University of Notre Dame Australia

In Victoria, clinical schools are located in Melbourne, where it also offers some postgraduate programs, and Ballarat.

Broome

alt=This is a photograph of the entrance to the Broome campus in the Kimberley region north in Western Australia.|thumb|The entrance to the [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome campus in the Kimberley]]

The Broome campus is the only campus of Notre Dame to be located outside of a state capital. It was opened in 1994 in the Kimberley region north in Western Australia. It received funding from and was established by the Sisters of St John of God on the former site of a Catholic boarding school. The buildings are located near the epicentre of the town and was restored and renovated for use. Sister Sonia Wagner, a nun who served as the deputy vice chancellor of the campus, described its architecture as "traditional Broome" in reference to use of corrugated iron, timber walls and latticed verandahs in the regional landscape. some limited student accommodation and grew to offer vocational and baccalaureate courses in nursing, teaching and commerce.

Affiliated institutions

Notre Dame also offers studies at affiliated institutions outside of its three campuses. In spite of their coordinated academic programs and courses, they are still separate institutions that are operated independently.

alt=This is a photograph of the Catholic Institute of Sydney, which is the sole ecclesiastical institute in Australia.|thumb|The [[Catholic Institute of Sydney is the sole ecclesiastical faculty in Australia]]

Catholic Institute of Sydney

The Catholic Institute of Sydney (CIS) is the sole ecclesiastical faculty of the Catholic Church in Australia. It is located in Strathfield in Sydney's Inner West and offers baccalaureate, postgraduate and doctoral studies in ministry and theology. Its courses are provided in coordination with Notre Dame, which is its accrediting and awarding body for civil awards recognised in Australia. Although erected under canon law, Students at both institutions are able to switch between campuses throughout their enrolment.

alt=This is a photograph of the St Columba Centre at the Catholic Theological College (Te Kupenga) in New Zealand.|left|thumb|St Columba Centre at the [[Te Kupenga – Catholic Theological College|Catholic Theological College () in New Zealand]]

Te Kupenga – Catholic Theological College

Located in Auckland, the Catholic Theological College () is the sole Roman Catholic theological college in New Zealand. Its courses are also provided in co-ordination with Notre Dame and qualifications issued are recognised under the Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Agreement. It offers religious education programs including ministry and theology.

Campion College

Campion College is a Roman Catholic liberal arts college. It provides studies in the liberal arts and religious education, including some pathways into Notre Dame with advanced standing. the University Statutes, and the Canonical Statutes. The two main bodies in Notre Dame's governance structure are the Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors, both of which were established by the Act and with powers defined by the statutes. and the founding chancellor was former footballer, coach and legal professional Terry O'Connor. The vice-chancellor is the principal academic and administrative officer and is appointed by the Board of Directors on the nomination of the Trustees. The vice-chancellor is required to identify as a Catholic. who was appointed in succession to Christopher Ellison and took office in January 2026. The chancellery is located in Foley Hall, designated ND1 as Notre Dame's first building, There is also a vice chancellery in Sydney close to the Blackfriars site on City Road. to consolidate the 16 academic schools. The establishment of faculties and academic schools is formally the responsibility of Board of Directors, with advice from the Board of Governors and the Academic Council. The university completed 2024 with revenues of and expenses of , for an excess in revenue of . with most of its revenue dedicated to the management and maintenance of the university. It was eventually granted Table A status in 2021 under the Higher Education Support Act 2003, effectively treating it as a public university and allowing it to access additional funding.

Insignia

alt=This is a photograph of the University of Notre Dame Australia crest with its badge affixed.|thumb|175x175px|The Notre Dame crest with the badge affixed

Notre Dame's crest is based on design notes taken by Father John Neill, a Trustee of the university from 1990 to 2009. The crest displays an open Bible at its core with the opening verse from the Gospel of John inscribed in Latin that reads In principio erat Verbum, translated "In the beginning was the Word".

The badge is occasionally used separately but the full crest is used in official documents, including testamurs. The Broome campus also has its own branding which uses "Pindan Orange", navy blue and integrates Aboriginal art.

Academic profile

thumb|Spire of [[St Benedict's Catholic Church, Chippendale|St Benedict's Catholic Church on the Blackfriars site|alt=This is a photograph of the spire of St Benedict's Catholic Church on the Blackfriars site.]]

Notre Dame is a publicly funded university International Council of Universities of Saint Thomas Aquinas and the International Federation of Catholic Universities. It functions on a semester system, operating year-round on academic semesters, summer and winter schools.

