What we found
RMIT University tops the index with 80.0, ahead of The University of Melbourne (79.0) and Victoria University (77.9). The leaders publish nearly everything we looked for: a queer space, a gender affirmation policy that covers students, chosen names and pronouns in their systems, and an ally network. Four of the top ten also hold Platinum, the highest tier in the national LGBTQ+ workplace benchmark.
The biggest gap is people. Only six of the 41 universities employ someone whose job is specifically LGBTIQA+ support or inclusion, so most of the day-to-day work falls to student unions and volunteers. 17 universities publish no gender affirmation policy or guide for students, and 13 don’t say where their all-gender toilets are.
Where you study matters as much as what your university offers. Victoria and the ACT score 15 of 15 on LGBTIQA+ law; New South Wales scores 6.75 and Western Australia 3. Six of the top ten universities are in Victoria. Western Australia’s best performer, Edith Cowan University, ranks 16 of 41 with 33 of 40 for campus policy, held back by state law. In New South Wales, any private education provider, religious or not, can still lawfully refuse or expel a student for being gay or trans.
We checked the four religious universities, Australian Catholic University, Notre Dame, Avondale and the University of Divinity, against their own policies, codes and inquiry submissions. None has a published document that relies on a religious exemption against LGBTIQA+ students, so none loses points. They score low for a simpler reason: they publish little of the support the others do. Avondale asks students to “uphold the lifestyle expectations of the church”, and federal law leaves religious institutions free to discriminate if they choose to.
It matters. In the largest national survey of young LGBTQA+ people, Writing Themselves In 4, 29.2% of those at university said they had felt unsafe or uncomfortable there in the past year because of their sexuality or gender identity, and one in six (17.2%) had missed university because of it. Only half (51.1%) of trans and gender diverse students felt they could safely use the bathroom that matched their gender.
The 10 most LGBTIQA+ friendly universities
Ranked by total score. Click any university in the full table to see where every point comes from, with links to the university’s own pages.
- RMIT UniversityMelbourne, VICqueer space · gender affirmation policy · all-gender toilet map · AWEI Platinum 202680.0
- The University of MelbourneMelbourne, VICqueer space · LGBTIQA+ staff role · gender affirmation policy79.0
- Victoria UniversityMelbourne, VICqueer space · gender affirmation policy · all-gender toilet map · AWEI Gold 202677.9
- Monash UniversityMelbourne, VICqueer space · gender affirmation policy · LGBTIQA+ action plan · AWEI Gold 202677.2
- The University of SydneySydney, NSWqueer space · gender affirmation policy · all-gender toilet map · AWEI Platinum 202671.8
- 70.1
- Swinburne University of TechnologyMelbourne, VICqueer space · all-gender toilet map · AWEI Gold 202669.5
- The University of QueenslandBrisbane, QLDqueer space · LGBTIQA+ action plan · LGBTIQA+ scholarship · AWEI Platinum 202669.1
- University of Technology SydneySydney, NSWqueer space · LGBTIQA+ staff role · gender affirmation policy67.8
- UNSW SydneySydney, NSWqueer space · gender affirmation policy · all-gender toilet map · AWEI Platinum 202667.7
The 10 lowest-scoring universities
Ranks 32 to 41. A low score mostly means we could not find the published support that other universities offer: no queer space, no gender affirmation guide, no ally network. It does not mean staff or students there are unwelcoming. Every university can see exactly what we found, and we will update the index when they show us something we missed.
