Helping students in need access life-changing educational opportunities is all in a day’s work for the team at the Public Education Foundation (PEF). But, as cost-of-living pressures continue to sting Australian families, this year’s number of applications for much-needed scholarships has skyrocketed – and they’re hoping for financial support that will enable deserving students to follow their dreams.
“We received over 740 applications across primary, secondary, and tertiary levels for the 2024 school year,” PEF CEO David Riordan told EducationDaily. “The harsh reality is that we only have funds to support 237 students.”
Together with our volunteer panel members, the PEF team has been methodically working through the scholarship applications for several weeks. In their selection process, they set aside a ‘waitlist’ of students who are deemed worthy scholarship recipients – if they had the funds to approve their applications.
In September this year, the PEF sent an appeal to a few donors which raised funds to cover four additional tertiary students for three years. Now, they hope a fresh push for additional support will help fund their waitlisted applicants across all levels.
“The outcome for these waitlisted students depends on how much we can raise through this appeal,” he says.
Their goal, he says, is to “award life-changing scholarships to more students” – and they hope to receive the money to enable them to do that by 15 December.
“Many of these students have dreams and goals for the future but are disadvantaged because of a lack of resources,” Mr Riordan told EducationDaily. “Almost 500 students will not be awarded any scholarships simply because we do not have the funds to support them. The situation is simply too heart-breaking.”
Supporting refugees and First Nations applicants
With the average scholarship amount per student sitting at $1,500, the students they are hoping to help educate in 2024 include a diverse range of applicants.
“From refugee students alone, we received over 160 applications and more than 100 applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students,” Mr Riordan says.
Initial scholarship announcements will be made in December, and their goal is to raise $200,000 by 15 December to support that first round.
“We hope to announce a second batch of scholarship recipients from the waitlisted applicants prior to Christmas,” he told EducationDaily. “This will be based on how much extra we are able to raise.”
In their application to PEF, one student wrote: “We currently have only one laptop that is being used by everyone in the house because we are really struggling financially and cannot afford a laptop or even a genuine table and chair to properly study and do homework. This makes it really hard to study at home because studying on the floor makes it really painful because all of the pressure goes on the elbows when you are laying flat on your stomach.”
One of the principals in a public school supported by PEF provided feedback on the impact of our scholarships, says Mr Riordan.
“He said, ‘You make these young people feel special and that makes them stand just that little bit taller”. This is not just about sending someone to school. It’s about making sure they can participate in all aspects of their education and hopefully helping to make dreams come true and contributing to a brighter future for these students through education.”
Overcoming unique challenges to create a positive educational pathway
Although many people are impacted by economic disadvantage for a variety of reasons, PEF COO Paul Somers says some groups have unique issues to overcome that make it even more challenging.
For people from refugee backgrounds now living in Australia – often after being forced to flee their homelands with little warning – financial security is a key challenge. When this lack of resources is coupled with significant barriers to securing sustainable employment, refugee and humanitarian entrants can face significant financial hardship during the early years of settlement in Australia.
All donations of $2 and above are tax-deductible,” says Mr Somers, adding “at PEF, we ensure that no more than 10 per cent of your gift goes towards administrative expenses”.
“This means that 90 per cent of your donation goes directly to benefit a student,” he told EducationDaily.
Mentoring and resources make a difference
To help support approved applicants, scholarship funds are distributed to individual students and/or their schools. In addition to these funds, Mr Somers told EducationDaily that the PEF also provides a large suite of supplementary opportunities, depending on which stage of the student journey a scholarship recipient is on.
“Examples include attending one of our flagship events – some of which have 1000-plus attendees – mentoring, alumni access and access to online resources such as Studiosity,” he says.
But, while sharing positive news that their scholarship application has been approved, Mr Somers says the flipside is telling people they cannot receive the funding they need to continue their education.
“As one would expect with people from disadvantaged or any other backgrounds, disappointing news can drive very different behaviours. At one end of a spectrum, there may be students who see constant rejection as a sign to them they people and organisations don’t believe in their ability which may lead to detrimental outcomes,” Mr Somers told EducationDaily. “On the other hand – and the beauty of so many students we engage with is that they’re used to overcoming barriers, they’re resilient and they will ultimately ‘find a way’, no matter what is presented to them.”
