Equity schemes categories and participating institutions

Which categories do institutions recognise?

Equity schemes and scholarships cover personal information and location, financial hardship, living with a disability or medical condition, and difficult family and life circumstances. The table below provides an overview of the categories recognised by participating institutions, including additional information or requirements applicants need to be aware of. Some institutions run their own programs outside of the VTAC process. For further information refer to the institution's page or use the contact details below.

Categories and subcategories recognised by each institution

You can filter the table below by selecting an institution. If an institution is not listed, it means they do not recognise any VTAC equity scheme categories.

Select an Institution:

Institution	Category or subcategory	Additional information
Academy of Interactive Entertainment T: 03 8612 1900 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Difficult circumstances
Academy of Interactive Technology T: 02 7226 3773 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
ACAP University College T: 1800 039 139 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age	ACAP will consider applicants who have not satisfied minimum tertiary entrance requirements and are non-year 12 applicants for selected courses.
Australian Catholic University T: 1300 ASK ACU (1300 275 228) Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	Applicants must be male and applying for courses in Nursing, Early Childhood or Primary Education.
	Living or school postcode
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	Eligible applicants will be considered on an individual basis, and may be asked to attend an interview with a panel including an Indigenous member. The Academic Coordinator, Jim-Baa-Yer Indigenous Unit, will be involved in this interview and will provide assistance and support to applicants throughout the process. For further information, contact Jim-Baa-Yer on (03) 9953 3004.
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background
	First in family to attend university
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Box Hill Institute T: 9286 9891 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Non-English speaking background Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
Cairnmillar Institute T: (03) 9813 3400 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	Personal information and location Age Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university
	Disability or medical condition	A impact statement outlining the condition and duration, including how it has impacted your preparation for further studies, and Evidenced by a Medical Health Practioner.
	Difficult circumstances	A impact statement outlining your circumstances and how they have affected your preparation for further studies, and A letter of support from someone with knowledge of your circumstances, such a medical health practioner, counsellor, teacher, religious or community leader.
Charles Sturt University T: 1800 275 278 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Living or school postcode	Applicants must live in a rural or isolated area based on the ASGC Remoteness Areas classification, or have studied most of their Year 12 subjects through a secondary distance education centre.
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background
	Disadvantaged financial background	Applicant must provide details of how long they have been in receipt of Centrelink.
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances	Applicants applying for consideration as a refugee to Charles Sturt University must supply a copy of their refugee status papers from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. Refugee status papers may include: documents authorising travel, outcome of protection claim et. and/or a copy of their current visa and passport photo page and initial entry stamp for arrival in Australia.
Deakin College T: (03) 9244 5600 Web dcoll-This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
Deakin University T: 1800 693 888 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	Applicants must be applying for courses identified by Deakin at https://www.deakin.edu.au/study/how-to-apply/equity-schemes-and-scholarships
	Living or school postcode
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian
	Under-represented Schools	Applicants must attend a school identified by Deakin at https://www.deakin.edu.au/study/how-to-apply/equity-schemes-and-scholarships
	Non-English speaking background
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Elly Lukas Beauty Therapy College T: (03) 9923 8888 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Disadvantaged financial background Difficult circumstances
Federation University Australia T: 1800 333 864 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	Consideration will be given to applicants who are applying to study a course in which their gender has been historically under-represented. This includes applicants who identify as female, male, or non-binary.
	Living or school postcode	Applicants must live in a rural or isolated area based on the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) Remoteness Areas classification. All postcodes are eligible except those classified as 'major cities of Australia'.
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	Applicants may be contacted by the Aboriginal Education Centre (AEC) for further information regarding their application to study at Federation University. We encourage you to contact the AEC for advice and assistance with your application. For more information, please visit our website www.federation.edu.au/aec.
	Under-represented Schools	Applicants must attend a school which is defined by Federation University as under-represented. See www.federation.edu.au/seas for a list of participating schools.