- Australian Catholic UniversitySydney, NSWno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no chosen name found ? partly checked: 3 of 12 items unconfirmed37.5
- 36.3
- Southern Cross UniversityLismore, NSWno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no all-gender toilet map found36.2
- 35.5
- Charles Darwin UniversityDarwin, NTno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no ally network found32.6
- 31.5
- University of Southern QueenslandToowoomba, QLDno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no all-gender toilet map found31.4
- 29.9
- The University of Notre Dame AustraliaFremantle, WAno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no ally network found24.0
- Avondale UniversityCooranbong, NSWno queer space, no gender affirmation policy, no ally network found15.2
State by state
A quarter of every score comes from the law and the community around the main campus. This is the state and territory part: eleven checks of the law in force at 5 October 2026, scored out of 15. Federal law sits underneath all of it. Section 38 of the Sex Discrimination Act still lets religious educational institutions, universities included, discriminate against students and staff on sexual orientation and gender identity grounds. The Australian Law Reform Commission recommended repealing it in a report tabled in March 2024; the government has not responded.
How each state’s universities score
Each dot is one university, in the same colours as the map. The line marks each state’s middle score; states run from highest to lowest.
Victoria: 9 universities, middle score 70.1. Australian Capital Territory: 2 universities, middle score 59.0. Western Australia: 5 universities, middle score 54.2. Tasmania: 1 university, middle score 51.5. South Australia: 3 universities, middle score 47.9. Queensland: 8 universities, middle score 47.8. New South Wales: 12 universities, middle score 46.5. Northern Territory: 1 university, middle score 32.6.
What the law says in each state and territory
| As at 5 October 2026 | NSW | VIC | QLD | WA | SA | TAS | ACT | NT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sexual orientation protectedin state anti-discrimination law | partlypartly | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Gender identity protectedincluding non-binary people | partlypartly | yes | yes | partlypartly | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Sex characteristics protectedintersex people | no | yes | yes | no | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Students protected at religious schools and universitiesno state exemption on sexuality or gender identity | noexempt | yesno exemption | yesno exemption | noexempt | yesno exemption | yesno exemption | yesno exemption | yesno exemption |
| Staff protected at religious schools and universitiesno state exemption on sexuality or gender identity | noexempt | yesno exemption | partlynarrow | noexempt | noexempt | yesno exemption | yesno exemption | yesno exemption |
| Vilification law covers sexuality and gender identitycivil or criminal | partlycivil and criminal, gaps | yescivil and criminal | yescivil and criminal | no | no | yescivil | yescivil and criminal | yescivil |
| Birth certificate can be changed without surgerylegal gender recognition | yesself-ID | yesself-ID | yesself-ID | partlyclinician needed | partlyclinician needed | yesself-ID | yesself-ID | partlyclinician needed |
| Conversion practices bannedin force | yes | yes | partlypartly | no | yes | nobill only | yes | no |
| No state restriction on gender-affirming carefor young people | yesnone | yesnone | restriction in forcein force | yesnone | yesnone | yesnone | yesnone | restriction in forcein force |
| Relationship registerfor same-sex couples | yes | yes | yes | no | yes | yes | yes | no |
| LGBTIQA+ strategy or commissionerwhole of government | partlyhealth only | yesboth | yesstrategy | yesstrategy | no | yesstrategy | yesstrategy | no |
| Score out of 15 | 6.75 | 15 | 11 | 3 | 9.5 | 12.5 | 15 | 8.5 |
yes partly no restriction in forceHover a cell for the detail. Sources in the methodology.
- Victoria and the ACT score full marks. Neither lets religious schools or universities discriminate against LGBTIQA+ students or staff under state law, both ban conversion practices, and both allow a birth certificate change by statutory declaration.
- New South Wales is home to twelve universities and scores 6.75. Its Anti-Discrimination Act protects only “homosexuality” and binary “transgender grounds”, and lets any private educational authority, religious or not, refuse or expel students and dismiss staff on those grounds. It did ban conversion practices from April 2025 and allowed birth certificate changes without surgery from July 2025.
- Western Australia scores 3. Its Act protects gender identity only for people with a recognition certificate, has broad religious exemptions, no vilification protection for LGBTIQA+ people and no conversion practices ban. Reform has been promised but not introduced.
