List of Australian National University people

This is an incomplete list of Australian National University people, including alumni and staff.

Academia

 * Robert Addo-Fening, historian and academic
 * Des Ball, security specialist and ANU Professor
 * Andrew Barker, British classicist
 * Joanna Bourke, historian and academic
 * Rosi Braidotti, feminist
 * Bob Brissenden, poet, novelist, critic and academic
 * Harold Brookfield, academic
 * Verity Burgmann, academic
 * Dipesh Chakrabarty, historian and theorist
 * Yang Hi Choe-Wall, Koreanist
 * Peter Coutts, archaeologist
 * Glyn Davis, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne since 2005
 * John Deeble, architect of Medicare
 * Peter Drysdale, economist
 * Alan Dupont, academic
 * Stevan Eldred-Grigg, historian and novelist
 * Nicholas Evans, linguist
 * Alan Finkel, historian
 * John Frow, academic
 * Bill Gammage, historian
 * Ross Garnaut, economist
 * Geoffrey Garrett, political scientist, dean of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
 * Alan Gilbert, Vice Chancellor of the University of Melbourne 1996–2004; Vice Chancellor of the University of Manchester 2004–2010
 * Malcolm Gillies, Vice-Chancellor of London Metropolitan University
 * Nicholas Gruen, economist
 * William Hale, academic
 * Allan Hawke, diplomat and ANU Chancellor
 * Chris Heyde, probabilist
 * Brij Lal, historian
 * Marcia Langton, anthropologist (BA, ANU), geographer (PhD, Maquarie)
 * Donald Laycock, linguist
 * Michael McRobbie, President of Indiana University
 * Toby Miller, academic
 * David Nash, linguist
 * Harjot Oberoi, academic
 * Patrick O'Farrell, historian
 * Diane Pearson, Professor in Environmental Management
 * John Quiggin, economist
 * Margaret Reeson, historian
 * Ralph Regenvanu, anthropologist, artist and politician
 * Elizabeth Anne Reid, academic
 * Leslie Lloyd Robson, historian
 * Michael Roe, historian
 * Jessa Rogers, Aboriginal educator
 * Leonie Sandercock, academic
 * Carmel Schrire, anthropologist
 * Bernard Smith, art historian
 * Clem Tisdell, economist
 * Hrvoje Tkalčić, geophysicist
 * Donald Tuzin, social anthropologist
 * Tarisi Vunidilo, Fijian archaeologist and curator
 * Rolf Zinkernagel, Nobel Prize winning medical researcher
 * Pamela Gutman, Burmese art historian

Business

 * John Bryant, CEO of Kellogg's
 * Cheong Choong Kong, former CEO of Singapore Airlines and current Chairman of OCBC Bank
 * Swarnim Wagle, economist from Nepal, worked in World Bank and Asian Development Bank, former vice chairman of National Planning Commission of Nepal
 * Chris Corrigan, former CEO of Patrick Corporation and current Chairman of Qube Holdings

Prime Ministers of Australia

 * Bob Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia 1983–1991 (attended but did not graduate)
 * Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia 2007–2010, 2013