In the 2024 academic year, it employed 1,028 staff, 559 of whom were academic staff and the remaining 469 non-academic staff. The recognised trade union at Notre Dame is the National Tertiary Education Union which has a branch at its Fremantle campus and a branch committee in Sydney. It is responsible for negotiating the Enterprise Agreement with the university. The university also has international staff exchange agreements with universities outside Australia, including NDUS and its Global Gateways. Some programs can be combined into "double degrees" or include additional majors. These include:

Institute for Ethics and Society

The Institute for Ethics and Society is a research institute in ethics, philosophy and social sciences based at the Sydney campus on Broadway. Its key research themes are: Moral Philosophy and Ethics Education; Bioethics and Healthcare Ethics; and Religion, Culture and Society. including the Scholarship at the Cathedral lectures at St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney and hosts visiting scholars from overseas universities.

In 2024, Notre Dame launched the Centre for the History of Philosophy in partnership with NDUS' History of Philosophy Forum. Its research areas broadly involve the history of philosophy, with a stated aim of "exploring the deepest and oldest questions".

alt=This is a photograph of the Frank Cadd Building, built in 1890, which is attached to a School of Health Sciences building|thumb|[[Frank Cadd Building, built in 1890, attached to a School of Health Sciences building]]

Institute for Health Research

The Institute for Health Research is Notre Dame's research institute in health and biomedical science. Its stated aim is to "[improve] the health and quality of life of vulnerable persons". motor disorders, musculoskeletal injuries, psychiatry, ageing and palliative care among others. The university is also one of the partners of the Raine Study, one of the largest cohorts in the world examining pregnancy, childhood, adolescence and early adulthood. It also runs the National Echo Database Australia, the largest database of echocardiograms to date.

Nulungu Research Institute

The Nulungu Research Institute is a research institute with the stated aim to conduct "research which is transformative, decolonising and of value to Aboriginal people" that "provides an Indigenous research and academic focus for the entire University". Its key research areas are Aboriginal Wellbeing; Culture Country and Language; Transformational Education; Policy, Practice and Evaluation; and Sustainable Lifeways and Social Justice. Indigenous Australian culture, history, knowledge, perspectives and practices are central to the institute and its research.

Library system

Notre Dame has five libraries that are spread across four cities. It also has reciprocal borrowing arrangements with other university libraries in Australia and New Zealand and participates in the AARNet Eduroam Wi-Fi roaming service.

In Western Australia, libraries include the Michael JM Wright Library in Fremantle and the Broome Campus Library in Broome.

Michael JM Wright Library

alt=This is a photograph of the former College of Saint Teresa in Minnesota, the namesake of the library.|thumb|The [[College of Saint Teresa in Minnesota, the former namesake of the library]]

The Michael JM Wright Library in Fremantle was converted from a heritage-listed warehouse constructed in 1900 on land owned by John Bateman for Bateman Hardware. Prior to 2025, it was known as St Teresa's Library after the former St Teresa's College in Minnesota (United States) from where over 170,000 printed works were purchased for the library. in between Henry and Mouat Street. It was initially located in the main academic building but moved to the Canavan Hall,

Benedict XVI Medical Library

alt=This is a photograph of the Darlinghurst Hall, constructed in 1880, which houses the Benedict XVI Medical Library.|thumb|Darlinghurst Hall, constructed in 1880, housing the Benedict XVI Medical Library

The Benedict XVI Medical Library, on the Darlinghurst site, is one of two libraries on the Sydney campus. Notre Dame assumed control of the site sometime between 2004 and 2005, The secondary boarding school merged with other entities and renamed to St Mary's College the following year, Due to space limitations, the library moved into a new purpose-built building in 2005. It also hosts a collection of Aboriginal artwork, sculptures and other artefacts, some of which are on display.

Former libraries

In addition to the Peter Prendiville Study Centre on the Fremantle campus, Notre Dame has two other study centres which were formerly libraries.

Craven Law Library

The Craven Law Library was the law library on the Fremantle campus. Established in 1997, the library held a print collection of legal works from Australian and overseas sources. The shipping company, which was dominant in the early colony, had previously used the building as a storage site since the 1890s. The building underwent renovations in 2024 to include a new moot court, tutorial rooms and study spaces. It was subsequently renamed to the Craven Law Centre a converted heritage listed building designed by architect Frederick Burwell. It housed books and other resources in the fields of medicine, nursing and allied health. Constructed in 1899, the building originally served as the principal premises in Western Australia for D. & J. Fowler Ltd., a wholesale grocery company.

The School of Medicine building was opened in 2005 after Notre Dame took over its lease from the City of Fremantle. Its internal library was named after the Galvin family, an early donor to the school's establishment, but was later also renamed to the Galvin Study Centre. It has a wide entrance which at was originally designed to accommodate two loaded horse-drawn wagons. and also has numerous additional specialised accreditations for its programs. Its teacher education programs are accredited by the NSW Education Standards Authority and the Teacher Registration Board of Western Australia. Its law programs are accredited by the relevant lawyer registration boards