- Queensland and the Northern Territory each lose two points for a restriction on gender-affirming care: both stop new patients under 18 starting puberty blockers or hormones in the public system.
- South Australia still lets religious schools discriminate against staff under a published policy, and has no vilification protection for LGBTIQA+ people. Whether its law reaches students is unsettled; we score it as no student exemption.
Every university, ranked
All 41 universities registered in Australia in 2026. Search, filter or sort, and click any row for the full breakdown and the receipts.
? Partly checked. At three universities we could not confirm some campus checks either way, 6 items in all, because the answer sits behind a student login or a form that isn’t public. Where public pages were readable and simply don’t say, we count that as not offered, as for every university. Those items score zero until confirmed, so these scores may understate the university. Open a row to see exactly which items.
| # | University | State | Students | Score | Policy | Env. | Comm. | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RMIT University · Melbourne | VIC | 75,976 | 80.0 | 27 | 23 | 20 | AWEI Platinum | |
| 2 | The University of Melbourne · Melbourne | VIC | 75,513 | 79.0 | 36 | 23 | 20 | - | |
| 3 | Victoria University · Melbourne | VIC | 34,599 | 77.9 | 27 | 23 | 20 | AWEI Gold | |
| 4 | Monash University · Melbourne | VIC | 93,159 | 77.2 | 34 | 23 | 13 | AWEI Gold | |
| 5 | The University of Sydney · Sydney | NSW | 78,825 | 71.8 | 27 | 15 | 20 | AWEI Platinum | |
| 6 | La Trobe University · Melbourne | VIC | 37,480 | 70.1 | 32 | 22 | 16 | - | |
| 7 | Swinburne University of Technology · Melbourne | VIC | 45,354 | 69.5 | 20 | 22 | 20 | AWEI Gold | |
| 8 | The University of Queensland · Brisbane | QLD | 57,130 | 69.1 | 26 | 16 | 17 | AWEI Platinum | |
| 9 | University of Technology Sydney · Sydney | NSW | 50,257 | 67.8 | 33 | 15 | 20 | - | |
| 10 | UNSW Sydney · Sydney | NSW | 82,272 | 67.7 | 27 | 11 | 20 | AWEI Platinum | |
| 11 | Deakin University · Melbourne | VIC | 59,359 | 60.7 | 29 | 19 | 13 | - | |
| 12 | Griffith University · Brisbane | QLD | 44,514 | 60.6 | 31 | 15 | 15 | - | |
| 13 | University of Canberra · Canberra | ACT | 17,676 | 60.0? | 26 | 19 | 15 | ? Partly checked | |
| 14 | Queensland University of Technology · Brisbane | QLD | 52,423 | 58.9? | 25 | 17 | 17 | ? Partly checked | |
| 15 | Adelaide University · Adelaide | SA | 64,391 | 58.4 | 27 | 14 | 17 | - | |
| 16 | Edith Cowan University · Perth | WA | 30,822 | 58.4 | 33 | 7 | 13 | AWEI Silver | |
| 17 | The Australian National University · Canberra | ACT | 23,778 | 58.0 | 24 | 19 | 15 | - | |
| 18 | Macquarie University · Sydney | NSW | 44,849 | 57.2 | 25 | 9 | 13 | AWEI Platinum | |
| 19 | Murdoch University · Perth | WA | 24,744 | 55.1 | 27 | 7 | 16 | AWEI Silver | |
| 20 | The University of Newcastle · Newcastle | NSW | 34,808 | 54.8 | 28 | 12 | 15 | - | |
| 21 | The University of Western Australia · Perth | WA | 29,495 | 54.2 | 26 | 12 | 16 | - | |
| 22 | University of Tasmania · Hobart | TAS | 32,009 | 51.5 | 15 | 21 | 15 | - | |
