American Australian Association

Graduate Education Fund

Scholarship Programs » Graduate Education Fund » Indigenous Scholarships

Indigenous Scholarships

The Graduate Education Indigenous Scholarships support Native American, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander individuals, to undertake full-time Graduate level study (Masters, Ph.D. or Postdoctoral Research) in each other’s countries respectively. These scholarships will provide support of up to US $40,000 to use toward travel, living, tuition and other associated educational costs.

The following scholarships are available each year:

  • Aurora Indigenous Education Scholarship (AUS to USA only): Will support Aboriginal Australian or Torres Strait Islander individuals undertaking or planning to undertake full-time Graduate level study (Masters, Ph.D. or Postdoctoral Research) in any disciplinary field, at an accredited educational institution in the US.

Applicants do not have to be accepted into the accredited educational institution at the time of application, though should be actively looking for placement.

Submission Period

Australia to USA: Open for application on January 1 to March 31.

USA to Australia: Open for application on August 1 to September 30.

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible to apply to the Indigenous Graduate Education Scholarships in the Australia to USA direction, applicants must:

  • Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident (dual citizens are not eligible);
  • Be a recognized member of an Indigenous Australian or Torres Strait Islander community;
  • Be undertaking or planning to undertake Graduate level study (Masters, Ph.D. or Postdoctoral Research) at an accredited educational institution in the US (offer not required at time of application);
  • Be studying or planning to study for a minimum of one year full-time in the US.

To be eligible to apply to the Indigenous Graduate Education Scholarships in the USA to Australia direction, applicants must:

  • Be a US citizen or permanent resident (dual Australian citizens/permanent residents are not eligible);
  • Be a recognized member of a Native American, Alaskan Native or Native Hawaiian community;
  • Be undertaking or planning to undertake Graduate level study (Masters, Ph.D. or Postdoctoral Research) at an accredited educational institution in Australia (offer not required at time of application);
  • Be studying or planning to study for a minimum of one year full-time in Australia.

Application links to apply online will be made available on this page when each application round is open (as per the dates listed above). Once you have started your application you can save, leave and go back any time before submitting by the due date. Please ensure to save your application each time you exit the browser in case of unforeseen technical difficulties. You will be notified of the results of your application roughly eight weeks after the deadline, at which successful applicants will receive further instruction.

The following documents will be required when applying to the Indigenous Graduate Education Scholarships in either direction. All documents that are not images/video should be saved and uploaded as a PDF:

  • High resolution colored headshot with a plain white background (minimum 1MB/300 DPI);
  • Video presentation (1-2 minutes) introducing yourself and your planned study in the country of the other;
  • Passport biographic page;
  • Confirmation of Identity from Indigenous community;
  • Academic transcripts from your previous Graduate and/or Undergraduate study;
  • 1-page resume;
  • Detailed budget outlining expenses and income throughout the year of supported study – please download and use the Indigenous Graduate Education Scholarships Budget Template as a guide. Also available to download in the application portal;
  • Please note: Once the portal is open for application, applicants are required to request 3x Letter of Recommendation requests (at least one should be from an Indigenous elder). Referee’s will have until 1 week after the portal officially closes, to submit their Letters. We encourage applicants to submit their referee requests from the portal, as soon as they start their application, to allow the referee’s ample time.

An example of each application can be downloaded here:

For further information please visit the American Australian Association scholarships FAQs page.

NB: Applicants will be required to provide proof of indigeneity when applying for the graduate Education Scholarships as an Indigenous Australian or Native American.

Please read our Frequently Asked Questions prior to starting an application.

Inquiries

To make inquiries about these scholarships please contact our Education Manager at [email protected] | +1 212 338 6860 x 205.