	Non-English speaking background
	First in family to attend university
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
JMC Academy T: (03) 9624 2929 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
La Trobe College Australia T: 03 9479 2417 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
La Trobe University T: 1300 135 045 Web	Personal information and location
	Living or school postcode
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	La Trobe welcomes applications from First Nations Australian applicants. Prospective First Nations Australian students can access advice on entry to the University and enrolment procedures by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. For further information, contact the Office of Indigenous Strategy and Education at: www.latrobe.edu.au/indigenous
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background
	First in family to attend university
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Melbourne Institute of Technology T: 03 8600 6700 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	Personal information and location
	Gender	Consideration will be given to applicants who are applying to study a course in which their gender has been historically under-represented. This includes applicants who identify as female, male, or non-binary.
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Melbourne Polytechnic T: 1300 635 276 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Gender Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
Monash College T: 61 (3) 99034788 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Age Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university
Monash University T: 1800 MONASH Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age	You must be 21 years of age or older on 1 Jan 2027 when applying for a university place as a mature age student.
	Living or school postcode	If you live in a low socio-economic area, you may receive consideration based on your home address provided in your application. You may receive consideration if you live or attended a school in a regional or remote area based on the Australian Statistical Geography Standard - Remoteness Areas. Please refer to the Equity schemes calculator to determine if your address qualifies at monash.edu/seas.
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	The William Cooper Institute offers a range of support services throughout the application and enrolment processes and, will continue to support you through to successful completion. Indigenous Australians are strongly encouraged to contact William Cooper Institute for advice and assistance with their application, telephone (03) 9902 4972, email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
	Under-represented Schools	Monash has identified more than 1000 schools across Australia as being under-represented at university. If you attend one of these schools in 2026, and meet the other eligibility requirements, you may be eligible for the Monash Guarantee. You can find the list of schools recognised for 2027 on our website.
	Non-English speaking background	Applicants must have been born outside Australia in a non-English speaking country and arrived in Australia in the last 10 years (after 1 January 2017).
	First in family to attend university	You are first in your family if your immediate family (i.e. parents and grandparents) did not attend university, and you or your siblings are the first to do so.
	Disadvantaged financial background	You or your parent/guardian must be in receipt of a means tested Centrelink benefit (e.g. Youth Allowance, income-tested Health Care Card, Family Tax Benefit A), or be able to provide evidence demonstrating financial disadvantage.
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Photography Studies College (Melbourne) T: 03 9682 3191 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location Living or school postcode Recognition as an Indigenous Australian Under-represented Schools Non-English speaking background First in family to attend university Disadvantaged financial background Disability or medical condition Difficult circumstances
RMIT University T: 03 9925 2260 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age	Applicants must be 21 years of age or older on 1 January 2027.
	Gender	Applicants must be female applying for courses identified as under-represented by women at RMIT. A list of courses can be viewed at: https://www.rmit.edu.au/study-with-us/applying-to-rmit/local-student-applications/equity-access-schemes/applying-for-equity-access
	Living or school postcode	You must have a permanent address in a regional, remote, or under-represented area. Regional and remote areas are identified using the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) Remoteness Areas. Under-represented areas are identified using the Australian Bureau of Statistics Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) Index of Education and Occupation (IEO) score at the Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) of the permanent address.
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	The Ngarara Willim Centre at RMIT encourages all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants to apply for the Indigenous Access Program. This allows us to provide ongoing support to you throughout the application process. The Ngarara Willim Centre offers a range of services to our Indigenous students, including academic tutoring assistance and dedicated study spaces. For more information, contact Ngarara Willim on +61 3 9925 4885 or visit https://www.rmit.edu.au/ngarara.
	Under-represented Schools	If you are eligible for SNAP and your ATAR is within 20 points of the lowest selection rank (including adjustments) for a course, you may receive an equity adjustment. This could make you eligible for an offer, depending on your ATAR and how competitive the course is. For courses that select on a range of criteria such as portfolios, interviews or other selection tasks, SNAP applicants receive consideration on their performance in these tasks.
