Dawn Freshwater
Dawn Freshwater is a British academic, university professor, mental health researcher, and the current vice-chancellor of the University of Auckland.
Early life and education
Freshwater was born in a mining family in Nottingham in August 1962, with two younger brothers. She left school at the age of 15 because her parents became unwell. Freshwater trained as a nurse and was the first member of her family to attend university. Her doctoral research investigated the impact of transformative learning on nursing students for which she was awarded a PhD by the University of Nottingham in 1998.Research and career
In 2006 Freshwater joined the University of Leeds. Her research concentrated on forensic psychology, and studied the impact of marginalised groups with severe mental health issues.Freshwater was appointed the pro-vice-chancellor at the University of Leeds in 2011. She led the School of Medicine application for an Athena SWAN award and served as a member of the assessment panel for the Research Excellence Framework. During this time, she served on the Council of Deans for Nursing and Midwifery and was a trustee of the Florence Nightingale Foundation.
In 2014 Freshwater moved to Australia. She joined the University of Western Australia as senior deputy vice chancellor in 2016. In 2017 she was made the vice chancellor, and led the first Inclusion and Division strategy. She was the first woman to be made chair of the Group of Eight in 2018. She also led the Matariki network of universities. At the University of Western Australia, Freshwater established the Public Policy Institute, which translates research into real-world solutions for the Indo-Pacific region.
In 2019 Freshwater became the first woman to be appointed vice chancellor of the University of Auckland, whilst remaining a professor of mental health at the University of Leeds. During her appointment at the University of Auckland, there has been substantial increase of the QS ranking in the overall university category and in the new sustainability category. Further, in 2024, the University of Auckland reached the highest ranking since 2013 in the QS ranking being the 65th in the world. She has been invited as a keynote speaker in several international ranking event hosted by the Times Higher Education and Quacquarelli Symonds.
In June 2025, Freshwater announced her intention to step down as vice-chancellor of the University of Auckland after nearly six years in the role. She will remain in the position until early 2026 to allow a smooth transition and time for the university to appoint a successor. The University Council and Chancellor Cecilia Tarrant confirmed their full support for Freshwater, rejecting speculation that she was asked to resign. During her tenure, she presided over controversial faculty consolidations and course cuts.
Publications
Freshwater has authored and co-authored over 100 peer reviewed papers. She is among the top 2% cited scientists, according to the 2023 Stanford/Elsevier ranking. Some of her works are:- Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M.. Critical reflection for nursing and the helping professions: a user's guide. Palgrave. ISBN 0333777956.
- Freshwater, D.. Therapeutic Nursing. SAGE Publishing. ISBN 0761970649.
- Freshwater, D.. Emotions and Needs. Open University Press. ISBN 0335208010.
- Freshwater, D.. Blackwell's Nursing Dictionary. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 1405105348.
- Freshwater, D.. Counselling Skills for Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors. Open University Press. ISBN 0335207812.
- Freshwater, D.. International Textbook of Reflective Practice in Nursing. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 9781405160513.
- Jacobs, M., & Freshwater, D.. The Presenting Past. McGraw Hill Education, Oxford. ISBN 9780335251841.
- Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M.. Critical Reflection for Health Professionals. Routledge. ISBN 9781032749631.