| 23 | Curtin University · Perth | WA | 56,918 | 50.5 | 27 | 7 | 16 | - | |
| 24 | Flinders University · Adelaide | SA | 24,896 | 47.9 | 21 | 14 | 13 | - | |
| 25 | University of Wollongong · Wollongong | NSW | 34,931 | 47.9 | 29 | 11 | 8 | - | |
| 26 | James Cook University · Townsville | QLD | 19,807 | 47.8 | 18 | 15 | 15 | - | |
| 27 | University of the Sunshine Coast · Sunshine Coast | QLD | 18,850 | 47.8 | 20 | 15 | 13 | - | |
| 28 | University of Divinity · Melbourne | VIC | 1,253 | 47.0 | 5 | 22 | 20 | - | |
| 29 | Federation University Australia · Ballarat | VIC | 12,478 | 45.6 | 14 | 24 | 8 | - | |
| 30 | Western Sydney University · Sydney | NSW | 47,820 | 45.0 | 22 | 8 | 15 | - | |
| 31 | Torrens University Australia · Adelaide | SA | 25,439 | 38.9 | 5 | 14 | 17 | AWEI Bronze | |
| 32 | Australian Catholic University · Sydney | NSW | 35,037 | 37.5? | 6 | 12 | 20 | ? Partly checked | |
| 33 | Charles Sturt University · Bathurst | NSW | 35,003 | 36.3 | 18 | 10 | 8 | - | |
| 34 | Southern Cross University · Lismore | NSW | 18,348 | 36.2 | 11 | 10 | 15 | - | |
| 35 | University of New England · Armidale | NSW | 19,355 | 35.5 | 18 | 10 | 8 | - | |
| 36 | Charles Darwin University · Darwin | NT | 12,672 | 32.6 | 7 | 13 | 13 | - | |
| 37 | Bond University · Gold Coast | QLD | 5,939 | 31.5 | 7 | 15 | 9 | - | |
| 38 | University of Southern Queensland · Toowoomba | QLD | 20,543 | 31.4 | 11 | 13 | 7 | - | |
| 39 | CQUniversity · Rockhampton | QLD | 22,033 | 29.9 | 16 | 14 | 0 | - | |
| 40 | The University of Notre Dame Australia · Fremantle | WA | 11,990 | 24.0 | 2 | 8 | 14 | - | |
| 41 | Avondale University · Cooranbong | NSW | 1,069 | 15.2 | 2 | 11 | 2 | - |
Score = campus policy and support (40) + state and local environment (25) + community nearby (20) + independent benchmark bonus (up to 10), minus points for documented records (up to 25). Displayed scores stop at zero; the ranking keeps counting below zero so the order stays true. Student numbers are all enrolments in 2024 from the federal Department of Education.
Methodology
Why this exists
Australia has no national index of LGBTIQA+ inclusion at its universities. The US had the Campus Pride Index for eighteen years, until it shut down in 2025, and our US edition rebuilt it from public records. Here there was nothing to rebuild: no national register of campus policies and no official count of hate crimes on campuses. So we went to the primary sources: every university’s own website, its student union, the legislation in every state and territory, and the official statistics.
Who’s included
Every university registered in the “Australian University” category by the national regulator, TEQSA, in 2026: 41 in total, 36 public and 5 private. Adelaide University, formed when the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia merged on 1 January 2026, counts once. University colleges, TAFEs and overseas branch campuses aren’t included.
How the score works
Every university starts at zero and earns points for what it actually offers. It can lose points, but only for a documented record in its own words, never for missing data. Location measures use each university’s main campus.
