Australia Award Scholarships
Image: Australia Awards Logo and ICS building.
The Australia Award Scholarships are offered by the Australian Government to international students from eligible countries to undertake full time undergraduate or postgraduate study at participating Australian universities.
Benefits
- Full tuition fees
- Return air travel
- Contribution to Living Expenses (CLE)
- Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC)
For more details on benefits, visit the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Eligibility
For eligibility and participating countries, please refer to country specific eligibility criteria and direct your queries to in-country contacts.
Why Western Sydney University
Globally recognised for its research and innovations in teaching, Western Sydney University is an academic home for international students from over 70 countries. Western is credited for training emerging global leaders who will forge enduring connections between their home countries and Australia.
| "Pursuing a PhD can often be a solitary journey, but the vibrant and inclusive peer community at the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS), Western Sydney University (WSU) made it feel collaborative and enriching. Through ICS-led initiatives such as weekly seminars and writing groups, I found a supportive environment where knowledge exchange, intellectual curiosity, and peer learning are nurtured. While, the writing group provided a consistent rhythm to my academic writing, the weekly seminars broadened my interdisciplinary perspective and sharpened my critical thinking through exposure to diverse research projects and discussions. One of the most memorable experiences I had during my first 4 months here was participating in the Difficult Text Workshop. This intensive workshop pushed me to engage deeply with complex theoretical concepts, and offered a space for collective reflection on challenging materials. These experiences, along with the broader doctoral training and curriculum at Western Sydney University, significantly advanced my research journey. As I began my PhD, I was supported by comprehensive training modules, both online and offline that strengthened my research design, ethical grounding, and academic communication skills. These institutional and peer-based supports have been instrumental not only in developing my project but also in shaping my growth as a scholar committed to interdisciplinary, socially engaged research." |
Finding a supervisor
Western Sydney University offers supervisory expertise spread across Schools and Research Institutes.
The Institute for Culture and Society Located in Parramatta, Western Sydney, the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) sits on the traditional lands and waters of the Burramattagal people of the Dharug Nation. The ICS was established by a group of world-renowned scholars including Kay Anderson, Ien Ang, Tony Bennett, Katherine Gibson, Gay Hawkins, Bob Hodge, David Rowe, Tim Rowse and Deborah Stevenson.
Our doctoral and postgraduate programs at ICS have a strong reputation for academic excellence in pursuit of local and global contributions. Our community of doctoral scholars spans 19 countries, creating a rich tapestry of global research perspectives.
Our Institute’s current senior staff members comprise a unique group of scholars including Juan Francisco Salazar (Interim Institute Director), Brett Neilson (Deputy Director), Ned Rossiter (Director of Research), Malini Sur (Director of HDR and Teaching), Gerard Goggin, Louise Crabtree-Hayes, Greg Noble, Paul James, Amanda Third, Phillippa Collins, Denis Byrne, Fiona Cameron and Jessica Weir. ICS faculty engage in partnerships with government, industry, and community organizations and with many Australian and international universities in a broad range of fields including cultural studies, sociology, human geography, anthropology, environmental humanities, science and technology studies, history, communication and media studies, museum and heritage studies, Indigenous studies, and sustainability studies.
Australia-Awards Webinar
Please look out for a webinar to be delivered by Associate Professor Malini Sur, Director – Higher Degree Research and Teaching in July 2025. You may reach her at m.sur@westernsydney.edu.au.
Please do not write to multiple schools and institutes and send the same proposal/application to multiple faculties. At Western, supervisory panels work across schools and research institutes.
For advice, please contact A/P Sur m.sur@westernsydney.edu.au. Here is a link to the ICS Supervisory register that will help in identifying a supervisor.