Other federal politicians

 * Phil Barresi, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1996–2007
 * Kim Beazley Sr, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1945–1977; Federal Minister 1972–1975
 * Bob Catley, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1990–1993
 * Barry Cohen, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1969–1990
 * Stephen Conroy, Member of the Australian Senate since 2006; Federal Minister 2007–2013
 * Craig Emerson, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 1998; Federal Minister 2007–2013
 * Chris Gallus, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1990–2004
 * Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Member of the Australian Senate since 2005
 * Peter Garrett, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2004; Federal Minister 2007–2013
 * Gary Gray, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2007; Federal Minister since 2010–2013
 * Alan Griffin, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 1993; Federal Minister 2007–2010
 * Dame Margaret Guilfoyle, Member of the Australian Senate 1971–1987
 * Harry Jenkins, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 1986; Speaker of the House 2008–2011
 * Michael Keenan, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 2004-2019
 * John Kerin, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1972–1993; Federal Minister 1983–1993
 * Catherine King, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2001; Federal Minister 2013
 * Joe Ludwig, Member of the Australian Senate since 1999; Federal Minister 2007–2013
 * Brett Mason, Member of the Australian Senate since 1999
 * Nick Minchin, Member of the Australian Senate 1993–2011; Federal Minister 1997–2007
 * Susan Ryan, Member of the Australian Senate 1975–1988
 * Zed Seselja, Member of the Australian Senate since 2013
 * Warwick Smith, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1984–1998; Federal Minister 1996–1998
 * Warren Snowdon, Member of the Australian House of Representatives since 1987; Federal Minister 2007–2013
 * Alex Somlyay, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1990–2013; Federal Minister 1997–1998
 * Peter White, Member of the Australian House of Representatives 1981–1990

State Premiers

 * Jeff Kennett, Premier of Victoria 1992–1999 (attended but did not graduate)
 * Barry O'Farrell, Premier of New South Wales 2011–2014

Territory Chief Ministers

 * Andrew Barr, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory since 2014
 * Katy Gallagher, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory 2011–2014
 * Gary Humphries, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory 2000–2001
 * Jon Stanhope, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory 2001–2011
 * Shane Stone, Chief Minister of the Northern Territory 1995–1999

Other State and territory politicians

 * Michael Pettersson, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2016
 * Alistair Coe, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2008
 * Roslyn Dundas, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly 2001–2004
 * John Hannaford, Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council 1984–2000; State Minister 1990–1995
 * Kate Jones, Member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland 2007–2012; State Minister 2009–2011
 * Andrew McIntosh, Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly since 1999
 * Michael Moore, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly 1989–2001
 * Shane Rattenbury, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2008; Speaker of the Assembly 2008–2012
 * Chris Steel, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2016
 * Zed Seselja, Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2004; Leader of the Opposition 2007–2013
 * Andrew Tink, Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council 1988–2007
 * Michael Yabsley, Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council 1984–1994; State Minister 1988–1992

Civil servants

 * Glenys Beauchamp, Secretary of the Department of Industry since 2013
 * Peter Boxall, Secretary of the Department of Finance 1997–2002
 * Stephen Brady, Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia since 2008
 * Blair Comley, Secretary of the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency 2011–2013
 * Peta Credlin, Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Tony Abbott 2013–2015
 * Gordon de Brouwer, Secretary of the Department of the Environment since 2013
 * Paul Dibb, Director of the Joint Intelligence Organisation 1986–1988 and Deputy Secretary for Strategy and Intelligence of the Department of Defence 1988–1991
 * Bernie Fraser, Secretary of the Australian Treasury 1984–1989
 * Paul Grimes, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture since 2013
 * Jane Halton, Secretary of the Department of Health (Australia) since 2001
 * Stuart Hamilton, Secretary of the Department of Environment 1993–1996
 * Allan Hawke, Secretary of the Department of Defence 1999–2002
 * Michael Keating, Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet 1991–1996
 * Renée Leon, Secretary of the Department of Employment since 2013
 * Bill McLennan, Head of the Australian Bureau of Statistics 1995–2000
 * Simon Overland, Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police 2009–2011
 * Martin Parkinson, Secretary of the Australian Treasury 2011–2014
 * Lisa Paul, Secretary of the Department of Education (Australia) since 2004
 * Finn Pratt, Secretary of the Department of Social Services since 2009
 * Don Russell, Secretary of the Department of Industry 2011–2013
 * Patricia Scott, Secretary of the Department of Communications 2007–2009
 * Rod Sims, Chairman of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission
 * Dennis Trewin, Head of the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000–2007
 * Nick Warner, Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service

