Swinburne offers a range of student scholarships to support you during your study. These range from equity-based scholarships and grants to donor-funded scholarships sponsored by generous benefactors.

Swinburne offers the following types of scholarships:

  • University funded merit scholarships – Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Scholarship (VCES)
  • Commonwealth funded scholarships - Indigenous Commonwealth Scholarships
  • Government and university funded equity scholarships - Access Scholarships, Swinburne Welcome Scholarships
  • Donor-funded scholarships – provided by university benefactors and industry partners.

International students

If you are an international student looking for the conditions of your International Excellence Scholarship (Pathway, Undergraduate or Postgraduate), George Swinburne STEM Postgraduate Scholarship or ELICOS+ Scholarship, please refer to your Course offer letter. For further information, please visit the Scholarships for international students page.

Accepting your scholarship

Students who have been successful in obtaining a scholarship will receive a scholarship offer letter via their student email with the details of the scholarship, a link to these scholarship conditions and instructions on how to accept or decline the offer. Accepting a scholarship at Swinburne means you accept and agree to your scholarship requirements and conditions. You cannot defer a scholarship to a later semester or year.

Multiple scholarships

At Swinburne, you can hold up to two scholarships concurrently during your course of study, although some donor funded scholarships allow you to hold an additional scholarship. Each scholarship held must be of a different type, for example:

  • One university funded merit scholarship and one donor funded scholarship (unless specified otherwise in the terms of the donor funded scholarship)
  • one Government and university funded scholarship and one donor funded scholarship (unless specified otherwise in the terms of the donor funded scholarship)

If you are unsure whether you are eligible to hold a second or subsequent scholarship, please contact the Scholarships Office at scholarship@swin.edu.au.

Scholarship payments

Scholarships or grants funds are paid directly into your nominated bank account, unless otherwise outlined in the benefits section of your scholarship offer.

Payments are made bi-annually each year, within four working weeks after the Census date of each semester, unless indicated otherwise in your scholarship offer letter.

The scholarship recipient acknowledges that any scholarship payment or tuition fee discount will be applied only from the first payment cycle following the formal acceptance of the scholarship. The scholarship benefits will commence in the subsequent payment cycles and will not be retroactively applied to any prior payments or tuition fees.

Scholarship recipients should seek independent advice from the relevant authorities on the impact that their scholarship may have on eligibility for Centrelink payments, or whether there will be any taxation implications.

Ongoing eligibility checks of study load and academic progress

If you have been offered a scholarship by Swinburne, please ensure you read the conditions and requirements for your Swinburne scholarship.

Failure to meet scholarship conditions, study load, and academic requirements may result in your scholarship being suspended or cancelled.

Within four weeks after the census date for each Semester, we will conduct an enrolment check to ensure you are meeting the study load requirements for continuation of your scholarship. We will notify you via your student email if you have failed to meet study load requirements.  

If applicable, within four weeks of the Result Release date for each Semester, we will conduct a result check to ensure you are meeting the academic requirements for the continuation of your scholarship. We will notify you via your student email if you have failed to meet any academic requirements.  

Review of decision to suspend or cancel

If your scholarship is suspended or cancelled, you may apply for a special consideration of the decision if there were compassionate or compelling circumstances, i.e. circumstances outside your control that impacted your ability to study. Examples include:

  • illness/injury
  • bereavement of a close family member
  • natural disasters

When you are notified of a scholarship suspension or cancellation, you will also be informed how to submit a request for review of the decision. Any special circumstances requested will require independent supporting documentation.

In addition to maintaining study load and academic requirements, you must not behave in a manner which discredits the University or the Scholarship program. Doing so may result in cancellation of your scholarship. Please refer to the Regulations for Student General Misconduct and Student Academic Misconduct for further information.

 

Enrolment changes

Before making a change to your enrolment you should check what impact the change may have on your scholarship. Approval is required for scholarship continuation in certain circumstances.

You must notify the Scholarships Office at scholarship@swin.edu.au if you:

  • Transfer to another course within the University
  • Reduce or change your study load
  • Wish to take a Leave of Absence
  • Cancel/change your travel plans (if receiving a travel scholarships)
  • Accept a university international exchange

 

Industry-funded scholarship courses

Students enrolled in industry-funded scholarship courses are not eligible to concurrently receive a merit and/or donor-based scholarship. This condition applies to students who commenced the following courses prior to 2022:

  • Bachelor of Accounting and Business Information Technology (Professional); or
  • Bachelor of Business Information Technology (Professional).

Scholarship Conditions

These conditions apply to the following scholarship: 

Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Scholarship

  1. As a recipient of a Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Scholarship, you are required to agree to and fulfil the following scholarship requirements
    • Start your first year of studies at Swinburne at the commencement period outlined in your letter of offer.
    • Maintain:
      • a full-time study load: three units (37.5 credit points) or four units (50 credit points) per semester. 
      • achieve an average mark of 70% in each study period/semester.  
  2. If you withdraw from a unit after the Census date, this will impact your academic achievement for the semester and may impact your eligibility to receive the scholarship in future semesters.  
  3. If you withdraw from your degree after the Census date, you will forfeit the scholarship. You will not be eligible to apply for the scholarship again if you re-enrol at a later date.  
  4. If you transfer to a new course mid-way through your degree, the duration of your scholarship will be adjusted if you enrol in a course of shorter duration.
  5. Leave of absence - You are eligible to take up to 12 months leave from your scholarship. Your payments will be suspended during your period of leave.
  6. You may be invited to participate in university promotional activities or events.
  7. If you do not maintain the conditions outlined, Swinburne reserves the right to revoke or reduce the amount of your scholarship. 

