Commonwealth supported
Domestic fee information for Australian citizens, New Zealand citizens and Permanent visa holders enrolling in a Higher Education course.
What is a Commonwealth supported place (CSP)?
A Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) is a university place where the Australian Government pays part of your fees. This is a subsidy which means that you do not pay the full course fees and reduces the cost of your study. It is not a loan, and you don't have to pay it back.
However, this subsidy does not cover the entire cost of your course. The remaining cost is called the student contribution amount. You are responsible for paying this amount upfront by the census date, or if eligible applying for a Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) loan by the census date. HECS-HELP is a loan which allows eligible CSP students to defer payment of their student contribution each semester.
All our undergraduate courses and most postgraduate courses offer CSPs.
Am I eligible for a CSP?
To be eligible for a CSP you must:
- be an Australian citizen, who will complete some of your course of study while resident in Australia;
or
- a New Zealand citizen; or an Australian permanent visa holder; or an eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holder; who studies the entire course while living in Australia
- have a Unique Student Identifier (USI) prior to the first census date
- have sufficient Student learning entitlement (SLE) available
- not undertake more than 2 years worth of higher education study within 12 months (unless you have been academically approved to take on more).
All commencing CSP students must complete an online Request for Commonwealth Support and HECS-HELP form (eCAF) before enrolling and read the Commonwealth supported places and HECS-HELP information booklet. Once you have submitted a valid CSP eCAF, it will remain valid for the duration of your course.
How much will I pay?
Units are grouped into bands by their discipline and each band has a different student contribution amount set by the Government each year. The student contribution you pay will depend on how many units (subjects) you enrol in as well as the discipline/band and study load each unit. Not all units in your course will necessarily be in the same band so individual unit costs may vary.
You can estimate your student contribution amount by assuming that all units in your course are from the same discipline and using the annual student contribution to give you an indicative fee for the year.
Your student contribution is calculated based on each unit band and equivalent full-time student load (EFTSL). The formula is: band amount x unit EFTSL value. For example, NURBN1012 is a Band 1 unit with a 0.125 EFTSL value so the calculation is $4,445 x 0.125 = $555 (rounded down to the nearest whole dollar). Details of the band and EFTSL for each unit are available on the subject information page.
The 2024 Student Contribution Amounts can be viewed here (PDF, 278.47 KB).
2025 student contribution amounts
| Band | Unit (subject) discipline | Annual student contribution 1 EFTSL^ | Standard 0.125 EFTSL unit fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Psychology | Education, Postgraduate Clinical Psychology*, English, Mathematics or Statistics, Nursing, Indigenous and Foreign Languages, Agriculture * unit with FOE code 090701 studied in accredited course (refer below) | $4,627 | $578 |
| 2 Prof Path | Allied Health, Other Health, Built Environment, Computing, Visual and Performing Arts, Professional Pathway Psychology** or Professional Pathway Social Work*** Engineering, Surveying, Environmental Studies or Science, Pathology ** unit FOE codes starting with 0907 studied in accredited courses (refer below) *** unit FOE codes starting with 0905 studied in accredited courses (refer below) | $9,314 | $1,164 |
| 3 | Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science | $13,241 | $1,655 |
| 4 | Law, Accounting, Administration, Economics, Commerce, Communications, Society and Culture | $16,992 | $2,124 |
2025 grandfathered student contribution amounts (continuing students who commenced before 1 January 2021)
| Band | Unit (subject) discipline | Annual student contribution 1 EFTSL^ | Standard 0.125 EFTSL unit fee |
|---|---|---|---|
1 Psychology | Agriculture, Postgraduate Clinical Psychology*, Education, English, Foreign Languages, Mathematics, Nursing, Statistics * unit with FOE code 090701 studied in accredited course (refer below) | $4,627 | $578 |
GF1 Prof Path | Communications, Professional Pathway Psychology**, Professional Pathway Social Work***, Society and Culture, Visual and Performing Arts ** unit FOE codes starting with 0907 studied in accredited courses (refer below) *** unit FOE codes starting with 0905 studied in accredited courses (refer below) | $7,973 | $996 |
| 2 | Allied Health, Built Environment, Computing, Engineering, Environmental Studies, Other Health, Pathology, Science, Surveying | $9,314 | $1,164 |
| 3 | Medicine, Dentistry, Veterinary Science | $13,241 | $1,655 |
| GF3 | Accounting, Administration, Commerce, Economics, Law | $13,305 | $1,663 |
^ FOE = Field of Education
For the Professional Pathway or Postgraduate Clinical Psychology student contribution amounts to apply a student must be enrolled in one of the following courses and undertake units with the listed Field of Education (FOE). The FOE code can be found on the unit outline.