Diplomats

 * Richard Butler, Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations 1992–1996
 * Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Bangladeshi Ambassador to the United Nations 2001–2007; Foreign Minister (2007–2009); Principal Research Fellow, Institute of South Asian Studies [ISAS], National University of Singapore
 * Martin Indyk, United States Ambassador to Israel 1995–1997 and 2000–2001
 * Sione Ngongo Kioa, Tongan Ambassador to 10 countries
 * Cristelle Pratt, Assistant Secretary-General for the Environment and Climate Action, Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States
 * Feleti Teo, Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat 2008
 * Peter Woolcott, former Australian Ambassador to Italy
 * Rathakit Manathat, former Thai Ambassador to China

United Nations officials

 * Robert Piper, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, with the rank of United Nations Assistant Secretary General; founding member of the Doug Anthony Allstars

Foreign officials

 * Chirayu Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya, Director of the Crown Property Bureau of Thailand (1987–2018) and the Chief Economic Advisor in the Privy Council of H.M. The King of Thailand (2018–present)
 * Chatib Basri, Finance Minister in the Indonesian Government 2013–2014
 * Don Brash, Leader of the Opposition in New Zealand 2003–2006, Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand 1988–2002
 * Patricia Hewitt, Member of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom 1997–2010; British Minister 2001–2007
 * Carlos Jarque, Mexican Government Minister 1995–2000
 * Prince Katsura, Member of the Imperial House of Japan
 * Gordon Darcy Lilo, Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands since 2011
 * Marty Natalegawa, Foreign Minister of Indonesia 2009–2014
 * Mari Pangestu, Minister in the Indonesian Government since 2004
 * Kuini Speed, Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji 1999–2000
 * Teuea Toatu, the Vice-President and Minister for Finance & Economic Development of Kiribati since 2019 and 2016, respectively.
 * Damdin Tsogtbaatar, Foreign Minister of Mongolia since 2017
 * Jian Yang, Member of the House of Representatives of New Zealand since 2011

Justices of the High Court of Australia

 * Stephen Gageler, Chief Justice of Australia since 2023; Justice of the High Court of Australia since 2012; Solicitor-General of Australia 2008–2012

Judges of the Federal Court of Australia

 * Tony Whitlam, Judge of the Federal Court of Australia 1993–2005

Judges of the Supreme Courts of Australian states and territories

 * Peter Buchanan, Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria since 1997
 * Terence Higgins, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory since 2003
 * Catherine Holmes, Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland since 2000
 * Geoffrey Nettle, Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria since 2002
 * Janine Pritchard, Judge of the Supreme Court of Western Australia since 2010

President of the Chamber of the Supreme Administrative Court of Thailand

 * Rathakit Manathat, President of the Chamber of the Supreme Administrative Court of Thailand since 2022

Federal Magistrates of Australia

 * John Pascoe, Chief Federal Magistrate of Australia since 2004

Legal practitioners

 * Tupou Draunidalo, Fijian Lawyer
 * Jennifer Robinson, human rights and WikiLeaks lawyer; Rhodes Scholar 2006

Law professors

 * George Williams, professor at the UNSW Faculty of Law; constitutional law expert

Arts

 * David Bradbury, filmmaker
 * Michael Brand, art scholar
 * Ronny Chieng, comedian
 * Jim Cotter, composer
 * Jessica Cottis, conductor
 * Ian Cresswell, composer
 * Will Firth, translator
 * Hannah Gadsby, comedian
 * Alister Grierson, director and scriptwriter
 * Geoffrey Lancaster, classical pianist and conductor
 * Henry Nixon, actor
 * Nimal Perera, archaeologist, anthropologist and former deputy director (excavation) in Department of Archaeology, Sri Lanka
 * Tim Rogers, musician
 * Richard Roxburgh, actor
 * Nagita Slavina, Indonesian actress
 * Adam Spreadbury-Maher, theatre director and producer
 * Katia Tiutiunnik, composer
 * Sally Whitwell, ARIA Award-winning pianist

Journalism and media

 * Bettina Arndt, journalist
 * Cynthia Banham, journalist and academic
 * Alice T. Days, documentary filmmaker
 * Toby Hendy, science communicator and YouTuber
 * Paul McDermott, comedian and television host
 * Stephen Rice, journalist
 * Peter Thompson, journalist

