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Scholarships for every stage of the journey

Scholarships can really make a difference to your studies. Southern Cross University offers a range of scholarships for students at every stage of their university journey, from undergraduate (your first degree) through to Honours, postgraduate studies and research.

These include scholarships for Indigenous Australian students and international students and they range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.

There are also scholarships available to help you study overseas for a short period as an international exchange student. Applying is easy - check out our top tips before you begin.

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Featured scholarships
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Featured scholarships

Pro-invest Group RISE Hotel Management Scholarship: $5,000

This scholarship is designed for students pursuing degrees that prepare them for careers in the Hotel or Tourism sectors. Recipients may also be able to access mentorship, internships, and employment opportunities within Pro-invest Group.

A hotel school graduate leans against some chairs and a table, he is wearing a suit and looking at the camera

Commonwealth Indigenous Scholarships: $32,000

There are two forms of Commonwealth Indigenous Scholarships, Accommodation Scholarships and Education Costs Scholarships. These scholarships are funded through the Indigenous Student Success Program.

Equity Scholarships: $600 - $3,600

The scholarship is designed to assist with costs associated with higher education. Scholarships are generally awarded to students impacted with multiple disadvantages.

Gold Coast campus aerial overlooking North Kirra beach

Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship: $50,000

This scholarship is awarded to the top 8 students with an ATAR of 90 or better.

A female student wearing glasses using a laptop.

The Vice Chancellor’s Regional Leadership Scholarship: $50,000

This scholarship is awarded to the top 4 regional students with an ATAR of 90 or better.

Students interacting and using the Coffs Harbour campus library and Learning Centre facilities

VRM Biologik® Undergraduate Scholarship: $10,000

The Scholarship is for Undergraduate students studying the Bachelor of Science (Regenerative Agriculture). VRM BioLogik® are committed to improving global agriculture through Australian tech.

Information for applicants

Southern Cross University offers a range of scholarships to support future students commencing their first year of study.

The various categories of scholarships are designed to not only recognise academic excellence but also contribute to and encourage student success.

Main Round Scholarships

The main round of applications for 2024 have now closed, please see the Scholarship Finder for scholarships that are still open.

Offer Dates

Shortlisting from late February 2024
Main Round Scholarship offers made from mid-April 2024.
Successful applicants will be emailed to the email address supplied with their course application. Recipients will have a week to respond to their offer before it lapses.

Scholarships for current students aim to reward outstanding achievement in the first year or beyond and provide valuable financial support for successful students.

Continuing scholarships are available to any continuing students (second year onwards). Applications open on a continuing basis and email broadcasts will be sent to relevant students as new offerings become available. Please make regular checks of this page.

Current undergraduate students who are experiencing a range of social disadvantages are welcome to apply for Southern Cross University Equity Scholarships.

There are a number of scholarships available to Indigenous Australian students.

Students are encouraged to apply for as many scholarships for which they may be eligible for.

Find scholarships for Indigenous Australian students

Any student (including Indigenous Australians) are also eligible to apply for the following:

Undergraduate scholarships
Postgraduate scholarships
Honours scholarships
Equity scholarships
Research scholarships

Browse all scholarships

Indigenous Australian students experiencing financial hardship are encouraged to apply for Commonwealth Indigenous Accommodation and Commonwealth Indigenous Education Costs scholarships. A single application point will see the student considered for both programs. For opening and closing dates and a link to the application form go to Commonwealth Indigenous Scholarships.

If you are unable to find a scholarship that is applicable to your circumstances/course/study, please visit the Indigenous Scholarships Website. This website also contains helpful hints on how to apply for a scholarship.

Southern Cross University offers a range of scholarships to support international students. These scholarships are designed to recognise academic excellence, promote cultural diversity, and encourage International Students to explore the opportunities at our regional NSW campuses.

Find international student scholarships

How to apply

Students’ eligibility for Scholarships will be assessed by the Southern Cross admissions team at the time of application to Southern Cross. If you are successful, we will advise you in your Letter of Offer, along with the conditions of the Scholarship. Eligible students will only receive one of the scholarships available.

Opening dates

Applications are open all year and will close one month before the relevant study session.

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At Southern Cross University, we believe in fostering the next generation of brilliant minds and bold leaders to reach their full potential.

Generous merit scholarships are awarded every year to new students who have performed exceptionally well in their school studies, supporting their academic journey throughout university.

Students do not have to apply for merit-based scholarships. The scholarships will be awarded to school leavers achieving the ATAR or equivalent outlined on the scholarship page and who are enrolled in a Bachelor degree program.

Equity scholarships are awarded to help disadvantaged undergraduate students with costs associated with higher education.

Eligibility for these scholarships require the applicant to be a current (or for future students — expecting to be) recipient of income support through Centrelink — such as Youth Allowance, Abstudy, Disability Support Pension, New Start, etc.

This application can be found at Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) Equity Scholarships.

Applications are currently open and will close in February 2025.

How to Apply

Applications are made through UAC. UAC offers year-round Equity Scholarships. This means you can apply for Equity Scholarships from April until March the following year. Your one application for the year will be considered for SCU Equity Scholarship offers in Terms 1, 2, 3, and 4 and, depending on funding, possibly a final offer round in Term 5.

Priority of offer

Scholarships are assessed based on degree of disadvantage and will be prioritised for offer in this way.

Scholarships for postgraduate students support those students continuing on to study further.

Southern Cross University offers both coursework programs and research opportunities to postgraduate students. International students are also eligible for a range of other scholarship programs.

