To be considered for an AISA scholarship, applicant must be

To be eligible, candidates must be an Australian citizen, resident in Australia, who one of the following:

• woman, or
• person of Indigenous Australian descent or
• disadvantaged

and enrolled or planning to enrol full-time and expecting to continue in full time study of cyber security or cyber privacy as part of a relevant degree/diploma at a government-run TAFE or government-run University in Australia

Disadvantage encompasses a range of evidenced barriers to achievement, including but not limited to, a disability, a neurodiversity disadvantage such as diagnosed learning disabilities, and social, economic or opportunity disadvantage (e.g. financial hardship, remoteness, etc

What types of supporting documentation are required?

The documents you need vary depending on your personal circumstances and the scholarship you’re applying for.

We’ve grouped some of the common criteria together, as well as the necessary supporting documentation, in the areas below. Please note, you must be a domestic student to be eligible to apply under these categories.

Some examples are

• Evidence of your financial hardship
• Evidence of your leadership roles
• Evidence of your community service and/or volunteering experience.

Selection Criteria

We are looking for people who show:

• a genuine enthusiasm for some aspect of cybersecurity or cyber privacy
• leadership
• initiative, resourcefulness or a strong work ethic
• curiosity by nature
• achievement, in academic or other areas

We recognise that those who experience disadvantage may not always be able to excel in their academic marks. Achievement may be in academic performance but may also be represented by achievement in other ways and our evaluation committee will consider these as well.

For those candidates selected for the scholarship shortlist, it may be necessary to attend an interview and provide additional supporting documentation. The interview panel will be composed of the AISA Board members or representatives.

To maintain the AISA Scholarship you need to:

• be enrolled full time in an approved accredited course at a government TAFE or university in Australia
• provide a transcript with your marks at the end of each marking period to show satisfactory progress
• attend at least one AISA event per year (a ticket will be provided for free) such as Cybercon, The Australian Cybersecurity Conference, PerthSec, AdelaideSec, BrisSec or other state-based branch events.
• submit a very short written summary (less than a page) each semester of your activities (e.g. subjects taken, related activities to the scholarship topic

Please provide all documents in PDF format.

Difficult circumstances

This area applies to you if you have experienced difficult circumstances (personal hardships) that have impacted your ability to study. No supporting documentation is currently required. This is confirmed in the answers you provide in your application. You will be contacted by the scholarships team if documentation is required to support the statement you make in your application.

Disability or medical condition

If you've told us about a disability or medical condition in your application, you need to provide:

• a letter from your doctor that indicates the level of impact your disability or medical condition has had/will have on your studies, or
• a Learning Access Plan that specifies your condition and its impact on your ability to study.

We can’t accept generic medical documents, such as prescription, hospital admission forms, special consideration forms and test results.

If someone you care for is living with a disability or medical condition, please refer to the difficult circumstances section above.

Financial hardship

Experiencing financial disadvantage? You’ll need to provide supporting documentation to ensure you meet the eligibility requirements to be considered for a scholarship. Please note that we don’t accept payslips, tax documents, bank statements or bills.
 

Receiving a means-tested Centrelink benefit or a Low Income Health Care Card

You need to provide either:

• a recent Centrelink income statement, which you can download from your Centrelink online account. The statement must be in your name, indicate the benefit you receive, and confirm your payment amount and date.
• a copy of your Low Income Health Care Card on which you are named (as the primary card holder or an eligible dependant). You can access a digital copy of your card with your mobile device, use either the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app or the myGov app. The copy must show both sides of the card in full.

Self-supporting with an income below $36,000

You need to provide a statutory declaration. In the form declare your income for the last financial year and provide an estimate of your income for the current financial year.

Supported by your family with a combined income of $64,000

You need to provide a Statutory Declaration. In the form, list the names of those who provide your financial support, declare your combined income for the last financial year, and provide a combined estimate of your income and those who support you for the current financial year.

Out of home care

No supporting documentation is required if you have previously/or are currently living in foster/kinship care or are a ward of the state. This is confirmed in the answers you provide in your application. You will be contacted by the scholarships team if documentation is required to support the statement you make in your application.

Under-represented, regional or Indigenous students

This category of special consideration supports a range of under-represented students, including applicants who identify as Indigenous Australians, and regional or remote applicants.

No supporting documentation is currently required if you identify as an Indigenous Australian.

No supporting documentation is currently required if you live, or have lived, in a regional or remote area of Australia which has impacted your ability to study. This will be confirmed against the home postcode you select in your scholarship application. Regional or remote are all categories other than RA1 (Major Cities of Australia) on the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) Remoteness Areas system map – check your regional or remote category using the Department of Health and Aged Care Remoteness Map.