Campion College

Campion College Australia is Australia's first liberal arts college, offering a Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts. It is the first tertiary educational liberal arts college of its type in Australia, and welcomed its first intake of students in February 2006. The founding president was bioethicist Father John Fleming, and the first graduation ceremony was held in December 2008. Named after Edmund Campion, it is located at Austin Woodbury Place, Old Toongabbie in the western suburbs of Sydney, Australia.

The college aims to contribute to the life of the Catholic Church and to Australian society through education. Its mission is to form future leaders through its broad program of learning in the Liberal Arts.

Campion offers a Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts as its sole undergraduate degree. The key disciplines are history, literature, philosophy and theology. The program is structured (loosely) chronologically: with students studying the ancient world in first year, the Middle Ages and Enlightenment in second and finishing with modernity and postmodernity in the third and final year. Students may opt to complete a major in any of the four disciplines. Students are also required to complete two science subjects in their final year. They may also elect to study Latin and Greek above their normal study load. The focus of this course is the development of Western culture. The Campion program offers an integrated approach to study. Individual units are not taught in isolation, but as part of the broader framework of the development of Western culture.

Campion College is classed as a Non-Self-Accrediting Institution. Its registration as an institution, and accreditation of courses, are completed through the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). Accreditation is completed in accordance with the Australian Qualifications Framework. Approval was granted by NSW Department of Education & Training in April 2006 to enrol international students in the Bachelor of Arts. The college is also approved by the Australian Government as a Higher Education provider and as such, eligible students have access to FEE-HELP loans for tuition fees. The college plans to introduce postgraduate education through a Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma and a Master of Arts in the Liberal Arts. In 2011, the college had an external quality audit by the Australian Universities Quality Agency (AUQA), with commendations received in relation to the academic and quality culture that have been established.

In 2011, the college established the Centre for the Study of Western Tradition to encourage critical reflection and research on the history, literature, languages, philosophy and theology that characterise Western civilisation and culture, in order to raise the profile of these vital disciplines in Australian tertiary education. The Centre holds conferences and symposia relating to its central research themes.

The college's campus and grounds had been a Marist Fathers seminary which was dedicated to, and at one time held relics of, Saint Peter Chanel. The campus houses a chapel, library, accommodation, lecture and tutorial rooms, kitchens, and student areas. The majority of students live on site. As the student population grew the college provided additional off-site accommodation.

Starting with just 16 students in 2006, generally an increasing intake of students has been accepted although Campion remains a small institution. In 2011, there were a total of 88 students enrolled at the college. The Department of Education statistics for higher education in Australia show Campion College had a reduction in commencing student load from 20 EFTSL to 13 EFTSL in 2015. Total student enrolments in 2015 were 84.

Campion College publishes a quarterly newsletter, Campion's Brag. The students also release a newsletter called the Sextant.