Australia Awards Scholarships in Bangladesh
Australia’s international development assistance in
Bangladesh aims to develop its human resources and overcome poverty which will drive more inclusive economic and social progress in the country.
Australia Awards Scholarships are prestigious international awards offered by the Australian Government to the next generation of global leaders for development. Through study and research, recipients develop the skills and knowledge to drive change and help build enduring people-to-people links with Australia.
Applicants will be assessed for their professional and personal qualities, academic competence and, most importantly, their potential to have an impact on development challenges in Bangladesh.
Applications are strongly encouraged from eligible people from the following focus areas — employees of the
Government of Bangladesh, icddr,b and BRAC; people working in water resource management; and members of ethnic minority communities across Bangladesh 1 – in particular, eligible women and people with a disability from these focus areas.
Priority fields of study
Australia Awards Scholarships enable recipients to develop improved professional and technical knowledge and build links with individuals and institutions within the region and Australia.
In Bangladesh, the Australia Awards Scholarships are targeted to employees of the Government of
Bangladesh to assist with developing the human resources base of the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) and Bangladesh Judicial Service. Also eligible are non-
BCS first class officials from Bangladesh Bank, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Primary and Mass Education
1 ‘ethnic minority community’ means any one of the Indigenous,
Aboriginal & ‘Tribal’ Peoples of Bangladesh in Different
Classifications detailed in Table 1 of the International Labour
Organisation publicatio n ‘
The ILO Convention on Indigenous and
Tribal Populations, 1957 (No. 107) and the Laws of Bangladesh:
A Comparative Review’
which can be found at: http://www.ilo.org/indigenous/Resources/Publications/WCMS
_114385/lang--en/index.htm
and those from the Public Service Commission deployed in primary education service delivery.
The Australia Awards Scholarships also target staff members from icddr,b and BRAC, ethnic minority communities across Bangladesh and people working in water resource management (in particular, in relation to regional or cross-border issues) to develop skills, and expertise.
The priority areas of study for Bangladesh for intake
2016 are:
Government of Bangladesh (GoB) employees:

GoB General
For details please click on this link: http://australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/priori ty-development-themes/employees-of-the-governmentof-bangladesh/general

GoB Education sector professionals.
For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index
.php/how-to-apply/bangladesh/prioritydevelopment-themes-bd/employees-ofgovernment-of-bangladesh/education

GoB Economic Growth sector professionals.
For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/ how-to-apply/bangladesh/priority-development-themesbd/employees-of-government-of-bangladesh/economicgrowth
For Intake 2016, a select number of scholarships will be dedicated to Education and Economic Growth sector professionals working for the Government of Bangladesh. icddr,b employees: For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/how
-to-apply/bangladesh/priority-development-themesbd/employees-of-icddr-b
BRAC employees: For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/how
-to-apply/bangladesh/priority-development-themesbd/employees-of-brac
Water Resource Management: For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/how
-to-apply/bangladesh/priority-development-themes-bd/waterresource-management
Bangladesh: Information about Australia Awards Scholarships

Ethnic minority communities: For details, click on this link: http://www.australiaawardssouthwestasia.org/index.php/how
-to-apply/bangladesh/priority-development-themesbd/ethnic-minority-groups
Applicants must research two preferred courses, including information provided on institution websites, and ensure that the y meet the institution’s English language & other course related requirements.
Level of study
Australia Awards Scholarships
These long term Australia Awards Scholarships provide citizens of Bangladesh with the opportunity to obtain a postgraduate qualification at an Australian tertiary institution.
They are offered at Masters’ level only.
Australia Awards Scholarships Benefits
Australia Awards Scholarships are offered for the minimum period necessary for the individual to complete the academic program specified by the Australian education institution, including any preparatory training.
Scholarship recipients will generally receive the following:
• Return air travel
• A one off establishment allowance on arrival
• Full tuition fees
• Contribution to living expenses
• Introductory academic program
• Overseas Student Health Cover for the duration of the
Scholarship
• Supplementary academic support and
• Fieldwork allowance–for research students and masters by course work which has a compulsory fieldwork component equivalent TOEFL or PTE score). However, they must meet the standard English language requirement of their course, if offered an Australia Awards Scholarship.

All a pplicants must have at least 2 (two) years’ full time work experience in a field relevant to their proposed course of study at the time of application submission .
GoB applicants must have completed at least 2 years of service tenure and obtained service confirmation at the time of application.

All applicants must have completed a tertiary level qualification at least equivalent to an Australian
Bachelor’s degree. Please note that Bachelor’s degrees obtained from private universities in Bangladesh are generally not considered equivalent to an Australian
Bachelor’s degree. Applicants should check with their proposed Australian institution whether their Bangladesh qualification is considered equivalent to an Australian
Bachelor’s degree.
English language support funded by the Australian
Government may be available to selected eligible women, members of ethnic minority groups and people with a disability who do not have an overall IELTS test score of 6.5 and individual band scores of at least 6.0 (or TOEFL or PTE equivalents) at the time of recommendation for award.
Special conditions
Applicants must also meet the following country specific conditions:

Recipients of awards are required to return to
Bangladesh for at least two years after completing their studies.