Use the scholarship finder to see the full list of scholarships available for postgraduate students, or find a research supervisor if you're considering Higher Degree Research.

To apply for postgraduate scholarships, please follow the instructions indicated on the individual scholarship pages within the scholarship finder.

Scholarships for honours students support those students studying honours units in their chosen field of study.

Main Round Scholarships

Applications for 2024 have now closed and will reopen for 2025 on 1 June 2024.

Offer Dates

Shortlisting from late February 2024
Main Round Scholarship offers made from mid-March 2024
Successful applicants will be emailed to the email address supplied with their course application. Recipients will have a week to respond to their offer before it lapses.

Graduate School scholarships form part of Southern Cross University’s overall suite of scholarships thanks to our generous private donors, government and industry groups, other stakeholders, and the university itself.

All students choosing to undertake a research program should refer to the Graduate School’s Scholarships page for full details of available financial support. If you're still considering Higher Degree Research you can also search for a research supervisor for an initial discussion. Australian Indigenous research students should also consider applying through the Commonwealth Indigenous Scholarships.

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Higher degrees by research

Current scholarship recipients

Joining our donor community

Academic prizes

Support while studying overseas

Do I need to complete an application?

Most scholarships will require an application. We try to as much as possible to capture all the necessary information on a single application form. Once you have applied, Southern Cross University's Scholarship Office will match you to any eligible scholarship opportunities and use this single application where possible to add you to our shortlists. There are some scholarships with special requirements. This could mean you may need to complete more than one application. Check out the How to apply page for more information.

When will I find out if I've received a scholarship?

After a scholarship has closed for application, the Scholarships Office will compile the eligible applications into a shortlist. The shortlist is then reviewed by a selection panel. These processes take time. However, once an outcome is known the Scholarships Office will email successful applicants with an offer. This could be to the email address you used when you applied to study at Southern Cross University or if you are already enrolled to study then it could be your Southern Cross University email address. In many cases we will follow the email with a text message. If we still have not received a response to our scholarship offer we may call you.

Offers will also appear in My Enrolment in the Rewards Tab as a Reward offer.

How long do I have to accept the scholarship?

In your scholarship offer email, you will be advised of the lapse date by which you need to accept this scholarship offer. This is often a week from the date of the email but in the case of high-value scholarships offered over summer, it may only be a day or two. Be sure to respond ASAP to any scholarship offer. If you let one offer lapse we will withdraw you from consideration for other scholarships.

Does my scholarship pay my tuition fees?

In your scholarship offer email, you will be advised as to what your scholarship benefits are. Many scholarships are cash payments that are paid directly into your nominated bank account. These scholarships do not change your tuition fee (HECS debt). You can choose to use the money to make voluntary contributions to your Tuition costs but unless stated in your Scholarship Terms and Conditions, it is not a requirement. You are free to spend the cash deposits in the way that you choose. Note the scholarship payments are made after the Census date for your study period, and fees are due on or before the Census date. Therefore, the money can only be used against future study periods.

When will I get paid?

Payments are made to Scholarships with a cash benefit and a status of "Active". Cash scholarships are released in the week following Census date. The earliest this could be is the Friday of Census week but it is highly likely that the funds won’t be available until early the following week. If there is a delay to this schedule, Scholarships will endeavour to advise you of the revised release date.

If your scholarship has a status other than "Active" particularly if it is “Breached” then payment may have been withheld. Check your student email account for correspondence from the Scholarships Office alerting you to problems and actions that are required from you.

If you have questions, please email [email protected]

I failed a unit or withdrew from study do I have to pay back my scholarship?

The Terms and Conditions of your scholarship will stipulate the circumstances on which you may have to return money that has been paid out to you. Generally, the Scholarships Office will not request return of funds that have been paid to you.

Do I have to attend the Scholarship and Awards event?

Some scholarships have a requirement to attend Scholarship and Award events. This will be identified in your Terms and Conditions. These events are valuable opportunities for you to meet an interesting array of people and the donors who fund your scholarships.

In certain extraordinary circumstances, recipients that have been invited to attend can have this requirement waived. If you have a legitimate reason that makes your attendance impossible, please email [email protected] and your request will be assessed for an exemption. Students that breach the attendance requirement can have their next payment instalment delayed or cancelled.

Scholarships for students with disabilities

This is a list of scholarships that specify the applicants will have a disability. Of course, students with disabilities are welcome to apply for any of the general scholarships listed above in addition to these scholarships.

June Opie Fellowship
Pam O’Gorman Bursary – for students with hearing loss
Paraquad NSW Scholarship – for students with a spinal cord injury
Rural and Regional Enterprise Scholarships – 1200 scholarships in 2018 and 2019 from Australian Commonwealth government
The Golden Stave Foundation Scholarships – for students with a spinal cord injury
The Gregory and Dolores Farrell Scholarships – for students who have a physical disability and who use a wheelchair for mobility
Vison Australia Further Education Bursary – for students who are blind or have low vision
Young Carers Bursary – for any undergraduate course including PSP, internal or external.

Scholarships for Australian students studying abroad

Fulbright Scholarships – for Australian citizens travelling to America for research purposes
John Monash Scholarship – for Australian citizens undertaking postgraduate study overseas
Rhodes Scholarship – this scholarship is for further study at Oxford University in the UK.
The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust
World Nomads – Travel Scholarships

Personalise your experience

Scholarships

Scholarships for every stage of the journey

Featured scholarships

Pro-invest Group RISE Hotel Management Scholarship: $5,000

Commonwealth Indigenous Scholarships: $32,000