Scholarship general terms and conditions

General terms and conditions of scholarships are set out below:

  1. Scholarship offer and length of scholarship
    1. Advertised scholarships at FedUni may be withdrawn or awarded at the discretion of FedUni. Offers of externally funded scholarships are subject to approved funding contracts.
    2. The length of the stipend and/or fee scholarship will be provided to candidates in their Letter of Offer to Admission of Candidature or their Letter of Scholarship Offer.
    3. Any special conditions, milestones or external partner requirements will be set out in the Letter of Offer of Admission to Candidature or their Letter of Scholarship Offer
    4. Scholarship payments will not commence until the candidate returns a signed Acceptance of Offer acknowledging the terms in 1.3.
  2. Commencement
    1. The scholarship must commence within the dates specified in the Letter of Offer to Admission of Candidature or Letter of Scholarship Offer.
    2. Commencement of scholarships cannot be deferred. Where a candidate defers their offer to take up a HDR place, an offer of scholarship will be withdrawn.
    3. Scholarships will not commence unless a candidate is enrolled.
  3. Leave from studies and Leave of absence
    1. Where a candidate is granted approved leave from studies from their HDR program, their scholarship will be suspended until they return from leave. The duration of the scholarship will be extended by the duration of the leave from studies.
    2. The scholarship will not be suspended for the period where a candidate takes a leave of absence. Request for paid leave must be supported by relevant documentation, e.g. medical certificates or verification of personal circumstances. Paid leave provisions are set out in section 3.
  4. Termination of scholarships
    Scholarships will be terminated where:
    1. The candidate ceases to meet the eligibility criteria,
    2. The maximum duration of the scholarship has been reached,
    3. The candidate fails to return from an approved period of leave from study,
    4. Their thesis is submitted for examination
    5. The candidate has committed serious misconduct, including the provision of false or misleading information,
    6. Candidature has been terminated due to unsatisfactory progress, e.g Show Cause
    7. The candidate fails to re-enrol, with no response to attempts at communication by FedUni,
    8. The candidate takes unapproved leave, with no response to attempts at communication by FedUni,
    9. The candidate fails to participate in a formal progress review and does not respond to reasonable requests to do so.
    10. The candidate ceases to be a full-time candidate, and compassionate circumstances do not apply
    11. The Faculty and / or funding body deems that the course of study is not being carried out with competence and diligence,
    12. The Faculty deems that the candidate has failed to maintain satisfactory progress,
    13. A doctoral candidate fails to confirm within their first twelve months of full-time candidature.
  5. Reinstatement
    Stipends that have been terminated and have not reached the end of their funding period may be reinstated in the following instances;
    1. A candidate is required to re-enrol after examination to undertake revision of the thesis and re-submit for examination
    2. After a show cause proceeding finds that the candidate’s enrolment should not be terminated and the Principal Supervisor, Executive Dean of the Faculty of enrolment and Executive Dean of Graduate Studies approve the continuation of the scholarship.
    3. Where unsatisfactory progress, unapproved leave or progress reporting issues have been resolved and reinstatement of the scholarship is approved by the Principal Supervisor, Executive Dean of the Faculty of enrolment and Executive Dean of Graduate Studies.
  6. Taxation and legal requirements
    1. Stipends are provided for educational purposes only. Under section 51-10 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 stipends paid to full-time students for educational purposes are treated as exempt income. Advice on the taxation status on any type of income derived from a full-time or part-time HDR stipend scholarships must be sought from the ATO.
  7. Concurrent awards
    1. A candidate who receives a stipend is permitted to receive a concurrent award, scholarship or salary in relation to their course of study, provided the concurrent award, scholarship or salary is less than 75% of the annual value of the stipends.
  8. Permanent residency
    1. An international candidate who becomes an Australian permanent resident after commencing their scholarship, must notify FedUni immediately. The candidate will be transferred to a RTP Fee-Offset place, as described in the RTP Policy. Where a candidate pays full fees and has not advised FedUni of their permanent residency status prior to the semester census date, fees must still be paid by the candidate.

For further information on candidature, scholarships or any other matter relating to higher degrees by research, contact:

Graduate Research School
Federation University Australia
Phone: 03 5327 9508
Email: research.degrees@federation.edu.au