Coady is a regular commentator in the Australian media on philosophical aspects of public affairs.
Coady first studied philosophy at the University of Sydney as a part-time evening student while working full-time as a journalist.
After gaining his B.A in 1962, he secured a scholarship to the University of Melbourne, leaving professional journalism behind, and was awarded Master of Arts with First Class Honours in Philosophy in 1963.
Coady’s first full-time academic appointment was as lecturer in philosophy at Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1965-66.
(The Centre for Human Bio-ethics at Monash University established earlier had had a somewhat similar orientation but a narrower focus.)