Australia is proving out to be a great place for international students to study. Its advantage over USA is that an international student studying in the USA gets only one year OPT (work visa for non-STEM courses),whereas studying for a minimum of two years in Australia gives the student a chance to not only get a 2 year work visa but also it is relatively easier in Australia to apply for PR (permanent residence).

Leading its charge for achieving the rights of hosting the 2028 Olympics, the Sports industry in Australia is booming like never before. Sports Analytics, Sports Management, etc along with IT are becoming real big areas of focus in Australia. Thus, if you are an Indian student wishing to study abroad, it is a great time to study in Australia. Having said that, the standard of living in Australia is very high and thus, very costly.

A student can work for only 20 hours a week part-time during the duration where his/her course of study is active and 40 hours a week during vacations. The amount earned per hour during part time varies from $5-$25. Universities in Australia generally cost about $25,000 in tuition fee per year. Thus more often than not, investment for studying in Australia can be a huge task, especially for student athletes who arrive in Australia because of it being a Sports hub.

In such situations, obtaining a sports scholarship will always come in handy as it will considerably reduce the charges that a student needs to pay to survive in Australia. Australian universities offer elite athlete programs to support their student-athletes. Here are some of the top Australian Universities that provide Sports Scholarships.

The University of Sydney

The University of Sydney is ranked 4th in the world and ranked 1st in Australia for the employability factor by QS graduate employability rankings in 2018, something that is really important for an international student. University of Sydney’s acceptance rate is about 30%. It is ranked first in Australia for Architechture.It also offers many courses in the fields like Software, medicine,law, arts and social sciences,etc.

It provides entry for international students in sports clubs for sports like cricket,football,boxing,fencing,archery,etc. Sydney Uni Sport and Fitness (SUSF) is an important organ of the university, that provides sports scholarships to able student athletes. The university provides an elite student program to which even international students can apply. The scholarships offered by this program are upto $15,000 per year. After the end of each year the student athlete must reapply for the scholarship. Accordingly, scholarship is granted to the students keeping in mind the achievements of the students in sports and academics.  

Also Read: Universities in USA that offer Sports Scholarship 

University of Melbourne

The QS world university rankings has seen University of Melbourne rise as the second best university in Australia. The factor of Melbourne being the most liveable city in the world,only adds up to the fame and attention that University of Melbourne gains among international students wanting to study in Australia. It is particularly known for its courses in Engineering and Law.It has an extremely high acceptance rate of 70-80%, making it a selective university for international students. It is famous for its football team, often called as just “University”.

It also offers other competitive sports like cricket, tennis, hockey, etc. This university offers high performance sports scholarship. It helps dedicated student athletes to help manage both their studies as well as sports. This includes an annual payment of at least $9,000 which may increase based on improved performance of the student in the respective sport and academics. This scholarship is open to all sports. Thus high acceptance rate and good scholarship framework makes this university a very high priority to many international students.

Bond University

Bond University, located in Robina, Gold Coast, Queensland, is Australia’s first private not-for-profit university and is ranked among the top 60 universities in the world. Law, business, health sciences, architecture, etc. are some of the internationally recognized undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Bond’s extensive programs and concept of trisemester helps in completing bachelor’s degrees in two years instead of three and master’s degrees in a year’s time. 36% of the total students studying in this university are international students. Bond University offers different sports like rugby, football, swimming,cricket, etc.

To its students. Bond Elite Sports Program (BESP) is a two-tiered sports program. International students can apply but they need to be extremely good in sports and academics if they want to reap the benefits of this sports program. Sports scholarships upto $2000 per year are granted for tier 1 program athletes. Good undergraduate and postgraduate programs and diverse culture will help Indian students settle in pretty nicely at Bond.

Australian National University

Australian National University (ANU) is ranked 20th in the world by QS global university rankings. It is situated in the heart of the capital city of Canberra.The list of few of the subjects includes Law & Legal Studies, Arts, Society and Culture, Natural, Physical and Environmental Sciences, Business and Commerce, Health and Medical Studies and Engineering and Computer Science. Admission process is highly competitive here with an acceptance rate of 35%. ANU is home to 35 sports like badminton, basketball, table tennis, cricket, swimming, etc.

ANU’s sports and recreation scholarships are for those ANU students who show promise and potential for excellence in sports. Its elite athlete program provides flexibility in academics and proper support in sports to ensure that student athletes excel in both these aspects. Scholarships upto $5000 upto five years are provided and international students too can apply for it. ANU being another university with high diverse culture,suits Indian students especially those who want to play a sport in Australia as they can avail sports scholarships via ANU.

University of Queensland

University of Queensland (UQ) is located in St.Lucia, along the banks of the Brisbane river. It is ranked among the best Research Universities in Australia.It is very well known for the sports scholarships it provides for international students. It is ranked 48th globally by the 2019 QS World University Rankings. Its acceptance rate is around 40%, giving a fair idea about the competitiveness for admissions. Popular courses are offered in the fields of agriculture, engineering, business and communication,tourism and law, humanities, psychology, etc.

Cricket, Tennis, Basketball, Hockey, Dodgeball, etc are the different sports offered by the UQ. It offers a number of sports scholarships for budding international student athletes willing to study in the UQ. UQ Sport Scholarship Ambassador Program was introduced in 2010 to provide high performance support services to professional and/or elite athletes who are ineligible for other scholarships on offer. Scholarships are open to athletes who have represented at an open, national or international level in their chosen sport,play in a professional sporting league; and are enrolled, or intend to enroll in a University of Queensland program (undergraduate or postgraduate) on a part-time or full-time basis.Preference will be given to students who are members of, or intend to join, a UQ sporting club.Athletes who hold another UQ sporting scholarship are ineligible to apply. $1500 per year will be provided for support services per athlete. The St Leo’s College Scholarship Program rewards those future Residents whose achievements deserve special commendation and recognition because of their excellence in the areas of academics, culture, sports or leadership and who wish to make a contribution to the College in its various local, national and global endeavours. Applicants must be a current Year 12 student, matriculation year secondary student or gap year student and must hold an International student’s visa, must be relocating from his permanent home address in order to attend university and must have completed an application for residency at St Leo’s College.The Scholarships are valued at $3,000 per award in the form of reduced accommodation installments across unbroken 2 year residencies commencing 2020.

Foundation: Sporting excellence scholarships is available to Future or Current student at The University of Queensland. It is applicable only for undergraduate Level of study. International students too can apply for this scholarship.This award was established by St John’s College Foundation in 2015 to support sporting excellence at the College. The award value is 10% of base accommodation fees per recipient per year.

The UQ Sport Competition Subsidy 2019 provides funding to assist talented student-athletes at The University of Queensland with out-of-pocket competition costs to compete at eligible national and international sporting events. Funding is upto $1000 per year. This program is funded through Student Services and Amenities Fees (SSAF) and is administered by UQ Sport Academy.