(1) The Scholarships and Awards Policy establishes the principles for establishing and general rules for the award and administration of student scholarships and awards funded by the Australian Government, Australian Catholic University (ACU) and donors. (2) This Policy applies to scholarships and awards administered by Australian Catholic University. (3) The Policy excludes: (4) ACU will establish scholarships and awards to: (5) ACU's scholarships and awards will: (6) Scholarships and awards: (7) To ensure equity and accountability in the selection process, scholarships and awards must: (8) Terms used in this Policy and Administration of Scholarships and Awards Procedure are consistent with the Glossary of Student and Course Terms. In addition, the following words and expressions have the meanings listed below: (9) The Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), or nominee is responsible for: (10) Advancement and Alumni are responsible for: (11) Marketing and External Relations and Global Engagement are responsible for the promotion and publicity of scholarships to prospective and current students. (12) The Scholarships Office is responsible for: (13) Faculties and Directorates are responsible for the governance and administration of awards of less than $2,500 in value. (14) Scholarships and awards may be funded by: (15) The acceptance of donations for scholarships and awards must be approved according to the Delegations of Authority Policy and Register. (16) A scholarship or award will be established in accordance with the principles in clauses 4 and 5 and must also: (17) Where a donation does not meet the conditions for establishment of a scholarship in clause 16b, prospective donors will be referred to: (18) Categories of scholarships will be determined on that: (19) Scholarship offerings will be: (20) For ACU scholarships administered by the Scholarships Office: (21) The eligibility criteria for awards must be approved by the relevant Faculty Board or member of the Senior Executive. (22) Recipients will be selected by the University against the published eligibility criteria. (23) External parties may only be involved in the selection of recipients where: (24) Where the published criteria require academic assessment and/or are specific to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, advice will be sought consistent with clause 19 of the Administration of Scholarships and Awards Procedure. (25) Merit scholarships will be awarded based on: (26) Equity scholarships will be awarded based on factors that impact access to education which may include: (27) A student may hold more than one ACU scholarship, in addition to any Commonwealth Scholarship, concurrently, unless otherwise specified in the scholarship rules. (28) Students who are continuing or fixed-term staff of ACU are not eligible for any scholarship covered by this Policy. (29) Students may not defer any scholarship unless the rules explicitly allow this under certain circumstances. (30) Where a scholarship is awarded 'for the length of the course', the duration will be calculated on the basis of the standard course requirements, as specified in the course rules, and/or up to a maximum duration negotiated with the donor as specified in the conditions of the scholarship. In the case of a double degree, unless the scholarship is awarded for the duration of both components, the scholarship will be for the standard duration of a single undergraduate pass degree only. (31) Where a scholarship is awarded for a continuing period of more than one semester the recipient must be enrolled in the course at the census date for the relevant study period. (32) The conditions for the continuation of a scholarship will include a requirement that students must gain: (33) Exceptional personal circumstances, supported by documentary evidence, may be taken into consideration if the student has not satisfied this requirement. (34) Where the conditions of a scholarship specify that the recipient be enrolled at a particular campus or in a specific course, the scholarship will be cancelled if the recipient no longer studies at that campus or in that course. (35) If the recipient of a scholarship fails to comply with any condition of that scholarship, the scholarship may be: (36) The conditions for any individual scholarship may specify that, in the event that the recipient withdraws from or fails to make satisfactory progress in their course of study, or fails to satisfy other requirements for continuation of the scholarship, the balance of the monies otherwise payable to the recipient will either: (37) The recipient of a scholarship awarded for a continuing period of more than one semester may apply for a suspension of the scholarship if they interrupt their course of study. If the recipient does not resume their course within one academic year, the scholarship will be cancelled. (38) Endowed Funds will be managed and administered in line with the Endowment Management and Spending Policy. (39) Monies payable to the recipient of a scholarship will be paid within 30 working days of the census date of each semester. (40) Where the closing date for applications has been extended beyond the census date, monies payable to the recipient of a scholarship will normally be paid either within 30 working days of the census date of the relevant semester or 20 working days of the offer, whichever is later. (41) Normally the value of a scholarship will be paid in equal instalments, with a minimum of one payment after the census date of each semester for the duration of the award. (42) Unless otherwise stated, the amount of each payment is calculated based on full-time enrolment, that is, 0.375 EFTSL per semester. If the student undertakes a lesser load, payments will be made on a pro rata basis subject to the conditions of the award. Enrolment status is normally not relevant in the case for the payment of an award. (43) Scholarship payments may affect student’s eligibility for financial support by the Australian Government. Recipients must be advised that it is their responsibility to ascertain any such impacts. (44) Any student wishing to appeal a scholarship decision may do so in accordance with the Student Appeals Policy. (45) An Annual Report will be provided to the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) (Provost) for noting by the Academic Board in accordance with clause 27 of the Administration of Scholarships and Awards Procedure. (46) Recipients of scholarships, or awards with a value of $1,000 or more must be recorded on the Student Management System. (47) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Policy, the Academic Registrar may, in any case deemed appropriate, vary, dispense with or suspend any requirement of or prescription in this Policy or in the conditions for individual scholarships or awards. Any such action will be reported to the Academic Board at its next meeting. (48) The revision table includes revisions up until this document was migrated into the current policy platform. Any later changes will show in the Status and Details tab. (49) For related legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines and any supporting resources please refer to the Associated Information tab.Scholarships and Awards Policy
Section 1 - Purpose
Section 2 - Policy Scope
Top of PageSection 3 - Principles
Top of PageSection 4 - Definitions
Top of Page
Term
Definition
Award
An award is a financial or other specified reward which may be won by a student for their academic or other achievement while studying at the University.
Equity scholarship
An equity scholarship is awarded to a student to assist their studies by providing financial and/or other relevant support based on demonstrated financial need or other educational disadvantage and may include additional eligibility criteria.
Merit scholarship
A merit scholarship is awarded to a student to support their studies by providing financial and/or other relevant support based on merit. Criteria for these scholarships may include academic and/or other merit.
Scholarship rules
Scholarship rules define the eligibility criteria, selection process, value and the ongoing eligibility requirements of a scholarship.
Section 5 - Roles and Responsibilities
Section 6 - Approval for Establishment and Amendment
Top of PageSection 7 - Approval of scholarship and award rules
Section 8 - Selection process
Top of PageSection 9 - Restrictions
Section 10 - Ongoing Eligibility Requirements of a Scholarship
Section 11 - Financial Matters
Section 12 - Appeals
Section 13 - Record Keeping
Section 14 - Saving Clause
Section 15 - Revisions made to this Policy
Top of Page
Date
Major, Minor or Editorial
Description of Revision(s)
2022
Section 16 - Associated Information
View Document
This is the current version of this document. You can provide feedback on this document to the document author - refer to the Status and Details on the document's navigation bar.
31 August 2016
Major
New Policy and Procedures adapted from the General Rules Governing the Award of University Scholarships, Bursaries and Faculty Prizes and Guidelines for the Management, Administration and Promotion of Scholarships, Bursaries, Prizes and Awards
25 November 2020
Major
A scheduled review resulted in revisions to the Policy and Procedures
3 February 2022
Minor
Minor amendments to requirements for ongoing eligibility for scholarships
15 June
Minor
Minor amendments to requirements for ongoing eligibility for scholarships