Rate My Professor Kate Senior

Professor Kate Senior is a Professor and Assistant Dean (Research and Innovation) in the School of Humanities, Creative Industries and Social Sciences at the University of Newcastle. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy, Master of Letters, and Bachelor of Arts, all from the Australian National University. A medical anthropologist with over 20 years of experience working alongside people in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, particularly in Ngukurr where she conducted her PhD research and has lived extensively, Senior focuses on the health and wellbeing of community members, sexual health among Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people, and community-led research projects to support capacity, health, and wellbeing for youth and remote communities. Her methodological approaches include arts-based methods such as body mapping, photovoice, and community mapping, as well as ethnography. Research allocations emphasize medical anthropology (60%) and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural determinants of health (40%). Previously, she served as Associate Professor of Anthropology at the Centre for Health Initiatives, University of Wollongong from 2014 to 2019.

Senior has received the Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (2012), University of Wollongong Woman of Impact award (2017), and Vice Chancellor's Awards for Interdisciplinary Research Excellence and Community Engagement (2017). Key publications include 'Indigenous Australian Youth Futures: Living the Social Determinants of Health' (2021, with Chenhall R, Burbank V), 'Boyfriends, babies and basketball: present lives and future aspirations of young women in a remote Australian Aboriginal community' (2012, with Chenhall RD), 'Health Beliefs and Behavior: The Practicalities of "Looking after Yourself" in an Australian Aboriginal Community' (2013, with Chenhall R), 'Stuck Nose: Experiences and Understanding of Petrol Sniffing in a Remote Aboriginal Community' (2006, with Chenhall R, Daniels D), and 'Social Justice in Public Health: Critical Perspectives on the Social Determinants of Health' (2025, with Chenhall R, Jovanovski N). Her research informs Australian policy on sexual health and sex education, including the nationally used 'Life Happens' sexual health game developed in collaboration with NSW Health. She directs the Purai Global Indigenous History Centre and serves as Principal Research Fellow at the Ngarruwan Ngadju First Peoples Health and Wellbeing Research Centre, prioritizing long-term community partnerships and amplifying community strengths and voices.