Youth scholarships to help bridge educational inequality

High school and tertiary students living in social housing or out-of-home care have just one week left to apply for the NSW Government’s Youth Development Scholarships to help address costs associated with education.

Now in its ninth year, the scholarship program has helped thousands of students from years 10 to 12 in high school as well as tertiary students at TAFE, university, or completing an apprenticeship or traineeship with funding towards study-related expenses such as laptops, textbooks, and internet access.

Grants of $1000 per applicant are available to reduce financial challenges and help disadvantaged young people further their study and enhance training and employment opportunities.

1,500 scholarships are available to eligible students in 2025. Applicants must be either a social housing client or living in out-of-home care, including:

• Receiving a private rental subsidy from DCJ (not Centrelink)
• Living in community housing/Aboriginal community housing
• Living in housing provided by a Local Aboriginal Land Council
• Living in supported, crisis or temporary accommodation
• Living in statutory, supported, or voluntary out-of-home care.

Applicants can be new students who have never received a scholarship or returning students who received a scholarship between 2017 to 2024 and are continuing with their education while still in social housing.

Applications close at 5pm, 21 February 2025 for new and returning high school applicants.
Applications for returning tertiary candidates close 14 March 2025.

More information on how to apply can be found at: https://dcjnsw.info/scholarships

Rebecca Pinkstone, Homes NSW CEO said:

“Education is expensive, and never more so than in a cost-of-living crisis. A scholarship of $1,000 can be the difference whether a young person chooses to pursue a traineeship and can make a huge impact on a year 12 students' grades by providing access to textbooks and the internet."

“We know financial pressure can create educational disadvantage, and this funding will assist by providing greater access to learning materials, further study opportunities and enhanced employment prospects. I urge all eligible students to apply for the grants.

“We want to empower young people in social housing and out-of-home care and give them that little bit of a leg-up to achieve their academic and career goals.”

Former Scholarship Recipient: Benjamin Narooz McGrory, Sydney University Graduate said:
 

“Having a scholarship meant that someone believed in me and was invested in my future and getting me into university.

“The scholarship was a critical part in helping me sustain my university studies and graduate with a degree, and now I’m employed at the University of Sydney Union.”

Returning Scholarship Recipient: Kaylab Kingston, Year 12 student said:
 

“I have Autism and I have had a tough time with family issues too. I have a great school and plan to use the scholarship to help set up my home study environment to make it work better for me.

“I need to be able to have better drawing software to follow my dreams of design and a better desk, lights and set up to complete work. This will absolutely help me do that.”