Edith Cowan University (ECU) is an Australian public university located in Perth, Western Australia. ECU was established in 1991 as a result of the merger of three existing institutions – Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT), Murdoch University and Muresk Institute. It is named after Dame Edith Cowan, the first woman elected to an Australian Parliament.
The university has five campuses – Joondalup, Mount Lawley, South West (Bunbury), North Metropolitan TAFE and ECU Health Campus at Joondalup. ECU offers over 300 courses across a wide range of disciplines including business, education, engineering, health sciences, information technology and psychology.
ECU has a strong commitment to research and offers numerous research degrees at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level. The university is also home to several leading research institutes including the Centre for Aboriginal Studies, the Security Research Institute and the WA Node of National ICT Australia (NICTA). ECU is a member of Universities Australia and the Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning (ASAIHL).
As at 2016, ECU had a student population of over 27,000 students and 2,700 staff members across its five campuses. The university offers a wide range of services and facilities to students including on-campus accommodation, childcare services, libraries and sporting facilities.