You must read this Australia Awards

1 You must read this Australia Awards Scholarships policy handbook carefully and fully understand its contents before signing the Contract with the Commonwealth of Australia . The handbook is provided to answer any questions you may have about your scholarship. Please also read the other information in your pre-departure pack and follow the instructions carefully. For further assistance, please contact DFAT at This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyrights Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Commonwealth.

2 Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Commonwealth Copyright Administration, Attorney-General s Department, Robert Garran Offices, National Circuit, Barton ACT 2600 or posted at ISBN 1 920861 77 7 Internet: Australia Awards SCHOLARSHIP vii GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND 8 1. Australia Awards .. 12 Australia Awards Scholarships .. 13 How to use this scholarships policy handbook .. 13 Management responsibilities .. 15 2. Applying for an Australia Awards 17 Eligibility criteria .. 17 Country and regional profiles.

3 18 English language requirements .. 18 Finding an appropriate course and institution .. 20 Types of courses available to applicants .. 21 Types of courses for which Australia Awards Scholarships are not available .. 24 Application process .. 24 3. Fraud .. 27 4. Selection .. 28 Selection process and criteria .. 28 Reintegration 29 Successful and reserve applicants .. 29 Advising applicants of selection outcomes .. 30 5. Placement .. 30 Request for placement and placement offers .. 30 Preparation programs .. 32 6. Accepting the scholarship and its conditions.

4 34 Accepting the scholarship .. 34 Scholarship conditions .. 34 Child protection .. 38 Deferring an offer .. 38 7. Pre-departure .. 40 Pre-departure 40 Family .. 41 8. Visas .. 42 Visa requirements for awardees .. 42 Visa requirements for accompanying dependent family members .. 42 Visa requirements for awardees with disability .. 43 Visa requirements for the carer of an awardee with Visa obligations .. 43 Applying for a further student visa (scholarship extension) .. 44 Two-year exclusion rule .. 45 Early completion of the scholarship.

5 45 Post-scholarship externally funded program in 46 Debt to the Commonwealth .. 47 9. Awardees with disability .. 49 Support for people with disability .. 49 Applicants with disability .. 49 Principles for providing disability support for Australia Awards Scholarship awardees .. 50 Assessing disability support needs .. 51 Reasonable adjustments .. 51 10. Scholarship fees and entitlements .. 57 Summary of scholarship costs .. 64 Establishment allowance .. 67 Contribution to living expenses .. 67 Overseas Student Health Cover .. 68 Visa costs.

6 70 Conditions that apply to travel .. 70 Mobilisation 71 Reunion airfare .. 72 Completion travel .. 75 11. General support services .. 76 Standards for support services .. 76 Arrival in Australia .. 76 Accommodation .. 76 12. Academic support .. 78 Introductory Academic Program .. 78 Supplementary academic 78 79 Fieldtrips .. 81 Work attachments, placements or work experience .. 82 Academic progress .. 82 13. Variations to the terms of enrolment .. 85 Scholarship conditions and terms of enrolment .. 85 Withdrawals .. 86 Extensions.

7 87 Suspensions .. 88 Transfers .. 90 Upgrades .. 91 93 Entitlement variations .. 94 Terminations .. 94 14. Welfare Incidents .. 97 What is a Welfare Incident? .. 97 DFAT Notification and Procedure for Welfare Incidents .. 97 Principles for managing welfare incidents .. 98 Welfare Incident General Responsibilities .. 99 Conflict, Harassment and Bullying .. 101 Health Issues and Hospitalisations .. 102 Death of an awardee s family member .. 104 Pregnancy .. 104 Referral to Counselling Services .. 105 Victim of Crime Overseas.

8 105 Absent 106 15. Critical incidents .. 107 What is a critical incident? .. 107 Role of Student Contact Officers .. 107 Notification of critical incidents .. 108 Principles for managing critical incidents .. 110 Critical incident response and management .. 111 Awardees who are victims of or charged with a crime in Australia .. 112 Unexpected or emergency hospitalisation of an awardee .. 113 Death of an Australia Awards Scholarship 114 16. Natural 117 Types of natural disasters .. 117 Natural disasters Critical Incidents .. 117 Natural disasters Welfare 117 Natural disasters in Australia .

9 117 Natural disasters in an awardee s home country .. 118 17. Return home .. 120 Finalisation of studies .. 120 Return home 120 Final departure date .. 121 Remaining in Australia after the scholarship end 121 Returning home due to illness or accident .. 122 Awardees who are unfit to travel .. 125 Finalisation and completion of a scholarship record in OASIS .. 126 Requests for academic transcripts .. 126 18. Alumni .. 128 APPENDIX A: Proformas for reunion airfare travel .. 129 APPENDIX B: Critical incident report .. 131 APPENDIX C: DFAT No Objection Letter.

10 132 Australia Awards SCHOLARSHIP CYCLE DFAT ( Australia Awards Delivery Section & Program Areas) Develop policy & guidelines Establish desired program outcomes Manage contracts with stakeholders Develop and manage scholarship online systems Incorporate feedback from alumni into program creation Promotional activities Liaise with partner governments to identify development objectives and capacity gaps and needs Awardees Submit application form Short-listed applicants are interviewed Australia Awards Delivery Section provide on-demand assistance to Program Areas for selection processes DFAT Program Areas Receive enquiries and