Australia Awards Scholarships are the Australian Government’s fully funded awards for people from partner countries in Asia, the Pacific and Africa. They pay full tuition, return airfare, an establishment allowance, health cover and a fortnightly living allowance for a degree at an Australian university, and you must leave Australia for at least two years when you finish. African applicants are limited to master’s degrees and need five years of work experience.
The round for study starting in 2027 opened on 1 February 2026 and closed on 30 April 2026. Australia Awards Africa says the next round, for study starting in 2028, opens in February 2027, which puts the deadline at 30 April 2027. This guide lists the participating countries, the dates and rules by region, and how to build an application that gets you to interview.
Australia Awards Scholarships at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Funder | Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) |
| Where you study | Participating Australian universities and TAFE institutes |
| Who can apply | Citizens of participating countries in Asia, the Pacific and Africa, applying from their home country |
| Levels | Set by each country profile; master’s only for Africa |
| Work experience | Set by country; five years after your first degree for Africa |
| Application portal | OASIS (Indonesia and the Philippines use their own portals) |
| Return rule | Leave Australia for at least two years after the award |
| Application fee | Free |
| Deadline | 30 April 2027 (opens 1 February 2027) |
Australia Awards participating countries
DFAT runs the scholarship through a country profile for each partner. If your country is not on the list, you cannot apply, and the levels, priority fields and work rules all come from your own profile. These are the countries on DFAT’s participating countries page:
| Region | Participating countries |
|---|---|
| Asia | Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam |
| Pacific | Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna |
| Africa | Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe |
There is a wrinkle for Africa. The Australia Awards Africa profile for the 2027 intake listed 25 countries: it included Angola, Guinea and The Gambia, and it did not include Benin or Senegal. If you are from one of those five countries, wait for the 2028 Africa profile in February 2027 before you plan around this award.
Australia Awards Scholarships dates by region
Most countries follow the same window, but the closing time and the portal differ. These are the dates for the round that has just closed and the deadline for the next one:
| Region or country | Portal | 2027 intake round | Deadline (2028 intake) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Africa (all participating countries) | OASIS, through Australia Awards Africa | 1 February to 30 April 2026, 11:59 pm AEST | 30 April 2027 |
| Most Asian and Pacific countries | OASIS | 1 February (9:00 am AEDT) to 30 April 2026, 2:00 pm AEST | 30 April 2027 |
| Indonesia | Australia Awards Indonesia portal | 1 February to 30 April 2026, 11:00 am WIB | 30 April 2027 |
| Philippines | Australia Awards Philippines portal | Check the local portal for the exact closing time | 30 April 2027 |
(Based on this year’s date; confirm on the official page when the call opens.) For Africa, 11:59 pm AEST on 30 April is 2:59 pm in Lagos and 4:59 pm in Nairobi the same day. For the OASIS deadline at 2:00 pm AEST, that is 5:00 am in Lagos, so do not leave it to the last evening.
What the Australia Awards Scholarship covers
- Full tuition fees for the length of the approved course.
- Return air travel between your home country and Australia at the start and end.
- Establishment allowance, paid once on arrival for rent bonds, textbooks and study materials.
- Contribution to living expenses, paid fortnightly at a rate DFAT sets.
- Overseas Student Health Cover for the whole award.
- Introductory Academic Program before your course starts, plus supplementary academic support.
- Fieldwork allowance where fieldwork is compulsory, and reasonable adjustments for scholars with disability.
Costs it does not cover
- Family costs: flights, visas, health cover and school fees for a partner or children are yours to pay.
- English test fees and the cost of certifying documents.
- The gap between the allowance and city rents: the living contribution is a contribution, and Sydney and Melbourne rents are high.
Australia Awards eligibility for African applicants
The Africa profile is stricter than most Asian and Pacific profiles. Based on the 2027 intake profile, you must:
- Be at least 25: on 1 February of the year your study starts (1 February 2027 in the last round).
- Have five years of work experience: after your first degree, in a field related to what you want to study.
- Be employed when you apply: unemployed applicants are not eligible.
- Apply from home: be a citizen of a participating country and apply from it, unless you work for an African regional organisation or your country’s diplomatic mission.
- Hold a bachelor’s degree only: you must not already hold or be studying for a master’s degree.
- Be a first-time awardee: anyone who has held a long-term Australia Award cannot apply again.
- Meet the English score: IELTS Academic 6.5 with no band below 6.0, TOEFL iBT 84 with at least 21 in each section, or PTE Academic 58 with no communicative score below 50. Native speakers who studied in English are exempt.
Priority fields for Africa
| Priority area | Example master’s courses |
|---|---|
| Agriculture and food security | Agricultural science, agribusiness, food science |
| Climate change | Environmental management, climate policy, water resources |
| Foreign policy and international security | International relations, diplomacy, security studies |
| Gender, disability and social inclusion | Development studies, public health, social policy |
| Mining and energy | Mining engineering, energy policy, geology |
The course examples are my own reading of the areas, so check that the course you pick is accepted under your profile. Every applicant, wherever they are from, is excluded from flying, nuclear technology and military training courses, and intending migrants and Australian permanent residents cannot apply.
