University Of Auckland Vice-Chancellor To Step Down In 2026
Press Release – University of Auckland
Professor Dawn Freshwater will step down from her role as Vice-Chancellor at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland after nearly six years in office.
Professor Dawn Freshwater became the University's first female Vice-Chancellor in March 2020 on the eve of the Covid-19 pandemic. She successfully guided the University through a swift transition to online teaching, enabling domestic students and offshore international students to continue their studies.
University Chancellor Cecilia Tarrant said Professor Freshwater has worked tirelessly in the face of extraordinary times for the tertiary education sector and will leave the University in a position of strength.
'Under Professor Freshwater's leadership, the University has sustained its global positioning as a top-100 University (QS 65), maintained solid financials in an increasingly complex national and global context, increased domestic and international student numbers, and, in particular, seen significant growth in postgraduate students.
'During Covid-19, Professor Freshwater supported an extensive staff process to develop a new vision and strategy: Taumata Teitei Vision 2030 and Strategic Plan 2025, which was updated in 2024. This launched a significant transformation agenda, which has been realised in the years since.
'We are grateful that Professor Freshwater has given us an extended notice period. This will allow the University to commence a full international search for a new Vice-Chancellor, while maintaining our momentum.''
Professor Freshwater has led the University with a focus on excellence. This has seen a growing number of academics recognised among the top two percent of researchers in the world, of which she is one. Notable developments include research partnerships through Horizon Europe, the success of the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the development of the Newmarket Innovation Precinct.
Ensuring the nation's leading University offers students a positive, rewarding, and quality experience was a priority for the Vice-Chancellor. The University of Auckland is ranked No. 1 in the country for graduate employability, and this year's opening of the partially student-funded Hiwa Recreation Centre was a further highlight. She is currently leading the University's response to the challenges and opportunities presented by the accelerated adoption of AI.
The Vice-Chancellor commented that 'It is critical for the University of Auckland to remain a comprehensive university, offering students a wide range of options and undertaking research across all disciplines. I believe, unlike many parts of a polarising world, that New Zealanders continue to value what we offer our communities and broader society.'
Professor Freshwater commented on cuts to research funding, particularly for the humanities and social sciences. 'The nature of the world's great challenges requires contributions from all disciplines to address them, and that we must not lose sight of people as the world advances through technology.'
The outgoing Vice-Chancellor has also commented globally on the challenges facing universities and university leadership, particularly the complex international issues impacting staff and students and misinformation and disinformation. She has described the importance of moral courage in navigating this environment.
Professor Freshwater has raised the University's profile internationally among peers in higher education and research, and alongside Prime Ministers and political leaders on overseas missions. She has also forged city partnerships, notably with Eden Park, the Auckland Business Chamber and others that reflect the institution's commitment to Tāmaki Mākaurau.
Professor Freshwater chairs Universities NZ's Research Committee and serves as the deputy chair of Research Australia. She is a globally recognised leader, Chair of APRU, Director of U21, and a sought-after speaker at higher education conferences around the world.
The University expects to formally farewell Professor Freshwater in the first half of 2026.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
5 hours ago
- Scoop
What You Need To Know If Your CV Is Less Than You Owe On Your Property
Many property owners have seen the capital value of their properties drop in the past week. , Money Correspondent Many Auckland property owners have seen the capital value, or CV, of their properties drop in the past week. Valuations have been updated for the first time since 2021, when New Zealand's property market was hitting post-Covid heights. The new CVs are dated to mid-last year, and typically dropped 9 percent, on average. For some buyers, particularly those who purchased recently, that's been uncomfortable reading. But mortgage advisers say, in general, the CV of a property doesn't matter a lot to lenders. While a drop in value would decrease an owner's equity in a property on paper, they say lenders rely on other methods to determine a property's value and the owner's stake in it. 'It's yesterday's news,' said David Cunningham, chief executive of Squirrel. He said while people might look at a property's CV because it was public information, it was no longer used in calculations for a mortgage. 'In the old days it was but you know now you've got all these models from Cotality and Valocity and so on – and you can go on to or One Roof and find a pretty damn good valuation. They've got the benefit of being pretty much real time.' He said people did not need to worry even if their CV showed they now owed more than their home was worth. He said banks talked about home loan customers being 'delinquency managed' which meant that it was only if they stopped paying their home loans that the bank would investigate. Borrowers who were facing trouble with repayments should talk to the bank before that happened, he said. Some borrowers are paying low-equity premiums because they took out loans with less than 20 percent deposit. These margins can be removed once the loan is paid down, or the value of the property increases to the point where the owner has 20 percent equity. But Cunningham said the new CVs would not affect that process either. People who had built up enough equity to have the margin removed would typically be using banks' desktop valuation data to do so. 'Registered valuations might come into play if it's an unusual property or in an area where there aren't a lot of property sales. So some of the more provincial locations and properties … but for major centres the valuation models, called AVMs, automated valuation models, are what the bank uses.' Glen McLeod, head of Link Advisory, agreed banks would usually use desktop valuations to get an idea of the value of a property, or a registered valuation in situations where it was necessary to be precise about a value. 'If you have a sale and purchase agreement for $850,000 and the registered valuation comes in at $850,000 that's what it's worth even if the CV is $750,000.' Loan Market mortgage adviser Karen Tatterson agreed CVs were rarely used by banks to assess loan-to-value ratios, if ever. She said the problem was that CVs were quickly out of date. 'The Auckland Council CVs that were released yesterday are based on a value ascertained approximately a year ago so they are already out of date and do no reflect the true 'market' value of the home.'