Literature, writing and poetry

 * Don Aitkin, writer
 * Diane Bell, anthropologist, author
 * Michael Byrne, poet
 * Kevin Hart, poet and literary critic
 * Matussin Omar, writer
 * Debra Oswald, scriptwriter
 * Guy Pearse, author
 * Gayla Reid, writer
 * Pierre Ryckmans, writer, translator, sinologist
 * Brendan Shanahan, author
 * David Vernon, writer and sceptic
 * Gerard Windsor, author and literary critic
 * Vanessa Woods, author
 * Shahnon Ahmad, prose writer, Malaysian National Laureate

Military

 * Vice Admiral Ray Griggs, Vice Chief of the Defence Force

Astronomy

 * Jessie Christiansen, exoplanetologist
 * Don VandenBerg, astronomer

Biology

 * Nerilie Abram, climate scientist
 * Leanne Armand, marine scientist
 * Ian Brooker, botanist
 * Kirsten Parris, urban ecologist
 * Susanne von Caemmerer, plant physiologist

Chemistry

 * John Shine, biochemist
 * Roland Stocker, biochemist
 * G. S. R. Subba Rao, bio-organic chemist

Mathematics

 * John Coates, mathematician
 * Michael Cowling, mathematician
 * Peter Hall, statistician
 * Adrian Pagan, econometrician
 * Charles E. M. Pearce, mathematician

Medicine

 * Colin Butler, physician and humanitarian
 * Anne Castles, cognitive scientist of reading and language
 * Sir William Liley, perinatal physiologist
 * Adrian Liston, immunologist
 * Rodolfo Llinás, neuroscientist
 * Robert Webster, virologist

Physics

 * Rodney Jory, physicist
 * Ross H. McKenzie, physicist
 * Keith Nugent, physicist

Sport

 * William Cheung, kung fu practitioner
 * David Gallop, CEO of the Football Federation Australia
 * Lincoln Hall, mountain climber
 * Tal Karp (born 1981), female Australian football (soccer) player
 * Stephen Larkham, rugby player, World Cup winner
 * Tim Macartney-Snape, mountaineer

Other

 * Brian George Farran, bishop
 * Bettina Gorton, wife of John Gorton, Prime Minister of Australia (1968–71)
 * James Popple, CEO of the Law Council of Australia
 * Naomi Rono, World Bank advisor
 * Teretia Tokam, women's rights activist
 * Andrew Tridgell, computer programmer
 * Barbara Vernon, birth activist
 * Tom Worthington, computer programmer

Faculty
Notable past and current faculty members include:


 * Anthony Irvine Adams, public health physician
 * Patrick Atiyah, English barrister and legal writer
 * Arthur Llewellyn Basham, South Asian historian
 * Michael Barnsley, mathematician and entrepreneur
 * Bronwyn Parry, Dean of the College of Arts and Social Sciences
 * Larissa Behrendt, academic; Professor of Indigenous Research
 * Coral Bell, Senior Research Fellow in International Relations
 * David Bensusan-Butt, economist
 * Arthur Birch, organic chemist
 * Boediono, Indonesian Vice President
 * Richard P. Brent, mathematical scientist
 * Roderic Broadhurst, criminal justice practitioner, academic, and author
 * Miroslav Bukovsky, composer
 * Sydney James Butlin, economist, historian
 * Chilla Bulbeck, women's studies
 * Hedley Bull, Professor of International Relations
 * Harvey Raymond Butcher, astronomer
 * John Caldwell, demographer
 * Yang Hi Choe-Wall, Koreanist
 * Manning Clark, historian
 * John Coates, mathematician
 * John Cockcroft, Nobel Prize- winning nuclear physicist, former chancellor
 * H. C. Coombs, economist and public servant
 * David P. Craig, research chemist
 * Gavan Daws, historian and writer
 * Rafe de Crespigny, sinologist
 * Robert Dessaix, novelist and essayist
 * Paul Dibb, Professor of Strategic Studies and Head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre
 * Peter C. Doherty, Nobel Prize-winning immunologist
 * Thomas K. Donaldson, mathematician
 * Robert M. Douglas, medical researcher
 * Sir John Eccles, Nobel Prize-winning neurophysiologist
 * Fred Emery, social scientist
 * Kep Enderby, lawyer and politician
 * Denis Evans, physicist and chemist
 * Frank Fenner, scientist
 * C. P. Fitzgerald, historian
 * Michael Flood, sociologist
 * Howard Florey, Nobel Prize-winning medical researcher, former chancellor
 * Derek Freeman, anthropologist
 * Robert Gilbert, polymer chemist
 * Peter Godfrey-Smith, philosopher and author of the book Other Minds
 * Colin Groves, anthropologist
 * Fred Gruen, economist
 * Wang Gungwu, specialist in studying the Chinese diaspora
 * Sir (William) Keith Hancock, historian
 * Peter Firman Harrison, architect and town planner
 * Peter Dunstan Hastings, journalist and editor
 * Anthony F. Hill, in synthetic, organometallic & coordination chemistry
 * A. D. Hope, poet and essayist
 * Leonard Huxley, physicist
 * Ken Inglis, historian
 * Edward A. Irving, geologist
 * Zvonimir Janko, mathematician
 * Frank Lancaster Jones, sociologist
 * Rhys Jones, archaeologist
 * James Jupp, political scientist
 * Peter Karmel, economist
 * Roger Keesing, anthropologist
 * Ben Kerkvliet, political scientist
 * Brij Lal, historian, novelist and writer of non-fiction
 * Geoffrey Lancaster, musicologist and pianist
 * Andrew Leigh, economist and federal politician
 * Ian McAllister, Irish-Australian public opinion political scientist
 * Gavan McCormack, Orientalist
 * Helen McGregor, geologist and climate change researcher, a Fellow with the Research School of Earth Sciences
 * Brendan McKay, computer scientist
 * Warwick McKibbin, economist
 * Lew Mander, organic chemist
 * Henry Evans Maude, anthropologist
 * Achdiat Karta Mihardja, novelist and writer
 * T. B. Millar, historian and political scientists
 * John Minford, sinologist and literary translator
 * Pat Moran, statistician
 * Fred Nadel, anthropologist
 * Bernhard Neumann, mathematician
 * Hanna Neumann, mathematician, first female professor of mathematics in Australia
 * Cliff Ollier, geologist
 * Sir Mark Oliphant, physicist and Governor of South Australia
 * Sarah Pryke, ecologist
 * Lindsay Pryor, botanist
 * Leo Radom, research chemist
 * Anthony Reid, historian of Southeast Asia
 * James Mahmud Rice, sociologist
 * Ted Ringwood, geologist
 * Malcolm Ross, linguist
 * Amin Saikal, political scientist
 * Brian P. Schmidt, Nobel Prize winning physicist
 * Peter Self, academic
 * Thomas Smith, economist
 * Allan Snyder, optical physicist, visual scientist
 * Oskar Spate, geographer
 * Trevor Swan, economist
 * Neil Trudinger, mathematician
 * Royall Tyler, Japan specialist
 * Jonathan Unger, contemporary China specialist
 * Michael Vernon, scientist and consumer activist
 * Carola Garcia de Vinuesa, Head of the Department of Pathogens and Immunity at the College of Medicine
 * Ling Wang (Wang Ling), historian of Chinese science
 * Hugh White, Professor of Strategic Studies and Head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre
 * Jack Waterford, journalist
 * Anna Wierzbicka, linguist

Philanthropy

 * Phyllis Duguid, teacher, Aboriginal and women's rights advocate.

Chancellors

 * 1 Mills served as Chair of the Interim Council while the University was initially beginning operations. While Bruce was officially the first Chancellor, Mills had been effectively fulfilling the same function.