	Non-English speaking background
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Swinburne University of Technology T: 1300 794 628 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	Consideration will be given to applicants applying to study a course in which their gender has been historically under-represented. This includes applicants who identify as female, male, transgender or non-binary. For detailed advice on which courses fall into this category, please contact our Student Advisors by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone 1300 794 628.
	Living or school postcode
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	The Indigenous Equity Pathway at Swinburne University of Technology provides Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with equitable access to courses across VET and higher education. Supported through the Moondani Toombadool Centre, the pathway supports students culturally and academically. Start in VET or TAFE programs to build skills and confidence, creating a supported pathway into higher education degrees. For more information or to apply, please click the information link here.
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background
	First in family to attend university
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
University Of Melbourne (The) T: 13 MELB (13 6352) Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age	To be eligible for the University's Non-school leaver entry pathway you must: be 23 years of age or older on 30 September 2026; be eligible for a Commonwealth supported place; have no qualifications from the past seven years that could be used as the basis for your application; meet course prerequisites and any extra requirements; and demonstrate your likelihood to succeed in tertiary study by achieving competitive results in the STAT, SAT or CAP. More information: https://go.unimelb.edu.au/r48e
	Living or school postcode	To be eligible for the University of Melbourne's category for applicants from a regional or remote area you must: live at a residential address in a Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) not defined as a major city by the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS), and, if a school leaver, complete the final two years of secondary schooling at a school located in a postcode that is not defined as a major city by the ASGS. More information: https://go.unimelb.edu.au/r48e
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	Indigenous Australian applicants can access information about support and entry requirements from: Murrup Barak, the University of Melbourne's Institute for Indigenous Development at the Parkville campus; or the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development at the University's Southbank campus. For more information visit: www.murrupbarak.unimelb.edu.au
	Under-represented Schools	To be eligible for the University of Melbourne's category for applicants from under-represented schools you must: complete Year 12 at a school which is defined by the University as under-represented in the tertiary (higher education) sector and at the University of Melbourne. For more information about schools classified as under-represented for 2025 entry: https://go.unimelb.edu.au/r48e
	Non-English speaking background	The University of Melbourne requires that applicants were born outside Australia in a non-English speaking country and arrived in Australia less than six years ago (after 1 January 2021).
	First in family to attend university	Applicants are eligible for the University of Melbourne's first in family category if their parents did not attend university and their generation is the first to do so. This category applies to you even if your siblings attended university, provided your parents did not complete university education.
	Disadvantaged financial background	To be eligible for the University of Melbourne's disadvantaged financial background category you must: be in receipt of a means-tested Centrelink income support payment; or have parents/guardians in receipt of Family Tax Benefit A or B; or be able to demonstrate a disadvantaged financial background through an impact statement and statement of support; or reside in a low socioeconomic area, according to Government definition. More information: https://go.unimelb.edu.au/r48e
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
Victoria University T: (03) 9919 6100 Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	The University will favourably consider applications from applicants of the nominated gender applying for courses identified by Victoria University at: www.vu.edu.au/access
	Living or school postcode	The University will favourably consider applicants who live or attend secondary school in a rural or isolated area based on the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) Remoteness Areas classification.
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian	Indigenous Australian applicants are invited to contact the University's Moondani Balluk Indigenous Academic Unit for assistance with their application: Moondani Balluk – Indigenous Academic Unit \| Victoria University
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background
	First in family to attend university
	Disadvantaged financial background
	Disability or medical condition
	Difficult circumstances
William Angliss Institute T: 1300 ANGLISS Web This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Personal information and location
	Age
	Gender	Consideration will be given to applicants who are applying to study a course in which their gender has been historically under-represented. This includes applicants who identify as female, male, or non-binary.
	Living or school postcode
	Recognition as an Indigenous Australian
	Under-represented Schools
	Non-English speaking background