Basic eligibility requirements for a CS
Additional requirements for a Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (CAS)
Regional or remote area requirements for CAS
Already received a Commonwealth scholarship for the full duration?
Basic eligibility requirements for a CS
You may be eligible for a Commonwealth Scholarship (CS) if you meet all the following requirements.
| Condition |
Requirement |
| Citizenship and residency |
You must be:
- an Australian citizen, or
- the holder of a permanent humanitarian visa, or
- an Indigenous Australian (for Indigenous scholarships only).
|
| Enrolment |
You must be:
- enrolled in either:
- an eligible enabling course of study;
- an associate degree course of study;
- an undergraduate course of study with an approved higher education provider; or
- a Graduate Diploma or equivalent Postgraduate course in an area of National Priority (Teaching or Nursing) required for initial registration, where there is no alternative pathway into that course of study at that eligible scholarship provider.
- a Commonwealth supported student for that course of study.
|
| Socio-economic status |
You must demonstrate financial hardship to the provider’s satisfaction either:
- through receiving a means-tested Commonwealth income support payment (such as Austudy, ABSTUDY, Youth Allowance etc), or
- on the basis of a comprehensive assessment conducted by the provider.
- For the purpose of the Indigenous Access Scholarship, when assessing low socio-economic status, assessors can have regard to the range of disadvantages which may affect the immediate financial status of Indigenous students accessing higher education. Such factors may include geographical isolation, stability of financial status, and family circumstances, such as illness or bereavement which affect the level of family financial support.
|
| Study load |
You must be enrolled as a full-time student. A full-time study load for CS eligibility is at least 75% of an Equivalent Full-time Student Load (EFTSL).
Course load below 75%: If your course load falls below 75% of a normal full-time load, your eligibility status will be reviewed. You will not be eligible to retain your CS unless there are exceptional circumstances that prevent you from being a full-time student.
Exceptional circumstances: The decision that a person cannot study full-time due to exceptional circumstances is to be made by the eligible scholarship provider. An eligible scholarship provider must take into account factors such as eligible enabling course requirements, disability, significant family care responsibilities, Indigenous community responsibilities, and course constraints outside a student’s control in determining student’s inability to undertake a full-time student load.
|
| Previous qualifications |
You must not hold a bachelor degree or higher level award.
Exception: if you are studying for a Graduate Diploma or equivalent Postgraduate course in an area of National Priority (Teaching or Nursing) required for initial registration, where there is no alternative pathway into that course of study at that eligible scholarship provider. |
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Additional requirements for a Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (CAS)
To be eligible for a CAS:
- you must meet all the basic eligibility requirements for a Commonwealth Scholarship given above
- your higher education provider must be satisfied that you meet the regional or remote area requirements.
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Regional or remote area requirements for CAS
You may meet the regional or remote area requirements if:
(a) within the four years immediately preceding the commencement of the current higher education course of study (including study within another program or at another provider, where the student has transferred):
- you have lived in a regional or remote area of Australia for a total of at least three years; or
- you have completed the final two years of schooling in a high school or college in a regional or remote area; or
- it was necessary for you to live away from your regional or remote home to complete the whole or the majority of your secondary schooling at a high school or college in a major city; or
- you have lived in a regional or remote area of Australia for a total of at least two years, and you have relocated from the regional or remote area of Australia to undertake vocational education and training (eg TAFE) for a maximum of two years duration immediately preceding the commencement of your undergraduate course; and
(b) it was necessary for you to move from the regional or remote area in order to undertake higher education study; and
(c) as a result of (b), you will incur additional accommodation costs; and
(d) you are enrolled as an internal student in units of study that form part of the course of study you are undertaking unless you can demonstrate the need to move.
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Already received a Commonwealth Scholarship for the full duration?
You are no longer eligible for:
- a Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarship (CECS) if you have received a CECS for the maximum duration of eight scholarship periods, or
- a Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (CAS) if you have received a CAS for the maximum duration of eight scholarship periods
- an Indigenous Access Scholarship (IAS) if you have received an IAS previously
- an Indigenous Enabling Scholarship (IES) if you have received an IES for the maximum duration of 2 scholarship periods
- an Associate Degree Scholarship (ADS) if you have received an ADS for the maximum duration of four scholarship periods.
The maximum access you can have to any combination of scholarships is eight scholarship periods (with the exception of the Indigenous students accessing Indigenous enabling scholarships who progress to an undergraduate course are excluded from this provision and can have access to one or more scholarships for a total of ten scholarship periods.
See also: Amounts & payment arrangements.
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