Australia Scholarhips

Quick Bite

 

The living expenses in Australia vary between 6-9 lakh.

 

The competition is relatively very high for securing australian scholarships.

 

High GAT/GRE/IELTS scores get you more weightage while applying for scholarships

Australia is an excellent choice for students looking to study abroad. Not only is it renowned for its academic excellence, tuition fees and living expenses are also quite affordable. Australian universities and colleges have an outstanding reputation for top-quality international education with a lot of them making it to the top 100 in several University Rankings.

Studying in Australia also gives you the unique opportunity to live a fun lifestyle – from exploring the natural wonders of its oceans and rain forests to living it up in its cosmopolitan cities.

Cost of Study

Despite all these attractions, the cost of studying in your study abroad destination is a very important aspect you have to consider. Investing in studying abroad in Australia can turn out to be quite expensive for most Indian families. This is where scholarships come to your rescue! Most often, a scholarship is the thin line that divides studying within India and studying abroad.

The living expenses in Australia vary between 6-9 lakh INR (rupees) per year. The fees for an undergraduate course can vary between 5-8 lakh INR (rupees) per year, while fees for graduate courses can cost you between 5.4-9 INR (rupees) per year. These costs would be much higher if you’re pursuing a medical or an engineering degree. In such a scenario, apart from depending on education loans, qualifying for a decent scholarship is the best way to study abroad without burning a hole in your pocket!

Although there are a lot of scholarships available for international students in Australia, the competition is very tough as Australia is a hot study abroad destination. There might be students among you who feel that you won’t be able to win a scholarship unless you have astronomically high grades and GAT/GRE/IELTS scores. But you stand a good chance even if you have an average score but are willing to research for scholarships and apply early.

This website (studyabroad.htcampus.com) is a gold mine of information about various scholarships that you can avail for studying in Australia. The Australian government and universities offer a host of scholarships to international students who wish to study abroad in Australia. These international scholarships are mainly for undergraduate and postgraduate studies, vocational education and training programmes:

Firstly and most importantly, you should check out the website and brochures of the college/university you plan to apply to for tie-ups or collaborations with any scholarship providers. Most colleges have this facility and mention these facts on their websites.

AusAID: This is an Australian Government initiative designed to promote knowledge, education links and enduring ties between Australia and its neighbours.

Rotary Scholarship: Rotary International offers a number of scholarships worldwide for periods of 3 months, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years.

• Eligibility:  Applicants must have completed at least two years of university or college course work, or must have a secondary school education and have been employed in a recognized vocation for at least two years when the scholarship begins. All applicants must be citizens of a country in which there is a Rotary club.
  
  Applicants must initially apply through a Rotary club located in the area of their legal or permanent residence, or place of fulltime study or employment. Persons with disabilities and members of Rotaract clubs are eligible and encouraged to apply.

International Postgraduate Research Scholarships (IPRS): IPRS enables international students to undertake a postgraduate research qualification in Australia and gain experience with leading Australian researchers. A total of 330 IPRS places are awarded each year at a cost of around $20m per annum.

• Eligibility: Scholarships are open to international students of all countries (except New Zealand) and are available for a period of two years for a Research Masters degree or three years for a Research Doctorate degree.
  
  The scholarship covers tuition fees and health cover costs for scholarship holders, and health cover costs for their dependants. From 2011, commencing IPRS recipients will be able to apply for an Australian Postgraduate Award.

Endeavour Awards: It is the Australian Government’s internationally competitive, merit-based scholarship program providing opportunities for citizens of the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas to undertake study, research and professional development in Australia.

Victoria-India Doctoral Scholarships Programme:  In the VIDS programme, ten scholars from India will be awarded 90,000 Australian dollars (about $94,400) each to pursue their Ph.Ds from varsities in Australia's Victoria state starting 2012. This scholarship has been set up by the state government of Victoria and the Australia India Institute. 9 universities: Deakin University, La Trobe University, Monash University, RMIT University, Swinburne University, Australian Catholic University, The University of Melbourne, University of Ballarat and Victoria University have agreed to provide a full tuition waiver to Indian students and the scholarships will support living costs and education-related travel.

These are just the main and the most popular scholarships in Australia. Almost all the good universities and colleges in Australia provide scholarship programmes. So when you’re making the list of Australian colleges you intend to apply to, make sure you check what kind of scholarships they provide. Find out which scholarships you’re eligible for, whether their deadlines have passed or not. Studying abroad need not be so difficult when you can depend on scholarships!

You need to keep the following ready while applying for Scholarships:

• Letters of Recommendation are usually given by your school/college teachers and are required by your scholarship sponsors so that they can get to know your strengths and weaknesses from a third person. Make sure the teacher you approach knows you well and has a good opinion about you!
• Transcript is basically a record of your grades, list of the courses you took and honours or degrees you received; basically your academic record. These are issued by the schools and colleges you’ve attended. Make sure you keep them ready.
• Personal Statement/Essay is the best way to improve your chances of being selected from a pool of equally deserving students. Come up with a stellar essay, well before time!
• Interview: Some of the scholarship committees take interviews to personally interact with you and to see for themselves if you are actually all that you’ve projected in your essay/resume! Be prepared to discuss your plans and talk about your interests with the scholarship committee. Make sure whatever you say is in sync with whatever you wrote in your application.

A lot of students planning to study abroad feel that getting a scholarship is difficult and that only the academically brilliant students land scholarships. Though good grades do help you, not all scholarship sponsors are looking at just a good academic record. Your extracurricular activities and talents also matter. So go out and apply to as many scholarships as you can, as long as you are eligible!

Kindly share your tips, experience and other useful information, which might help others  to get scholarship to study in Australia.