For 80 years, our talented community has forged ideas, informed decisions, and influenced Australia and the region. Generations of staff and students have shaped The Australian National University (ANU) into a world-leading research and teaching centre.
Within this time, there have been many events in our College’s layered history that led to where we are today.
The first courses in Computer Science were taught in 1971 and the 1980s saw engineering entities appearing at ANU, before both were brought together in 2004. In 2022, we welcomed Cybernetics into the fold. Then, in 2025, the ANU College of Systems and Society (as it’s known today) was established with the addition of science communication, environment and mathematics – bringing together many of the key disciplines necessary to help us design, build, regulate and secure the future.
Our lived experience is increasingly one of large-scale systems of people, whose actions and interactions are influenced by our digital, physical and biological environment. Our College brings together expertise in social, technical, computational, ecological and scientific systems. The work we do is to strengthen our national mission and meet our unique responsibilities as Australia’s national university.
Join us in celebrating 80 years of the ANU.
Our ANU Community Day activities
On Saturday 15 August from 10am–4pm, visit us at ANU Community Day.
Explore new methods in bushfire detection, escape from Wonderland, listen to nature’s hidden conversations, meet your new robot friend Tappy, dive into the pages of comic book scientists, marvel at the mathematics in art, and more!
Bring your family, invite your friends and we will see you there.
