based on the assumption t ...

optometry Optometry is the healthcare practice concerned with examining the eyes for visual defects, prescribing corrective lenses, and detecting eye abnormalities. In the United States and Canada, optometrists are those that hold a post-baccalaureate f ...

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

physiotherapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

and

exercise physiology Exercise physiology is the physiology of physical exercise. It is one of the allied health professions, and involves the study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to exercise. Exercise physiologists are the highest qualified exercise ...

and rehabilitation, psychology,

medical imaging Medical imaging is the technique and process of imaging the interior of a body for clinical analysis and medical intervention, as well as visual representation of the function of some organs or tissues (physiology). Medical imaging seeks to revea ...

speech pathology Speech is the use of the human voice as a medium for language. Spoken language combines vowel and consonant sounds to form units of meaning like words, which belong to a language's lexicon. There are many different intentional speech acts, suc ...

, and

sports management Sport management is the field of business dealing with sports and recreation. Sports management involves any combination of skills that correspond with planning, organizing, directing, controlling, budgeting, leading, or evaluating of any organiza ...

. ;Science and Technology The Faculty of Science and Technology trains students in environmental sciences,

biomedical Biomedicine (also referred to as Western medicine, mainstream medicine or conventional medicine)

and

forensic Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...

as well as information technology, information systems, engineering, and mathematics. The Faculty has two schools: School of Science and the School of Information Technology and Systems.

Finances

Like most Australian universities, University of Canberra derives the majority of its revenue from the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or simply as the federal government, is the national executive government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive consists of the pr ...

through the Commonwealth Grant Scheme, student fees, research grants and contracts, commercial activities, and donations. The

ACT Government The Government of the Australian Capital Territory, also referred to as the Australian Capital Territory Government or ACT Government, is the executive branch of the Australian Capital Territory. The leader of the party or coalition with the Con ...

provides around one percent of the university's operating budget. The University's budget in 2022 was 312.84

million 1,000,000 (one million), or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian ''millione'' (''milione'' in modern Italian), from ''mille'', "thousand", plus the ...

(2022). In 2024, the University of Canberra is expecting a $36 million deficit which triggered emergency spending constraints. The deficit is partly attributed to a decline in international student enrolments. The financial situation lead to the announcement in October 2024 of urgent and significant cost-saving measures, including an estimated 200 job cuts by the middle of 2025.

Academic profile

Research divisions

The university has several research centres relating to its areas of research strength. These are: * Canberra Urban and Regional Futures * Centre for Ageing Research and Translation (CARAT) * Centre for Creative and Cultural Research * Centre for Research and Action in Public Health * Centre for Research in Therapeutic Solutions * Collaborative Indigenous Research Initiative * Health Research Institute * Institute for Applied Ecology * Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis * Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre * Murray-Darling Basin Futures Collaborative Research Network * Nexus Research Centre * News and Media Research Centre * Research Institute for Sport and Exercise * STEM Education Research Centre * SYNERGY Nursing and Midwifery Research Centre

Library

The University of Canberra Library is located in Building 8. The building has four floors.

Academic reputation

; National publications In the ''Australian Financial Review'' Best Universities Ranking 2024, the university was ranked #26 amongst Australian universities. ; Global publications In the 2025 ''

Quacquarelli Symonds Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) is a higher education analyst and a for-profit services provider headquartered in London with offices in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. History The company was founded by Nunzio Quacquarelli in 1990 to provide informati ...

World University Rankings College and university rankings order higher education institutions based on various criteria, with factors differing depending on the specific ranking system. These rankings can be conducted at the national or international level, assessing inst ...

(published 2024), the university attained a tied position of #403 (25th nationally). In the ''Times Higher Education'' World University Rankings 2025 (published 2024), the university attained a position of #401–500 (tied 26–33rd nationally). In the 2024 ''Academic Ranking of World Universities'', the university attained a position of #801–900 (30th nationally). In the 2024–2025 ''U.S. News & World Report'' Best Global Universities, the university attained a position of #694 (29th nationally). In the ''CWTS Leiden Ranking'' 2024, the university attained a position of #1266 (34th nationally).