Postgraduate Clinical Psychology
Only Psychology units with the FOE 090701 undertaken as part of the following course will be charged the Postgraduate Clinical Psychology student contribution amount.
| Code | Course name | Course Type |
|---|---|---|
YL9 | Master of Psychology (Clinical) | Postgraduate Clinical Psychology |
Professional Pathway Psychology
Only Behavioural Science units with a FOE starting with 0907, undertaken as part of the following courses will be charged the Professional Pathway Psychology student contribution amount.
| Code | Course Name | Course Type |
|---|---|---|
HY5 | Bachelor of Psychological Science | Professional Pathway Psychology |
| HY8 | Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours | Professional Pathway Psychology |
Professional Pathway Social Work
Only Human Welfare Studies and Services units with a FOE starting with 0905, undertaken as part of the following courses will be charged the Professional Pathway Social Work student contribution amount.
| Code | Course name | Course Type |
|---|---|---|
| HC5 | Bachelor of Community and Human Services | Professional Pathway Social Work |
| SW5 | Bachelor of Social Work | Professional Pathway Social Work |
| HW9 | Master of Social Work (Qualifying) | Professional Pathway Social Work |
| HW9 | Master of Social Work (Qualifying) (Children and Families) | Professional Pathway Social Work |
Grandfathering arrangements - student contribution changes from 2021 onwards
The Australian Government made changes to student contribution bands as part of the Job-ready Graduates Package – higher education reforms. The package included changes to the student contribution for new students who commence study from 1 January 2021 onwards and introduced grandfathering arrangements for students who commenced their course before 1 January 2021.
Grandfathered students will not be disadvantaged by the student contribution changes. If you are studying units where the student contribution has decreased, you will be charged the decreased rates. If you are studying units where the student contribution has increased, you will be charged the lower grandfathered rates.
Students who are not grandfathered, will be charged the new student contribution rates. Further information is available on the Australian Government's Study Assist website.
You will be charged the grandfathered student contribution rates for if:
- you were at any time before 1 Jan 2021, a Commonwealth supported student in relation to a unit in your course; and
- you commenced a course before 1 Jan 2021, and did not complete the course by the 31 Dec 2020; or
- you completed a course on or before 31 December 2020 and, on or after the 1 Jan 2021 you commence the honours course that relates to the earlier course and leads to a higher education honours award; or
- in 2020 you were undertaking an enabling course and, on or after 1 Jan 2021, you commence another course that is leading to a higher education award; or
- in 2020 you were undertaking a higher education award undergraduate certificate course and, on or after 1 Jan 2021, you commence another higher qualification course that relates to the undergraduate certificate and is leading to a bachelor degree.
Overloading your course requirements
If you are enrolled in a CSP and planning to overload your course requirements by enrolling in additional units, please be aware these units cannot be undertaken in a CSP with a student contribution amount charged. Any additional units to your course requirements will need to be taken on a non-award single subject basis and charged at a Full Fee-Paying rate. You will also be unable to access a FEE-HELP loan to defer payment for non-award tuition fees.
Before making any enrolment changes, please discuss your study plans and fee implications with Student Administration.
