Australian universities will have to adopt formal definitions for antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as part of new higher education standards.

In addition to the anti-discrimination amendments, new transparency measures regarding complaint processes, executive pay and consultancy spending will become publicly disclosed. While disclosure is not legally enforceable, tertiary bodies must report to the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) to justify its opacity.

The government is pushing legislation through parliament to grant TEQSA improved enforcement powers in the lead-up to the standard’s effect. TEQSA, whose powers have remained relatively unchanged since its inception in 2011, was proposed to wield “significantly increased financial penalties,” according to this year’s 2026/27 budget.

Public universities, like the University of Melbourne, have until 1 January 2027 to meet the standards, while private universities have until 1 July 2027.

Education Minister Jason Clare said the changes will ensure universities meet expected standards. 

Under the new overhaul, universities are permitted to use their own definitions, including for antisemitism, meaning tertiary bodies will not have to adhere to the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition.

The Shadow Education Minister Julian Leeser criticised the choice as “categorically” wrong for allowing institutions to subvert the definition.

“Universities are the place where our next generation of leaders go to be formed, and the fact that our vice-chancellors are so weak and spineless that they have not been able to crack down on antisemitism shows how much we need this definition adopted,” he said.

Despite being recommended by the ASECA consultation and advisory body, the definition has been criticised for conflating antisemitism with legitimate criticisms of Israel.

The Jewish Council of Australia, a progressive advocacy group founded in 2024, alongside a number of Jewish academics, opposed its adoption. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry, an umbrella body for more than 200 Jewish organisations since 1944, and the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies support it. 

Kenneth Stern, the definition's original drafter, said it should not be used to regulate speech. 

Regardless, Anthony Albanese has endorsed and adopted the IHRA definition federally in 2025.

A Pattern of Racism

A similar report as part of a separate Eliminating Antisemitism Plan was published in the wake of the Bondi shootings, where 40 were injured and 15 killed, in December 2025.

Appointed in July 2024, Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism (ASECA), headed by Jillian Segal, provided 13 recommendations to the federal government—including strengthening TEQSA and adopting a unified definition of antisemitism.

It was only days in the wake of the December Bondi shootings, where 40 were injured and 15 killed, did the government formally adopt Segal's recommendations in a response titled “Eliminating Antisemitism”.

The massacre triggered a royal commission whose results will be released in December this year. 
The introduced standards were also informed by the Human Rights Commission’s Respect at Uni report. Commissioned by the federal government, the landmark study found racism was systemic on campus. 

The study pointed to the experiences of First Nations students, who were compared to “petrol sniffers”, Jewish students threatened to be sent to the camps and Asian students experiencing microaggressions and casual racism.

Of the 76,000 respondents, 14.9 per cent had experienced direct racism and 69.9 per cent had encountered indirect racism.

An overwhelming 81 per cent of First Nations respondents encountered racism. Only six per cent of victims filed formal complaints, of which, 80 per cent were dissatisfied with the outcome.

A Brief History

In April 2022, the University of Melbourne Student Union's People of Colour department passed a motion which described Israel as a colonial apartheid state responsible for mass violence against and displacement of Palestinians and endorsed Palestinians' right to armed resistance against occupation.

A month later, postgraduate law student and Liberal Party member Justin Riazaty, sought legal action and sent the UMSU a letter demanding the rescission of the motion and an apology.

The motion, revised and then contested again by Riazaty, reached a settlement in early 2024 where the motion was retracted and UMSU agreed to pay legal fees.

In January 2023, the University of Melbourne released an anti-racism commitment, a foundation of its later Anti-Racism Action Plan which adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism 15 months before the major 2024 encampments.

“We will develop a definition of Islamophobia in consultation with our Muslim students and staff,” the University said in the release.

Despite this, the Islamophobia definition has yet to be formalised. Three and a half years later, the University's anti-racism commitment still describes it in future tense.

The University of Melbourne faced pro-Palestine protests throughout 2024. On 9 October, approximately 20 students occupied the office of physics professor Steven Prawer, who leads the University's joint PhD program with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The sit-in lasted 90 minutes and ended when students complied with a police move-on notice.

Vice-Chancellor Emma Johnston expelled two of the students involved and suspended two others. The penalties were later reduced on appeal.

Under questioning from Rachel Doyle, representing the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, Interim Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis told the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion that no disciplinary finding from either incident involved the University's racism policy. 

“I'm not aware of any complaint of antisemitism in either event,” Davis said.

The University now bans outside protesters, camping, and indoor protests, and contentiously revised its data usage policy.

An attempt to relaunch the encampment occurred in May 2025, but was quickly shut down. 

From January, the University will have to show that its actions sit within a formal definition, that it has implemented a transparent complaints process, and document its approach to student and staff safety. 

The University did not respond to Farrago’s questions on the gap between the 2024 incidents and its conduct policy, the delayed Islamophobia definition, or where it stands in keeping or replacing the IHRA definition.

Image source: The University of Melbourne