| What we score | Points | Where the data comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Campus policy and support, up to 40 | ||
| A dedicated LGBTIQA+ student space on campus, such as a queer room or lounge run by the university or the student union | 6 | University and student union websites, captured 5 and 6 October 2026 |
| A paid staff role specific to LGBTIQA+ students or inclusion | 6 | As above |
| A published gender affirmation policy, procedure or guide that covers students | 6 | As above |
| Chosen name (3), gender options beyond male and female (2) and pronouns (1) in university systems. Since 1 January 2026 every university must offer non-binary and “different term” options, so all 41 get the 2 points for gender options | 6 | As above; for gender options, the Department of Education’s 2026 TCSI data requirements (element 315) |
| An ally program or network run by the university | 4 | As above |
| Published locations of all-gender toilets | 3 | As above |
| A current LGBTIQA+ action plan or strategy, covering 2025 or 2026 | 3 | As above |
| A scholarship for LGBTIQA+ students at the university, its own or in a published partnership | 2 | As above |
| Gender-inclusive options in student accommodation | 2 | As above |
| An elected queer officer, department or collective in the student union | 2 | Student union websites |
| State and local environment, up to 25 | ||
| The state or territory’s LGBTIQA+ laws: discrimination protections, religious exemptions for schools and universities, vilification, birth certificates, conversion practices, and any restrictions on gender-affirming care | 15 | Legislation in force at 5 October 2026. See State by state for every item and its source |
| Support for marriage equality in the 2017 postal survey, in the federal electorate around the main campus, scaled from the lowest result in Australia (0) to the highest (6) | 6 | Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey 2017, results for all 150 divisions; AEC boundaries in force in August 2017 |
| The local council’s own LGBTIQA+ action plan (2) and LGBTIQA+ advisory group (2). In the ACT the territory government plays this role | 4 | Council and ACT Government websites, October 2026 |
| Community nearby, up to 20 | ||
| An annual Pride festival or march in the campus’s city or town, with a 2025 or 2026 edition | 8 | Organiser and council websites |
| An LGBTIQA+ health or community organisation with a street address nearby: 7 points within 10 km, 5 within 25 km, 2.5 within 50 km | 7 | Member organisations of LGBTIQ+ Health Australia and the state LGBTIQA+ youth services |
| LGBTQ+ venues tagged on OpenStreetMap within 10 km of the main campus, on a log scale capped at 10 | 5 | OpenStreetMap contributors, October 2026 extract |
| Independent benchmark, bonus up to +10 | ||
| Australian Workplace Equality Index 2026: Platinum +10, Gold +7.5, Silver +5, Bronze +2.5 | +10 | Pride in Diversity, a program of ACON. Results announced 29 May 2026 |
| Documented records, up to 25 points off | ||
| The university’s own policy relies on a religious exemption to treat students differently because of sexual orientation, gender identity or sex characteristics | -15 | The university’s published policies, codes and contracts |
| A conduct, lifestyle or faith requirement whose own text mentions sexuality, marriage or gender, binding staff or students, or a staff exemption of the same kind | -10 | As above |
| The university’s own submission to a public inquiry arguing to keep or widen its ability to treat LGBTIQA+ students differently | -5 | Published submissions to the ALRC (2023), Senate (2018, 2021) and other inquiries |
No university triggers a deduction. We read the policies, codes, contracts and inquiry submissions of the four religious universities and found no own-words document of the kinds above; their record is set out in the full table.
Three fairness rules are built in. Missing from our checks counts as not offered, but every “yes” links to the page that proves it, so anything we missed can be added with one link. A quarter of the score reflects the law and the community around the main campus, on purpose: students live under state law and local attitudes as much as under campus policy, and the columns in the full table show that split for every university. And points come off only for a record in the university’s own documents. Being small, regional or religious never costs points by itself.
What to keep in mind
- Some universities are only partly checked. Where a website blocked our tools or kept information behind a login, we tried the Internet Archive and a normal browser before giving up. Items we still couldn’t confirm are marked with a gold question mark and score zero; a university can clear them by sending us the page.
- Websites are the evidence. We credit what a university or its student union publishes. Internal policies that aren’t online can’t be scored, and a page can be out of date. Send us a link and we’ll check it.
- The 2017 vote is old, but it is the only local measure there is. The marriage postal survey is the only time Australians have been asked an LGBTIQA+ question with results for every electorate. The 2026 Census asked about sexual orientation for the first time; when those results arrive we will look at adding them.
