Graduate Access Melbourne

The University’s equity program for domestic graduate students

If you are applying for a graduate degree as an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicant, you may be eligible for Graduate Access Melbourne (GAM).

Under GAM, specific circumstances of applicants will be considered in relation to admission and bursaries. There are three forms of consideration available through Graduate Access Melbourne:

  1. Graduate Access Melbourne may assist you to gain admission into a graduate degree, even if your tertiary marks are below the entry requirements. In assessing applications faculties and schools look to balance opportunity and your capacity to succeed. Admissions teams will consider whether your personal circumstances have had a sustained adverse effect on your academic achievement at undergraduate level and/or whether you are part of an under-represented group in tertiary education, including Indigenous Australians.
  2. The circumstances raised in your Graduate Access Melbourne application will also be taken into account during the assessment of your application for a Commonwealth Supported Place.
  3. Under GAM you are also considered for a Melbourne Graduate Access Bursary of $5,000. This bursary will be offered to students with the highest overall level of disadvantage within one or more of the Graduate Access Melbourne categories. The bursary will be paid in two instalments in April and September of a given year.

Eligibility

As an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person applying to a graduate course at the University of Melbourne, you need to demonstrate the capacity to succeed in the master degree of your choice. Under GAM, you are also eligible for benefits by fitting into at least one equity category. These equity categories include:

  • Applicants from a rural or isolated area
  • Recognition as an Indigenous Australian
  • Disadvantaged socio-economic circumstances
  • Disability or medical condition
  • Personal difficulties
  • Women in engineering.

We recommend that you take into consideration each equity category that applies to you when applying for Graduate Access Melbourne.

Important things to consider

You are eligible for Recognition as an Indigenous Australian category if:

  • you are of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent
  • identify as a person of Australian Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander heritage
  • are accepted as such by the community.

You are also required to provide supporting documents to Murrup Barak. You can find out more about eligibility processes by visiting our page about confirming your eligibility.

You can apply for Graduate Access Melbourne under any of the equity categories applicable to your own circumstances. The application process can be completed at the same time as your course application.

If you would like to discuss Graduate Access Melbourne and applying to study at the University, please get in contact with our team.

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