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Home » Campaigns & Public Policy » Policy Watch » Workforce & Professional » Academic and Intellectual Freedom

Academic and Intellectual Freedom

Intellectual and academic freedom of inquiry is central to the mission of all Australian universities and is internationally acknowledged as an essential and defining characteristic of university education.

Universities have an important role in ensuring that freedom of inquiry and freedom of speech are central to the mission of each institution. It underpins the creation and dissemination of new knowledge in open and transparent ways and assures that such activities are in the public interest.

This freedom is defined in terms of the rights of academics to undertake certain activities, connected to their roles as teaching and research staff, without undue hindrance or fear of reprisal. It also  includes the right to pursue topics and areas of research without interference or pressure by institutions and/or government.

NTEU is a long-standing advocate for intellectual freedom of inquiry in Australia. NTEU believes that institutional autonomy and intellectual freedom must be protected in legislation.

  1. University may reconsider the attack on academic freedom

    Posted 16 April 2013 by Rebecca Muratore (University of Melbourne)

    Recently the VC’s negotiating team put forward a proposal that would allow the University to make academics redundant if their research was not in line with the strategic direction of the ...

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  2. Members meeting endorses industrial action ballot

    Posted 1 April 2013 by Rebecca Muratore (University of Melbourne)

    By Alex McAulay

    The NTEU Branch held meetings accross campuses last week, beginning with a meeting at the Parkville campus on Tuesday 26 March, one of the largest members' meetings held by the ...

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  3. NTEU Marks Human Rights Day today - 10th December 2012

    Posted 10 December 2012 by Terri Macdonald (NTEU National Office)

    NTEU joins other trade unions and organisations around the world as we mark the International Day for Human Rights, on December 10th. 

    As a member organisation of Education International (EI), ...

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  4. Chief Scientist’s Committee to oversee new Defence regime for two years

    Posted 20 November 2012 by Jeannie Rea (NTEU National Office)

    The new Defence Trade Controls Act will have important implications for the university sector, including an increased burden of risk and potential erosion of academic freedom.

    The Act not only ...

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  5. Be alert and alarmed – Liberals threaten to undermine Academic Freedom

    Posted 8 November 2012 by Paul Kniest (NTEU National Office)

    In Federal Parliament question time last Thursday (1st November) the opposition spokesperson for finance, Andrew Robb (Liberal Member for Goldstein), asked:

    …… does the Treasurer think ...

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