- The workplace index measures staff inclusion, and joining costs money. That’s why it is a bonus, not a penalty: a university without a published tier loses nothing.
- Location uses the main campus. Multi-campus universities have their other campuses listed in the full table, but state law, the electorate and the community measures come from the main campus. Several universities, Edith Cowan, Curtin and Deakin among them, also run city-centre campuses that would score higher on community nearby; we use one rule for all.
- OpenStreetMap is thin in Australia. Only a few dozen venues nationwide carry an LGBTQ+ tag, mostly in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. That’s why it is worth 5 points of 100.
- There are no campus hate-crime statistics in Australia. The US version showed federal campus crime reports. No Australian equivalent exists, so this edition has no safety column.
Sources
- University and student union websites for all 41 universities, captured 5 and 6 October 2026. Where a site blocked our capture tools we used its Internet Archive copy from 2025 or 2026, and say so on the receipt
- TEQSA National Register of higher education providers; Department of Education, Higher Education Statistics 2024, Section 2 All Students (Table 2.9)
- Pride in Diversity (ACON), Australian Workplace Equality Index results, 2024, 2025 and 2026
- State and territory legislation, parliament, government and commission sources for every cell in the State by state table; Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth); Australian Law Reform Commission, Report 142 (2024)
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey 2017 (1800.0); Australian Electoral Commission boundaries in force in August 2017; ABS local government areas (2025) and state boundaries (2021)
- Local council and ACT Government websites; Pride festival organisers; member organisations of LGBTIQ+ Health Australia and state LGBTIQA+ youth services
- © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)
- Context: La Trobe University ARCSHS, Writing Themselves In 4 (2021) and Private Lives 3 (2020); Universities Australia, National Student Safety Survey (2021); ABS, LGBTI+ population estimates (2024)
Cite this study
Out on Campus: Down Under. The LGBTIQA+ University Index for Australia 2026. Erobella Research, October 2026. erobella.com/research/out-on-campus-australia/
Why Erobella?
Fair question. Erobella, the UK’s fastest growing adult website, is a progressive brand, and LGBTIQA+ rights matter to us. Our Data & Research team publishes open studies all year, including the annual survey of sex-worker wellbeing, the Liberal Cities Index, the Sex Work Statistics series and the US edition of Out on Campus. We built this one because nobody had, and because honest information about safety and belonging matters to the people we serve.
Everything here is free, with no paywall and no sign-up, for students, parents, journalists, researchers and universities. We plan to refresh it each year.
Spot something wrong? If we’ve missed a policy, credited one that’s gone, or you dispute a record, please tell us with a link to the page that shows it. We check every submission and update the index where the evidence supports it.
- 8 October 2026. Two changes after Edith Cowan University wrote in. ECU employs an Equity Program Lead whose published role is leading LGBTIQA+ inclusion, and ECU now gets the points for a paid LGBTIQA+ staff role. And since 1 January 2026 every Australian university has had to offer non-binary and “different term” gender options under the Department of Education’s student data rules, so all 41 now get the points for gender options (14 didn’t before). ECU moved from 23rd to 16th and Swinburne from 10th to 7th; other universities moved by a place or two. Files: before, after.
With thanks to the people who keep this information public: university equity teams and student union queer departments, Pride in Diversity, LGBTIQ+ Health Australia and its member organisations, Pride organisers around the country, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Australian Electoral Commission and OpenStreetMap’s volunteer mappers.
Download the data
The complete dataset, every university, every indicator, every source link, is free to use with attribution:
outoncampus-australia-2026.csv data.json
Press release
Press release Word document Press release Plain text (Markdown)
Press and data queries: Dara Weston, PR Manager, dara@erobella.com. Comment from Brenda Jensen, Head of Data & Research at Erobella, is available on request. The US edition is at erobella.com/research/out-on-campus.