Swinburne Welcome Scholarship 2026

These scholarships allow holders of the following visas to access courses at Swinburne.

• Bridging Visa E (V050),
• Temporary Protection Visa (V785),
• Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (V790), and
• Temporary Humanitarian Concern (V786)
• Bridging Visa A (BVA's) (subclass V010) (who have also applied for permanent protection) 

Please remember that you must also submit an application for a course at Swinburne.

If you are a current Year 12 student and have applied for a course through VTAC, you must let us know your VTAC ID as part of your scholarship application by including it in your personal statement. If you are not a current Year 12 student, you can apply for a course directly to the University. Please go to the course application instructions for Asylum Seekers and Refugees.

• Bridging Visa ‘E’ (BVE’s) (subclass V050),
• Temporary Protection Visas (TPV) (subclass V785)
• Safe Haven Enterprise Visas (SHEV) (subclass V790)
• Temporary Humanitarian Concern (V786)
• Bridging Visa A (BVA's) (subclass V010) (who have also applied for permanent protection) 

• a commencing first year Swinburne student in 2026
• enrolled full-time in a Swinburne undergraduate or a select vocational education course (UniLink Diploma program, Diploma, or Advanced Diploma). Please note the following exclusions:
  
  Bachelor of Aviation
  Professional degree programs
  Swinburne Online courses.
  

Note: Part time enrolment will be considered under special circumstances

• community involvement
• financial hardship

This scholarship is related to the following study areas:

Personal statement

Submit a personal statement of up to 300 words addressing:

• your involvement in the community*
• how you intend to contribute to your community and society in the future.

• school
• community
• any member group of the Refugee Council of Australia
• church
• youth groups
• sporting clubs etc.

* This could have taken place in your home country or in any part of your journey in coming to and living in Australia. Please be sure to also tell us how you intend to contribute to community and society in the future.

Financial hardship

Evidence for financial hardship can include:

• Health Care Card
• Youth Allowance
• Newstart Allowance
• Austudy
• Abstudy
• Disability Support Pension
• Carer’s Payment
• Bank statements and payslips can be used if an explanation is provided in a personal statement.

Written reference

Submit a reference (written in the past twelve months). This must support what you say in your personal statement. This is not a character reference. The reference must include the date, name, position and contact details of the person providing the reference, and your permission for the University to contact them for further information if required.

Please make sure you have all of these documents together prior to starting your online scholarship application. We would also like to remind you that the completion of the online Swinburne Welcome Scholarship form is only one half of what you need to do; you must also apply for a course at Swinburne; either directly to Swinburne or through VTAC.

All scholarships offered by Swinburne are governed by a set of conditions. Please visit our scholarship conditions page for further information.
 

Submit the online application form with all supporting documentation by the closing date.