Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University is a private, global research university and stands among the world's most renowned educational institutions. Established in 1900 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Carnegie Mellon has been a birthplace of innovation and is a global leader in bringing ground-breaking ideas to market and creating successful start-up businesses.

At the invitation of the South Australian Government, Carnegie Mellon University opened its campus in Adelaide in 2006. It was the first international university to establish in Australia. Carnegie Mellon University in Australia forms part of Carnegie Mellon’s global footprint which includes campuses in Silicon Valley, Rwanda and Qatar.

Located in Adelaide, the fifth Most Liveable City in the world (Economist Intelligence Unit 2015) and Australia’s most affordable mainland capital city, Carnegie Mellon's Australia campus is home to students from over 20countries, creating wide-reaching networks of contemporaries, global experts and alumni.

Students graduate with Carnegie Mellon University degree and are taught by highly qualified faculty who boast extensive careers in teaching, basic and applied research, and leadership in their respective fields. Classes are taught by resident and visiting faculty from Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. Overseas faculty teach remotely to Adelaide using sophisticated video conferencing facilities. Small student-to-faculty ratios ensure the faculty provide students with personalised attention to meet their individual needs.

The unique pairing of our two schools, the School of Public Policy and Management and the School of Information Systems and Management, offers an academic experience unlike any other. It prepares students with a unique ability to conduct careful and objective analysis of relevant data, to understand and leverage the power of information technology, and to lead and implement change in managerial and policy contexts. In key areas of the global economy, thought leaders with a unique set of skills at the intersection of policy, technology and management are in great demand. Carnegie Mellon University's H. John Heinz III College is perfectly positioned to develop these leaders.

CMU-A is part of Carnegie Mellon University’s growing global presence, which now has more than a dozen degree-granting locations. The degrees granted by CMU-A are conferred by CMU’s main campus in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The criteria for admissions, the curriculum of programs, the calibre of the faculty, and the comprehensiveness of support services match what Pittsburgh offers. The Adelaide campus, thus, is a replica our main American campus.

Three reasons underpin our confidence that CMU-A offers compelling value and quality for those seeking to study information technology, information systems and public policy and management. The first is our commitment to excellence. This commitment is reflected in the fact that CMU is consistently ranked among the best universities in the world. Our master’s programs are likewise ranked among the top 10 US universities. We strive for excellence because we want to attract those who want to become the best information technologists, information systems managers, and public sector professionals that they can be.

The second is our record of performance. The university values results and the impact that our faculty and graduates make in the world. Our faculty members in Pittsburgh, Adelaide and other campuses have distinguished themselves in their respective areas. The various awards they have received testify to their professional competencies and help explain why our graduates go on to achieve their own successes in different fields.

The third is our pursuit of innovation. CMU is a world-leader in research and development. Our faculty and students have an abiding passion for basic and applied research. With more than 90 centres and institutes, CMU invests substantial resources in research. As the first university to officially form a computer science department, CMU continues to be at the cutting-edge of technology developments. CMU also pioneered the field of decision sciences that has contributed to finding creative solutions to complex problems.

These three factors – commitment to excellence, record of performance, and pursuit of innovation – combine to ensure that we produce graduates who can add tremendous value to wherever they apply themselves. What adds considerable power to our programs is that we harness the individual strengths of our students. We work with students in the course of their studies to customize their degrees through a variety of course electives that can be taken in Adelaide or from other campuses through video conference classes.

In terms of design, our curricula for the information technology, information systems, and public policy and management programs provide solid theoretical foundations. Through synthesis projects and internships, our students sharpen their skills working with actual clients to produce practical deliverables. Clients have come from a wide-range of large, medium, and small scale public and private sector entities across Australia and various international locations.

With more than 85% of our students coming from over 30 countries throughout the Asia-Pacific, North America, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, the Adelaide campus is among the most international of CMU’s campuses. The faculty and staff also reflect a similar cultural diversity. Adelaide itself is a highly cosmopolitan city, a marvellous combination of nationalities and cultures coexisting harmoniously in a peaceful yet stimulating environment.