Statement on 2024 Annual Report

Statement from ANU Vice-Chancellor and president Distinguished Professor Genevieve Bell

The Australian National University welcomes today’s tabling in the federal Parliament of our 2024 Annual Report. 
 
Since our founding in 1946, ANU has tackled the biggest challenges, by drawing together the world’s best experts, taking an interdisciplinary focus, and ensuring we teach the next generation of students.  

Our University has been at the forefront of delivering transformational outcomes and benefits for Australia and across the world, including developing the higher education income contingent loan model, better known as HECS, which has supported millions of students pursue tertiary study regardless of their financial means. We provide a research-intensive and research-led training ground for the next generation of students, scholars and the broader community. We also generate world-leading research that advances our understanding of the world around us, contributes to our vibrant society and underpins public policy.  

Today, ANU is ranked 1st in 13 key academic disciplines in Australia, has more subjects in the World Top 20 than any other Australian university, and has produced six Nobel Laureates among our staff and alumni; the highest of any Australian institution. As the national University, it is a privilege and responsibility to be a powerhouse for our nation and our region.  

As with all universities, we are operating in an evolving higher education landscape. These challenges are an opportunity to mature our approach to education and research, and hold conversations about the role of our national university in the second quarter of the 21st century. 

We submitted our 2024 report to the Minister for Education on 15 April 2025, as per reporting requirements. As indicated in previous annual reports, it demonstrates that ANU has been operating with a structural and operating deficit since the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2024, that operating deficit was $140 million, and the University spent around $2.7 million per week more than we earned. We have taken active steps to mature our financial controls and ensure we can continue to deliver on our national mission within our financial means. This remains the focus and priority for our entire community as we work through 2025. 

As a Corporate Commonwealth entity, the Vice-Chancellor’s salary is set by the ANU Council following benchmarking undertaken by the Remuneration Committee and informed by discussions with the President of the Remuneration Tribunal . We also follow the federal requirements for reporting, including additional information on salaries which capture the executive, world-leading experts and expert professional staff.  
 
As the report makes clear, there is much to be positive about. 

• In 2024, 122 academic staff were promoted, recognising their distinguished service to the university and Australia through education and research. 
  
• We commenced a program across our community to instil our values into our physical landscape, naming buildings for notable female alumni and staff.  
  
• Across our campus, academic staff received around $350 million in external grants and funding, ensuring we can support our national mission to provide transformative research and teaching. 
  
• Our Advancement team have worked to bring in $32 million in philanthropic support, demonstrating that donors continue to value and invest in research, education and scholarship pathways for Australians. 
  
• A notable study was conducted by Professor Emily Banks (whose image features on the cover of this year’s report), whose ground-breaking work on e-cigarettes is shaping public policy and supporting our health understanding of vaping, especially in young people.  

While there is uncertainty ahead for the higher education sector, we remain committed and focused on meeting our national obligations to ensure we can function at the scale and pace required. We will continue to lean into these tough conversations, reflecting on where we have been and where we collectively want to be, building the infrastructure we need for national prosperity and knowledge.