Australia Awards Scholarship

The Australia Awards Scholarship is a fully- funded scholarship offered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Government of Australia. It is a great opportunity for international students from developing countries, particularly the countries located in the Indo-Pacific region, who wish to start their undergraduate or postgraduate studies in Australia. The scholarship also aims to contribute to the development needs of Australia’s partner countries in line with bilateral and regional agreements. Besides waiving tuition fees, the scholarship also offers other facilities which you can explore ahead in this article.

eligible countries for Australia Awards Scholarship

• Asia- Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Timor- Leste and Vietnam
• Pacific- Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna.
• Middle East- Occupied Palestinian Territories
• Africa- Africa

Scholarship Benefits

The Australia Awards Scholarships are offered for the duration of your academic program plus the duration of preparatory training, if any. The scholarship offers the following benefits:

• Coverage of full tuition fees
• Coverage of economy airfare; to and from Australia
• One- time establishment allowance towards accommodation, text books and study materials
• Basic Living Expenses
• Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for the duration of Award

Additional Benefits

• An Introductory Academic Program covering information on living and studying in Australia
• A Pre Course English fees, if you need
• Fieldwork travel expenses
• Supplementary Academic support to ensure consistent performance

Scholarship contract

Candidates who are interested for the Australia Awards Scholarship should also keep in mind that this award comes with a bond. In order to accept the scholarship, you’ll have to sign a contract with the Commonwealth of Australia. It will be a declaration that you’ll comply with the conditions of scholarship stating- you’ll leave Australia for a minimum of two years after completion of course. And, failure to do so will result in you incurring a debt of a total of the scholarship amount.

Eligibility Criteria

• Maintain good academic records
• Minimum of 18 years of age on February of the commencing year of scholarship
• Be a citizen of one of the participating countries (mentioned above)
• Have a student visa and not hold permanent residency or citizenship in Australia
• Not have received Australia Award in the last four years

English Language Requirement

The Australia Awards Scholarship will accept one of the three English Language Tests as mentioned below:

• IELTS- Overall 6.5 with no band less than 6.0
• TOEFL iBT- a score of 85 with at least 21 in all subtests
• PTE- Overall 58 with no score less than 50

Documents Required

• Passport
• Document of Identification
• /birth Certificate
• Degree Certificates
• IELTS/ TOEFL/ PTE certificate
• Personal Statement
• Two Academic Referee Reports
• Letter of admission
• Photographs

How to Apply For Australia Awards Scholarship

There are two ways to apply for the Australia Awards Scholarship- Online or by Mail. We’ll explain each process one by one.

For Online Applications:

• Visit the official website of Australia Awards Scholarship and go to the participating country profile. Choose your country and check if you can apply online through OASIS or not.
• Visit https://oasis.dfat.gov.au/ and click on Login/ Register. If you don’t have an account, click on New Registration.

• Complete your registration questions and proceed. You’ll receive a confirmation message along with the new password. Now return to https://oasis.dfat.gov.au/ and login into you account using that. Also, don’t forget to reset your password.

• You can now begin with you application by logging in to OASIS. Select the Application section from the home menu.

• Start creating your application by Clicking on Create New Application.

• Click on the drop down menu and select Australia Awards Scholarship and click Next. It will automatically fill in the current intake. Now click Next and continue.

• Personal Details screen will open. Fill all the sections carefully. Don’t miss out any of the mandatory field as this will lead to declining of submission.

• One by one, fill all the fields in the Application Checklist. On the Documentary Evidence screen select the +Add icon.

• On the Upload Documents section, select the Document type and description and upload.

• Finally, complete the declaration and acknowledgement section and click on Submit.

For Applications by mail:

If your country does not accept OASIS admission, you can apply through mail also. To apply through mail, check your country’s profile and gather contact details. Reach out to the contact to obtain a hard copy of the application and other documents. Complete and submit the forms to the given mail before deadline.

Important Dates for Australia Awards Scholarship

The Australia Awards Scholarships are not yet open for the current session. The applications generally begin in the month of February and remains open till the end of April. The selection notification is released after all the application windows are closed. Sometimes the dates may differ as per your country which you can check on the Australia Awards’ official website. We’ll update the exact dates as soon as the notification is out.

Selection Process And Criteria

The applicants of Australia Awards Scholarship are evaluated by the selected representatives of the Australian Government. These representatives first verify your eligibility criteria and shortlist the candidates based on their merit. The shortlisted candidates are then called for an interview which also includes a writing exercise. The final selections will be made after the interview round. However, here are some of the basic criteria on your applications will be evaluated:

• Academic Excellence
• Leadership Qualities and potential
• Ability to demonstrate how this Scholarship will foster connection between Australia and your home country.

faqs