Student outcomes

The Australian Government's QILT conducts national surveys documenting the student life cycle from enrolment through to employment. These surveys place more emphasis on criteria such as student experience, graduate outcomes and employer satisfaction than perceived reputation, research output and citation counts. In the 2023 Employer Satisfaction Survey, graduates of the university had an overall employer satisfaction rate of 78.3%. In the 2023 Graduate Outcomes Survey, graduates of the university had a full-time employment rate of 85.3% for undergraduates and 92.9% for postgraduates. The initial full-time salary was for undergraduates and for postgraduates. In the 2023 Student Experience Survey, undergraduates at the university rated the quality of their entire educational experience at 72.7% meanwhile postgraduates rated their overall education experience at 74.5%.

Partnerships and affiliations

UC partners with two local ACT schools:

UC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra University of Canberra Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra, formerly known as Lake Ginninderra College until 2011, is a public secondary college for students in Years 11 and 12. It is located in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia, ...

and University of Canberra High School Kaleen. The University of Canberra College provides pathways into university for domestic and international students. UC also shares a memorandum of understanding with the

Canberra Institute of Technology The Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) is a vocational education provider with five campuses located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. CIT is the largest Technical and Further Education ( TAFE) provider in the Australian Capital Te ...

which facilitates student educational pathways between the institutions and sharing of some specialist facilities.

Student life

Student demographics

Over 100,000 students have graduated from the university since 1970. After a rapid period of growth which saw a 78% increase in student enrolments between 2007 and 2014,UC intake hits record high
, ''The Canberra Times'', 15 March 2011 UC has sustained an annual enrolment of between 11,000 and 12,000 equivalent full-time students. The median

Australian Tertiary Admission Rank The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) for all domestic students, or the ATAR-based Combined Rank (CR) for all International Baccalaureate (IB) students,

of UC students was approximately 71 in 2012.Item 4.2
, ''Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency'', March 2012

Student media

An independent radio station, 87.8 UCFM is run by students from the main UC campus.

Sports and athletics

The University has several sporting partnerships including sponsoring the University of Canberra Capitals, a professional women's basketball team, the

ACT Brumbies The ACT Brumbies (known from 2005 to 2022 as simply the Brumbies) is an Australian professional rugby union team based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), The team competes in Super Rugby and named for the brumby, feral horses wh ...

, a professional rugby union team, and the University of Canberra Firebirds, an amateur American football club. On Saturday 17 June 2023, UC announced a one million dollar sponsorship of, and partnership with, Stromlo Forest Park that will expand its research and teaching activities across a range of sports, tourism, and business opportunities.

Student accommodation

There are three on-campus accommodation options for students with a total of 2,476 beds—Campus West, Cooper Lodge, and UC Lodge, all run by UniLodge Australia Pty Ltd. In addition, off-campus accommodations in the neighbouring suburb of

Belconnen Belconnen () is a Lands administrative divisions of Australia#Australian Capital Territory, district in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia. The district is subdivided into 27 divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks. As at the , the ...

include Weeden Lodge run by UniLodge and UniGardens run by UniGardens Pty Ltd.UniGardens Canberra University student accommodation
, official website These accommodation options are available to all students, including international students.

Notable people

Notable alumni

Academics and staff

Notable staff members include/have included: *

Janine Deakin Janine Deakin is a professor at the University of Canberra and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology. She is a geneticist with expertise in the areas of comparative genomics, epigenetics, genetic immunology and genome structure a ...

, geneticist * John Dryzek, political scientist * Patricia Easteal, professor of law *

Donald Horne Donald Richmond Horne (26 December 1921 – 8 September 2005) was an Australian journalist, writer, social critic, and academic who became one of Australia's best known public intellectuals, from the 1960s until his death. Horne was a proli ...

, journalist, writer, social critic, historian and public intellectual * Peter Leahy, former Chief of Army (Australia) * Michelle Lincoln, speech pathologist and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) *

Ingrid Moses Ingrid Moses (born 15 July 1941 in Aurich, Germany), an Australian academic and former university administrator, is an emeritus professor at the University of Canberra. After a long academic career in Australia, Moses served as the Chancellor o ...

emeritus professor ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

and a former chancellor *

Susan Ryan Susan Maree Ryan (10 October 194227 September 2020) was an Australian politician and public servant. She was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and held ministerial office in the Hawke government as Minister Assisting the Prime Minist ...

, one-time Labor government minister

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

* {{coord, 35, 14, 20, S, 149, 05, 15, E, region:AU-ACT_type:edu, display=title Universities in the Australian Capital Territory Universities and colleges established in 1967 Articles containing video clips 1967 establishments in Australia