How to apply for Australia Awards Scholarships
- Read your country profile: download it from DFAT or your regional Australia Awards site as soon as the round opens. It sets the levels, fields and documents for your country.
- Pick your course: choose a course at a participating Australian institution that fits a priority field. You do not need to contact the university or get an offer first.
- Register on OASIS: create an account at oasis.dfat.gov.au (or the Indonesia or Philippines portal).
- Upload documents: passport, degree certificate, transcript, CV, English test result, and referee reports from your employer and an academic. Each file can be at most 2 MB, in PDF, Word, RTF, image or text format.
- Answer the questions: the form asks about your work, your development impact and your plans after study.
- Submit: you can edit a draft until you press Submit, and you can un-submit and edit until the deadline. Late applications and documents are not considered.
Document checklist
| Document | What to check |
|---|---|
| Passport | Bio page clear and readable; it proves citizenship of a participating country |
| Undergraduate degree certificate | The final certificate, plus an English translation if needed |
| Academic transcript | All years of your bachelor’s degree |
| CV | Dates of every job, so the panel can count your five years (Africa) |
| Employer referee report | From your current or recent supervisor |
| Academic referee report | From a lecturer who taught or supervised you |
| English test certificate | Still valid on 1 January of the start year, unless you are exempt |
| Other items | Anything your country profile or the Scholarships Policy Handbook adds |
Keep each file under 2 MB. A scanned certificate saved as a high-resolution colour image often goes over that, so save scans in greyscale PDF at a moderate resolution and check the size before you upload.
What happens after you apply
| Stage | Timing in the last round |
|---|---|
| Eligibility check and shortlisting | Shortlisted candidates told by mid-August |
| Interview (Africa: academic ability, development contribution, leadership and work experience) | After shortlisting |
| Conditional selection | At least four months after the deadline (Indonesia) |
| Successful candidates notified | Late in the year of application |
| Study starts | The following year |
Writing answers that get you shortlisted
Australia Awards are a development programme, so the panel wants a clear line from your current job to the course and back to a change you will make at home. Keep each answer specific:
- Name your role and organisation and what you are responsible for.
- State one problem in your sector, with a number if you have one.
- Connect the course to that problem by naming what you will learn.
- Describe the return plan, including your employer’s support if you have it.
A strong opening might read: “As a senior extension officer in Kenya’s Nakuru County, I support 3,000 smallholders, and post-harvest losses in our maize chain are still close to a third of the crop.” It shows the job, the scale and the problem in one line, which is what the interview will probe.
Common mistakes
- Counting national service or internships towards the five years without checking your profile’s definition of work experience.
- Uploading an English score that will expire before 1 January of the start year.
- Applying while holding a master’s, which rules out African applicants.
- Choosing a course outside your priority areas with no explanation.
- Waiting on referees until the final week.
For referee reports, our recommendation letter samples show your employer what a useful letter covers.
Australia Awards compared with similar scholarships
| Scholarship | Host | Work experience | Open to Africans? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia Awards Scholarships | Australia | Five years (Africa) | Yes |
| Manaaki New Zealand Scholarships | New Zealand | One year full-time | No, Pacific and Asia only |
| Chevening Scholarship | United Kingdom | 2,800 hours | Yes |
| Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship | Several countries | Three years | Yes |
Who should apply and who shouldn’t
Apply if you are a mid-career professional in a participating country, your job sits in one of your profile’s priority areas, and you intend to go home. Skip it if you want to migrate to Australia, if you already hold a master’s (for Africa), or if you are under 25 or short of five years’ work as an African applicant. Younger African graduates have a better shot at awards with lighter work rules, such as Chevening.
Frequently asked questions
Which African countries are eligible for Australia Awards?
DFAT lists 24, including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Egypt, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. The 2027 Africa profile also named Angola, Guinea and The Gambia, so check the new profile in February 2027.
Can I apply for Australia Awards without work experience?
Not from Africa, where five years after your first degree is required and you must be employed when you apply. Some Asian and Pacific profiles set lower requirements, so read your own.
Do I need an admission letter before applying?
No. You choose a course on the form, and the university placement is arranged after you are selected.
When is the Australia Awards deadline for the 2028 intake?
30 April 2027. The round opens on 1 February 2027, and Africa closes at 11:59 pm AEST while most other countries close at 2:00 pm AEST.
Sources and updates
Checked on 25 October 2026 against DFAT’s Australia Awards pages at dfat.gov.au (participating countries and the frequently asked questions, including the 2027 intake dates and OASIS rules), the Australia Awards Africa profile for the 2027 intake and its apply page (eligibility, priority fields, notice that the 2028 round opens in February 2027), Australia Awards Indonesia’s important dates page, and Study Australia’s 2027 intake notice. Country-by-country dates on DFAT’s opening and closing dates page could not be read when I checked, so the Philippines time is not stated here. This post will be updated when the 2028 intake profiles are published.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
