Australia's first female Prime Minister receives Deakin University honour

The former PM, the Hon. Julia Gillard, will join a distinguished list of Deakin Honorary Degree recipients including Emeritus Professor Gillian Triggs, Lieutenant General David Morrison AO (Retd), and the Hon. Dame Quentin Bryce AC CVO when she receives the honour.

While Ms Gillard’s resume is already among the most impressive of all Australians, she will be joined by those just starting out in their careers, with 749 students set to graduate over two days at Deakin.

Deakin University Vice-Chancellor Professor Jane den Hollander said that as Australia’s first female Prime Minister, Ms Gillard had provided all Australians with a powerful and positive role model.

“Deakin University is delighted to confer the degree of Honorary Doctor of the University on Ms Gillard, a former Education Minister who became a trailblazer of our time and who has continued to be a champion of education and its value to individuals, communities, and Australia’s future,” Professor den Hollander said.

“From our very beginnings, Deakin has held strong a commitment to equity and to providing the life-changing opportunity of a university education for students from diverse backgrounds, including students who are the first in their family to go to university - students like Ms Gillard.

“Ms Gillard has a notable list of achievements by any standards and from any political perspective. She began her time as a member of the Australian Government as our country’s Education Minister, and it was under her leadership as Prime Minister that the demand driven system was introduced, removing caps from the number of Commonwealth supported university places offered.

“During her term as Prime Minister, Ms Gillard also oversaw the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

“Ms Gillard has demonstrated not only that university study can be a pathway to realising your dreams and ambition, but also that as more and more women knock on the glass ceiling it’s becoming more fragile each day.

“Her inspiring story and dedication to education continues today with her appointment as chair of the Global Partnership for Education, a leading organisation dedicated to expanding access and quality education worldwide.”