MN
Australia Awards Scholarship /AAS/
Introduction
The Australia Awards program is managed by Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It continues a long tradition of development scholarships that have been an important component of the Australian Government's aid program since the 1950s. The Australia Awards aim to:
- develop capacity and leadership skills so that individuals can contribute to development in their home country; and
- build people-to-people links at the individual, institutional and country levels.
Scholarship Announcement date: Applications for study commencing in 2021 will open in February 2020.
Available degree programs: Australia Awards Scholarships provide citizens of Mongolia with the opportunity to obtain a master’s degree qualification at an Australian tertiary institution.
Awards were offered for commencement in 2020 in two categories:
Category 1: Employees in central and local governments; public universities, hospitals and schools and state-owned enterprises. This Category receives 55 per cent of scholarships.
Category 2: Employees in the private sector, civil society and non-government organisations, private health and educational institutions and country-based offices of international organisations. This Category receives 45 percent of scholarships. Awards will be offered to study Masters by Coursework and Masters by Research.
Fields of Study:
The Governments of Mongolia and Australia have agreed on the following sectors, fields of study and areas of specialization for 2019:
Expenses Covered:
Eligibility
1. Be a citizen of Mongolia
2. Have been working and residing in Mongolia for the last 2 years at the time of applying
3. Not be a citizen of Australia, hold permanent residency in Australia or be applying for a visa to live in Australia permanently;
4. Not be married to, engaged to, or a de facto of a person who holds, or is eligible to hold, Australian or New Zealand citizenship or permanent residency, at any time during the application, selection or mobilisation phases
Requirements for Mongolian applicants:
In addition, candidates must also meet the following country-specific criteria:
1. Applicants require a Bachelor’s degree from a university of Mongolia and other countries that must be recognized by Australian universities.
2. Applicants working and living in Ulaanbaatar require a valid IELTS (Academic) overall score of at least 5.5 (or equivalent TOEFL) with no band score less than 5.0.
3. Applicants working and living in rural areas require a valid IELTS (Academic) overall score of at least 5.0 (or equivalent TOEFL) with at least Reading and Writing band scores no less than 5.0.
4. Applicants with identified and verified disabilities require a valid IELTS (Academic) overall score of at least 5.0 (or equivalent TOEFL) with Reading and Writing band scores no less than 5.0.
5. Category 1 applicants are required to have worked in the public sector continuously for two-years, however applicants with an identified and verified disability do not need to demonstrate two years’ continuous employment
6. Category 2 applicants are required to have worked for two years by the time of applying, however are not required to demonstrate continuous employment and applicants with an identified and verified disability do not need to demonstrate two years’ employment.
Note: IELTS and TOEFL certificates are valid for two years. Note: Only Academic IELTS scores are accepted for Australia Awards. General IELTS tests will not be accepted.
Note: Only paper-based and internet-based Official TOEFL tests are accepted for Australia Awards. Institutional TOEFL scores are not accepted.
Note: Applicants with a Master’s qualification from a non-Mongolian institution cannot apply for an Australia Award Scholarship in the same field.
Required Documents
To register online via https://oasis.dfat.gov.au/. Generally, applicants must prepare documents listed in the Australia Awards Scholarships Policy Handbook.
1. Birth Certificate Copy (copy of original and English language translation)
2. National ID
3. Tertiary degree certificates (Bachelor and/or Master level; copy of original and English translation)
4. Academic transcripts (copy of original and English translation, including GPA)
5. Copy of Social Insurance Book or Employment Order or Contract for the last 2 years.
Note: Applicants with a declared and verified disability do not require this document.
Note: Category 2 applicants may provide the required documents over a longer period of time in order to demonstrate 2-years total employment.
6. Copy of Academic IELTS or TOEFL certificate
7. Letter from Employer explaining current employment (with stamp and in Mongolian and with English translation). Note: Applicants with a declared and verified disability do not require this document.
8. Academic Referee Reports (with stamp). Two reports are required for Masters by Research applicants; one for Masters by Coursework applicants. If reports are in Mongolian, English translations are required. The template is generated by OASIS and also available on the Australia Awards Mongolia website.
9. Employment Referee Report (with stamp, using the same referee template as above. If in Mongolian, an English translation is required.)
Note: Applicants with a declared and verified disability do not require this document.
10. Curriculum Vitae (in English)
11. Reintegration Plan: (signed by the employer and applicant). Use the template on the Program website.
The Selection Process
Every year Australia Awards in Mongolia receives far more high quality applications than available scholarships. In order to arrive at a short list, there is a rigorous selection process that starts with all submitted applications being checked carefully for eligibility. Every application is then re-checked as a way to ensure full compliance. Any application deemed ‘ineligible’ is checked again and discussed by a panel to confirm the status.
All eligible applications are then sent to two independent consultants in Australia, not connected with the Australia Awards in Mongolia office or program. These two consultants check each and every application against set criteria and then cross check each other’s assessment for consistency. Their ranking and recommended shortlist is then sent to the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade for confirmation. The Australia Awards in Mongolia then contact shortlisted applicants to arrange an interview and unsuccessful applicants are advised at this time as well.
Interviews are chaired by the Australian Government with representatives from the Mongolian Government, civil society and an independent academic adviser from Australia.
The interview committee sends the list of successful candidates to the DFAT, which will make the final decision and announce the awardees.
For more information about this scholarship, please visit Australia Awards Scholarship website.
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