Ngarara Willim Postgraduate Coursework Scholarship

This scholarship provides:

• Up to $7,000 per year ($3,500 per semester) for full-time enrolled students, for up to two years
• Up to $3,500 per year ($1,750 per semester) for part-time enrolled students, for up to four years

Five scholarships were awarded in 2025.

To be eligible for this scholarship you must:

• identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander
• be able to meet RMIT's Indigenous Eligibility^* requirements by providing documentation that confirms you are of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander heritage by the application close date
• be an Australian citizen or Australian permanent resident
• be enrolling full-time or part-time in a postgraduate by coursework program at RMIT in Semester 2 2026
• have at least one semester of your program left to complete
• be passionate about your study and future career

Preference will be given to students who can demonstrate:

• participation in your local, indigenous and/or university community
• circumstance(s) that impact your ability to study, inlcuding:
  • live with a disability, long-term medical condition, or identify as neurodivergent
  • have experienced or currently experiencing significant personal or life difficulties
  • have relocated/will be relocating from interstate or a rural or regional area to Melbourne to study at RMIT (check eligibility using the Regional Adjustment Calculator)
  • are experiencing financial hardship, for example if you:
    • receive a Centrelink/Department of Veterans' Affairs low-income support payment, or
    • hold a low-income Centrelink Health Care Card

^*Please see the RMIT Indigenous Eligibility page for what supporting documentation is required. For further information contact the Ngarara Willim Centre at iap@rmit.edu.au or on (03) 9925 4885. 

The online application form will be made available here when applications open. 

Supporting documentation

Depending on your circumstances, you will need to provide different types of evidence and material to support your scholarship application. Applications without supporting documents will not be considered.

You will need:

• To meet RMIT's Indigenous Eligibility requirements by providing documentation that confirms you are of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander heritage by the application close date.

Please visit Supporting Your Application for more information.

Application questions

If you are shortlisted for the scholarship, you will be contacted to answer further application questions. Please check the email address you nominate in your scholarship application form at least twice per week. It is expected that the online application will take approximately thirty minutes to complete. The questions are listed below to allow you time to prepare your answers in advance. When you answer these questions, please use your own words, ideas and experiences — we want to hear your voice, not something written by AI or copied from another source.

• What program are you currently studying (or about to start) at RMIT, and why did you choose this program?
• What are your career plans after you finish your studies at RMIT?
• How will your RMIT program help you prepare for this future career?
• How would receiving a scholarship support you to continue and complete your studies at RMIT?
• Please articulate how you are connected and/or contribute to your Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community. 

Find out more about applying for scholarships.

Applications for Semester 2 2026 will open on Friday 15 May 2026.

Applications for Semester 2 2026 will close at 2:00pm Monday 15 June 2026.

View the Coursework Scholarships Office’s terms and conditions (PDF, 698KB).

Find out how to contact the Coursework Scholarships Office or Ngarara Willim.