Nadežda Čačinovič was born in Budapest, Hungary, in 1947. She attended elementary and middle schools in Zürich, Bern, Belgrade, Murska Sobota, and Ljubljana. She completed undergraduate degree programmes at the University of Ljubljana (1965-1968) and at the University of Bonn where she studied philosophy, art history, linguistics and comparative literature (1968- 70). In 1970-72 she studied philosophy (Oberseminar, Doktorantenseminar) at the University of Frankfurt. In 1988 she obtained her PhD degree at the University of Zagreb. In the same year she was employed as assistant professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, after which she was elected associate professor in 1989 and full professor in 1998. She holds the position of Chair of Aesthetics at the Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.

In 1995–99 she was a visiting professor at the Jan van Eyck Postgraduate Centre, University of Maastricht, the Netherlands. In 1990-91 she was awarded the DAAD grant for a study visit to Berlin, and received a French government grant for a research stay in Paris.

She held lectures at numerous universities:  University of Copenhagen, University of Ljubljana, University of Sarajevo, Inter-University Centre (Dubrovnik), Hochschule f. Musik u. darstellende Kunst (Graz), Central European University (Budapest), Yale University (New Haven, USA)

She has been a member of numerous organisations and committees (Executive Committee of the International Association for Aesthetics, Open Society Institute’s Board in Zagreb, Founding member and lecturer at the Centre for Gender Studies in Zagreb) and editorial boards of journals (Tribuna, Ljubljana, 1965-1968; Kulturni radnik, Zagreb, 1986-1987; Filozofska istraživanja, Zagreb, 1980- present).

She is the president of the Croatian PEN Centre.