Australia Awards Scholarships for 2016 must be taken up in that year. They cannot be transferred to a future year.
Eligibility criteria
Australia Awards Scholarship applicants must meet all eligibility requirements detailed in the Scholarships Policy
Handbook, available at: http://aid.dfat.gov.au/Publications/Pages/scholarhandbook.aspx
Application dates (for study commencing in Australia in
2016)
Opening date:
Closing date:
1 February 2015
30 April 2015
Applications or supporting documents received after this date will not be considered.
In addition to these basic eligibility requirements, applicants from Bangladesh must also meet the following country specific conditions:

An IELTS (Academic) overall score of at least 6.5 with no band less than 6.0 (or TOEFL paper-based test score of at least 580, or computer-based score of at least 237 or an internet-based score of at least 92) (or equivalent
PTE score). Scores must be valid at 1 January 2015 and must be submitted with applications.

Women will be considered with an overall IELTS band of at least 6.0 with no band less than 5.5 (or equivalent
TOEFL or PTE score). However, they must meet the standard English language requirement of their course, if offered an Australia Awards Scholarship.

Applicants with a disability and from ethnic minority groups will be considered with an overall IELTS band score of at least 6.0 with no band less than 5.0 (or
The application process
Online applications
Apply online at: https://oasis.ausaid.gov.au/
We strongly advise applicants to apply online and to do so well before the closing date. The online application facility
(OASIS) experiences peak usage in the days leading up to the closing date and applicants may experience delays.
Hardcopy applications
If it is not possible to lodge an application online, contact the Australia Awards Office Bangladesh for assistance for a hard-copy of the application form.
This needs to be done well in advance of the application deadline.
Bangladesh: Information about Australia Awards Scholarships

Supporting documents
Applicants must submit with their application all of the relevant supporting documents listed in the Scholarships
Policy Handbook.
Applicants must also provide the following documents to meet the specific requirements for Bangladesh:
Documents requiring certification are specified in the table below. If the document is not in English, the translated copy must be certified. See the Scholarships Policy Handbook for certification requirements.
Document Name
Passport
OASIS type
Proof of citizenship
Notarized
Yes
Notes:

Referee reports other than the prescribed format will not be accepted and may make applications ineligible. Contact the Australia Awards Office in
Bangladesh to clarify reference requirements.

Research applicants shortlisted for a selection interview must submit a well-developed research proposal by the date of the interview.

Experience shows that it takes time for supervisors to complete referee reports. Approach supervisors as soon as possible to obtain up-to-date referee reports. References should come from employers, senior colleagues or academics familiar with the applicant’s academic, professional skills and achievements. Referee reports from family members or spouses are not acceptable.
Tertiary degree certificates (Bachelors and Masters level)
Degree
Certificate
Yes
Academic grades
(Bachelors and Masters level)
Academic
Transcript
IELTS, TOEFL or PTE results
Certificate of special achievements or merit
Proof of English language proficiency
Yes
Yes
Other Document Yes
The selection process
Following eligibility checking, applications will be assessed and ranked by independent consultants and then shortlisted by Australian Government representatives. Only short-listed candidates are contacted for interview. The selection process will also include an interview and a written exercise using a computer. Applicants will be assessed against the following criteria:
• Academic competence
• Potential outcome, including contribution to development outcomes in Bangladesh
• Professional and personal leadership attributes
Academic Referee
Reports (with seal: 2 reports for Masters by
Research applicants; 1 for Masters by
Coursework applicants)
Template available at: http://www.dfat.gov.au
/aboutus/publications/Docu ments/referee.pdf
MS Word version: http://www.dfat.gov.au
/aboutus/publications/Docu ments/referee.docx
Referee Report No
Preparatory training
All successful applicants will be required to attend a visa and mobilisation session and a pre-departure briefing and farewell event.
You may be required to complete the following preparatory training and or testing:
• IELTS-International English Language Testing
System/ TOEFL/PTE to assess English language competence
• English language support program
Employment Referee report (with seal - same template as above)
Referee Report
Evidence of service confirmation (for GoB applicants)
Curriculum Vitae
Other
No
No
Other Document No
Outcomes
All applicants will receive notification as to whether they have been successful by the end of September 2015.
Research proposal
(for Masters by research applications)
Other Document No
Bangladesh: Information about Australia Awards Scholarships

Further information about the Australia Awards can be found at: http://aid.dfat.gov.au/australia-awards/
Information about visas and Australia Awards
Scholarship entitlements and conditions can be found in the Scholarships Policy Handbook, available at: http://aid.dfat.gov.au/Publications/Pages/scholarhandbook.aspx
More general information about the Australia Awards and studying in Australia can be found at: http://australiaawards.gov.au
http://aid.dfat.gov.au http://studyinaustralia.gov.au
Organisation: Australia Awards Office
Bangladesh
Address: Level 1, House 374, Lane 06,
DOHS Baridhara, Dhaka 1206
Telephone: +880 4478004423-24
Mobile: +880 1730338495
Email: inquiries@australiaawardsban gladesh.org
Website:www.australiaawardsbangladesh.org
Bangladesh: Information about Australia Awards Scholarships