These conditions apply to the following scholarship: 

  • Indigenous Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarship (ICECS)
  • Indigenous Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (ICAS)

Please note that Swinburne administers Commonwealth Scholarships under the Indigenous Student Success Program (ISSP) and Higher Education Participation and Partnerships Program (HEPPP) funding guidelines. Please visit the links above for further information.

As a Commonwealth scholarship recipient, you are required to agree to and fulfil the scholarship requirements below:

  1. You can only receive an Indigenous Commonwealth Scholarship for up to eight (8) payment periods.
  2. During the eight payment periods, you may be in receipt of an Indigenous Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarship (ICECS) and if eligible, an Indigenous Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (ICAS), concurrently or separately.
  3. You should not be in receipt of a Commonwealth scholarship from more than one provider at any one time:
    • if you are currently receiving an ICECS from Swinburne, you cannot also receive a Start-up Scholarship or a Start-up Loan from Centrelink for the same period. 
    • If you are currently receiving an ICAS from Swinburne, you cannot also receive a Relocation Scholarship or ABSTUDY Residential Costs Options or Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarships from Centrelink for the same period.
  4. You cannot transfer a Commonwealth scholarship awarded at Swinburne to study at another institution.
  5. You must notify the Scholarships Office (scholarship@swin.edu.au) immediately if you:
    • transfer to another undergraduate program at Swinburne
    • withdraw from your studies
    • change your home address
    • experience a change in your circumstances.
  6. To maintain your scholarship, you must maintain satisfactory academic performance as detailed in the Academic Progress and Reviews.*
  7.  Leave of absence - You are eligible to take up to 12 months leave from your scholarship. Your payments will be suspended during your period of leave.
  8.  If you do not maintain the conditions outlined, Swinburne reserves the right to revoke your scholarship. 

These conditions apply to the following scholarship:

  • Access Scholarships
  • Swinburne Welcome Scholarships

As an Access or Swinburne Welcome Scholarship recipient, you are required to agree to and fulfil the scholarship requirements below:

  1. As a recipient of the scholarship, you must:
  2. Leave of Absence - If you take a Leave of Absence from your course, you will forfeit your scholarship. You will not be eligible to re-apply for the scholarship when you recommence study after your Leave of Absence.
  3. Access Scholarships - Previous recipients of other ACCESS scholarships are ineligible to receive another ACCESS scholarship.
  4. Swinburne Welcome Scholarships: You must notify the Scholarships Office (scholarship@swin.edu.au) of any change to:
    • your Visa status
    • Centrelink benefits
  5. If you do not maintain the conditions outlined, Swinburne reserves the right to revoke your scholarship.

These conditions apply to the following scholarship: 

Donor-funded scholarships managed by Swinburne University

Your scholarship is funded through the generosity of a private donor. As a donor-funded Scholarship recipient, you are required to agree to and fulfil the scholarship requirements below:

  1. Remain enrolled full time in the discipline you were enrolled in at the time of offer. However,
    a small number of scholarships allow part-time enrolment. If you are unsure of your requirement, please contact the Scholarships Office at scholarship@swin.edu.au
  2. Maintain satisfactory academic performance as detailed in the Academic Progress and Reviews.* A small number of scholarships may have specific academic requirements. If you are unsure of your requirement, please contact the Scholarships Office at scholarship@swin.edu.au.
  3. Annual Donor Report – Submitting an Annual Scholarship Report is a condition of being awarded a donor scholarship. You are required to provide a written or video report for the donor, focusing on your academic experience and the impact of the scholarship. A report template will be provided to you to complete and return to the Scholarships office.

    The Scholarships Office will email you with a request to submit the report and provide a report template and due date.  Failure to submit a report may result in cancellation of your scholarship.
    Donor scholarships also require the disclosure of average student grades/GPA at the end of each semester and/or year to the scholarship donor/committees.
  4. You may be invited to participate in university or Donor promotional activities or events.
  5. Funds for your scholarship are provided through a generous gift from a private benefactor who takes great interest in your progress. If you cease or adjust your studies and are no longer eligible for the scholarship, please communicate your decision and the reasons to the scholarship donor via the Scholarships Office (scholarship@swin.edu.au)

* A student’s progress has been unsatisfactory if—a. in the case of a student enrolled with a full-time load or an onshore international student in Australia enrolled with a part time load – if the student fails, or does not demonstrate competency in, 50% or more of the student’s enrolled units, credit points or scheduled hours, for two consecutive progress review periods;b. in the case of a domestic student enrolled with less than a full-time load – if the student fails, or does not demonstrate competency in, more than 50% of the student’s enrolled units, credit points or scheduled hours for two consecutive progress review periods;c. if the student fails an enrolled unit of study for a third time; or (d) if the student fails to meet a condition which has been imposed as part of the progress review process.

As per the Academic Courses Regulations. 

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