Address: Grattan Street, 3010 Parkville, Victoria, Australia
Medicine, Engineering, Science, Arts, Law, Business, Music
The University of Melbourne was founded on 22 January 1853 and is the second-oldest university in Australia, after the University of Sydney. Its first chancellor was Redmond Barry. The main campus is in Parkville, close to the centre of Melbourne, and the university also has campuses at Southbank, Burnley, Werribee, Creswick, Dookie and Shepparton. It belongs to the Group of Eight, the association of Australia’s leading research universities.
The university is among the largest in the country. In 2025 it counted about 58,100 equivalent full-time students, of whom around 44 percent were international, and about 11,100 staff, among them 5,700 academics. In 2008 it introduced the Melbourne Model, a system in which students first take a broad undergraduate degree and then move to professional graduate degrees in fields such as law, medicine and teaching.
Teaching and research are organised in faculties and schools that include Arts, Science, Engineering and Information Technology, Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Business and Economics, Law, Education, Architecture, Building and Planning, Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and the Victorian College of the Arts. Research income exceeded AU$900 million in 2025. The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, run jointly with the Royal Melbourne Hospital, is a leading centre for infectious disease research.
The Baillieu Library is the best-known of the university’s libraries, and the Grainger Museum, the Ian Potter Museum of Art and the Harry Brookes Allen Museum of Anatomy and Pathology hold public collections. Julia Bella Guerin graduated in 1883 and was the first woman to graduate from an Australian university. Peter Doherty, a Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine, and Elizabeth Blackburn, a Nobel laureate in the same field, studied here.
Fees differ for Australian and international students. Check the current tariff. Teaching is in English. Trams run along Swanston Street to the Parkville campus.
The university also runs an extensive programme of graduate research degrees, and its Parkville precinct brings together hospitals, research institutes and the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct within walking distance of the main campus.
Domains taught:
Agriculture, AI and Machine Learning, Chemistry, Data Analytics, Engineering, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Microbiology and Genetics, Physics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Member of the Group of Eight, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, the Royal Melbourne Hospital and many hospitals and research institutes in the Parkville precinct.
Research:
Biomedical science, infectious disease, engineering, climate and environment, social sciences and the arts, with more than AU$900 million of research income.
Famous Alumnis:
Peter Doherty, Elizabeth Blackburn, Quentin Bryce
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
11100
Current students***:
58100
Foreign students***:
44%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Leading research university in Australia, Melbourne Model of broad undergraduate study, central Parkville precinct with hospitals and institutes, large international community.
Cons
Large and sometimes impersonal, high cost of living in Melbourne, high fees for international students.
Best For
Students seeking a broad research university in a major Australian city, with strong medicine, science and arts.
Official Linkedin
Official Facebook
Official X / Twitter
Linkedin Alumni Page
Most Similar Schools Locally
On content, University of Sydney and this institution are close, as both teach agriculture, chemistry and physics; it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral, graduate certificate, graduate diploma and mba.
The comparison with University of Queensland is straightforward on subjects, since both focus on agriculture, chemistry and physics, and it covers marine science and nanotechnologies as well, and has almost the same size, at about 57,200 students.
Both schools build their programmes around chemistry, physics and mathematics, and Monash University is the one to compare first within the country, since it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral, graduate certificate, graduate diploma and mba, and covers industrial design and materials as well.
Anyone who wants a second school in the same country with a similar spread of agriculture, chemistry and physics can consider University of Adelaide, and it does not run the graduate diploma programmes found here and covers food science as well.
On content, Deakin University and this university are close, as both teach chemistry, physics and mathematics; it covers ecology and sustainability and software engineering as well, and has almost the same size, at about 58,853 students.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
University of Auckland in New Zealand pursues a similar profile in chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it covers statistics and software engineering as well, and is slightly smaller, at about 39,183 students against roughly 58,100 here.
A foreign alternative with a similar emphasis on chemistry, physics and mathematics is University of Hong Kong in Hong Kong, and it is also a public institution and does not run the graduate certificate and graduate diploma programmes found here.
National Taiwan University brings a Taiwan setting to the same core fields, agriculture, chemistry and physics, and it covers finance and electrical and electronics as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 34,483 students against roughly 58,100 here.
For agriculture, chemistry and physics outside the home country, University of Lisbon in Portugal is a natural reference; it does not run the graduate certificate and graduate diploma programmes found here and covers finance and civil engineering as well.
The closest overseas parallel on agriculture, chemistry and physics is Seoul National University, located in South Korea; it covers electrical and electronics and materials as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 28,300 students against roughly 58,100 here.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is the University of Melbourne?
In Parkville, close to the centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
When was it founded?
On 22 January 1853, as the second-oldest university in Australia.
Who was the first chancellor?
Redmond Barry.
How large is it?
About 58,100 equivalent full-time students in 2025, around 44 percent of them international, and about 11,100 staff.
What is the Group of Eight?
The association of Australia's leading research universities, to which Melbourne belongs.
What is the Melbourne Model?
A system introduced in 2008 in which students take a broad undergraduate degree before professional graduate degrees.
What is the Peter Doherty Institute?
A leading centre for infectious disease research, run jointly with the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
Which Nobel laureates studied there?
Peter Doherty and Elizabeth Blackburn, both in Physiology or Medicine.
Who was the first woman to graduate from an Australian university?
Julia Bella Guerin, who graduated from Melbourne in 1883.
What does it cost?
Fees differ for Australian and international students. Check the current tariff.
Biology, Engineering, Innovation, Research and Development, Sustainable Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
Innovation.world is not affiliated with this school/university. We recommend to contact them directly on their website for any special request.
To complete or correct any information here or share your opinion, please comment below or > send us a direct message <.