Scoop
8 hours ago
- Scoop
What You Need To Know If Your CV Is Less Than You Owe On Your Property
Article – RNZ Many Auckland property owners have seen the capital value, or CV, of their properties drop in the past week. Valuations have been updated for the first time since 2021, when New Zealand's property market was hitting post-Covid heights. The new CVs are dated to mid-last year, and typically dropped 9 percent, on average. For some buyers, particularly those who purchased recently, that's been uncomfortable reading. But mortgage advisers say, in general, the CV of a property doesn't matter a lot to lenders. While a drop in value would decrease an owner's equity in a property on paper, they say lenders rely on other methods to determine a property's value and the owner's stake in it. 'It's yesterday's news,' said David Cunningham, chief executive of Squirrel. He said while people might look at a property's CV because it was public information, it was no longer used in calculations for a mortgage. 'In the old days it was but you know now you've got all these models from Cotality and Valocity and so on – and you can go on to or One Roof and find a pretty damn good valuation. They've got the benefit of being pretty much real time.' He said people did not need to worry even if their CV showed they now owed more than their home was worth. He said banks talked about home loan customers being 'delinquency managed' which meant that it was only if they stopped paying their home loans that the bank would investigate. Borrowers who were facing trouble with repayments should talk to the bank before that happened, he said. Some borrowers are paying low-equity premiums because they took out loans with less than 20 percent deposit. These margins can be removed once the loan is paid down, or the value of the property increases to the point where the owner has 20 percent equity. But Cunningham said the new CVs would not affect that process either. People who had built up enough equity to have the margin removed would typically be using banks' desktop valuation data to do so. 'Registered valuations might come into play if it's an unusual property or in an area where there aren't a lot of property sales. So some of the more provincial locations and properties … but for major centres the valuation models, called AVMs, automated valuation models, are what the bank uses.' Glen McLeod, head of Link Advisory, agreed banks would usually use desktop valuations to get an idea of the value of a property, or a registered valuation in situations where it was necessary to be precise about a value. 'If you have a sale and purchase agreement for $850,000 and the registered valuation comes in at $850,000 that's what it's worth even if the CV is $750,000.' Loan Market mortgage adviser Karen Tatterson agreed CVs were rarely used by banks to assess loan-to-value ratios, if ever. She said the problem was that CVs were quickly out of date. 'The Auckland Council CVs that were released yesterday are based on a value ascertained approximately a year ago so they are already out of date and do no reflect the true 'market' value of the home.'
Scoop
10 hours ago
- Scoop
What You Need To Know If Your CV Is Less Than You Owe On Your Property
, Money Correspondent Many Auckland property owners have seen the capital value, or CV, of their properties drop in the past week. Valuations have been updated for the first time since 2021, when New Zealand's property market was hitting post-Covid heights. The new CVs are dated to mid-last year, and typically dropped 9 percent, on average. For some buyers, particularly those who purchased recently, that's been uncomfortable reading. But mortgage advisers say, in general, the CV of a property doesn't matter a lot to lenders. While a drop in value would decrease an owner's equity in a property on paper, they say lenders rely on other methods to determine a property's value and the owner's stake in it. "It's yesterday's news," said David Cunningham, chief executive of Squirrel. He said while people might look at a property's CV because it was public information, it was no longer used in calculations for a mortgage. "In the old days it was but you know now you've got all these models from Cotality and Valocity and so on - and you can go on to or One Roof and find a pretty damn good valuation. They've got the benefit of being pretty much real time." He said people did not need to worry even if their CV showed they now owed more than their home was worth. He said banks talked about home loan customers being "delinquency managed" which meant that it was only if they stopped paying their home loans that the bank would investigate. Borrowers who were facing trouble with repayments should talk to the bank before that happened, he said. Some borrowers are paying low-equity premiums because they took out loans with less than 20 percent deposit. These margins can be removed once the loan is paid down, or the value of the property increases to the point where the owner has 20 percent equity. But Cunningham said the new CVs would not affect that process either. People who had built up enough equity to have the margin removed would typically be using banks' desktop valuation data to do so. "Registered valuations might come into play if it's an unusual property or in an area where there aren't a lot of property sales. So some of the more provincial locations and properties … but for major centres the valuation models, called AVMs, automated valuation models, are what the bank uses." Glen McLeod, head of Link Advisory, agreed banks would usually use desktop valuations to get an idea of the value of a property, or a registered valuation in situations where it was necessary to be precise about a value. "If you have a sale and purchase agreement for $850,000 and the registered valuation comes in at $850,000 that's what it's worth even if the CV is $750,000." Loan Market mortgage adviser Karen Tatterson agreed CVs were rarely used by banks to assess loan-to-value ratios, if ever. She said the problem was that CVs were quickly out of date. "The Auckland Council CVs that were released yesterday are based on a value ascertained approximately a year ago so they are already out of date and do no reflect the true 'market' value of the home."
