Hints and Tips

Here is some information to help you fill in the application form for a University of Sydney Scholarship.

We have based this information on the questions that we receive from students in each scholarship round but if you think there is something that it would be particularly useful to have more information about, please send us an email to and we will try to update this web page accordingly.

The Personal Statement is used by the Faculties to find out more about each scholarship applicant than what is evident from the school reports/trial marks etc provided in the rest of the application. The committees assessing scholarship applicants want to know that the students they choose to receive scholarships will not only perform well academically at university but will also contribute to university life in a positive way.

Faculties do like to see:

Many scholarship applicants have excellent marks and have been captain of various teams and societies throughout their school careers. The personal statement gives you a chance to show what qualities you have that make you stand out from the other applicants and what makes you particularly suitable to receive a University of Sydney Scholarship. We strongly recommend that you use the personal statement to distinguish yourself from what is already a top quality field.

Presenting a dot point list of achievements dating back to the year seven swimming carnival doesn't tell the selection committee much about you as an individual or about your superior communication skills (one of the suggested criteria). We encourage you to write in a more engaging style and remember that the people reading the statements want to know more about you as a person, so don't be scared to sell yourself. Good luck!

• Evidence that the proposed degree study is of particular interest to the applicant e.g. through involvement in relevant activities beyond what is normally required in the standard curriculum
• Involvement in a wide range of activities throughout the senior years of high school e.g. artistic pursuits, sport, debating and community engagement
• An outstanding academic record
• An interest in future careers related to the proposed degree study

Faculties don't like to see:

• Handwritten personal statements
• Bad spelling and grammar
• Tiny font size
• Excessive use of bullet points (or CV style statements)
• Achievements too far in the past (e.g. from the first two years of high school or from primary school)
• Statements significantly shorter than a full A4 page

School report

You should also include your most recent school report.

Faculties understand that many schools won't have finished their Trial HSC by the due date and that not all students will have a mid-year report from 2009. If this is the case, you can include your 2008 school report.

There is no need to explain that you don't have a report for 2009. Just include the 2008 report.

School reference

If you have a school reference, then you may include this.

Faculties understand that many schools do not provide references. You will not be disadvantaged if you are unable to include a reference.

Faculties do not want to see any inclusions other than those listed above. It is better not to include photos, certificates, etc.

Your application should simply be stapled or clipped together. Any plastic envelopes, binding etc, will be discarded before your application is sent to the Faculty.

You are only allowed to submit one application for a University of Sydney Scholarship and must therefore decide which faculty you would like your application to be considered in. Applications are not assessed at the Scholarships & Prizes Office. Your application will be sent to the faculty you have nominated on the form for assessment, therefore you should think carefully about which faculty you would like your scholarship application to be considered in.

Some students want to apply for degrees in more than one faculty and this is fine - you can submit preferences to the UAC for as many degrees as you like. However, you can only submit one scholarship application for consideration in the faculty nominated on the form.

If you are offered a scholarship by the faculty nominated on your application form then you can study any degree program administered by them -including combined degrees (provided you meet the UAI requirement for entry to your preferred course)*. Choosing one faculty for the application isn't necessarily restrictive as you still have many options within that area of study. For example, a student applying for a scholarship in the Faculty of Arts could be considering enrolling in anything from Psychology to Social work, Arts/Law or Arts/Medicine.

Check UAC course codes against the table in section one of the application form if you're not sure which faculty the degree you wish to study is administered by (this changes from year to year for some combined degree programs). If you aren't sure of a specific degree when you apply, make sure that the faculty you apply in administers the sorts of degrees that you are interested in.

The faculties assessing applications for University of Sydney Scholarships do want to see that applicants are passionate about the subject area they intend to pursue and this is something that they look for in the Personal Statement.

You should use the table in Section One of the application form to help work out which faculty you should write down if you are not sure.

For example, if your dream degree is Bachelor of Engineering/Bachelor of Science, you should find the UAC code for that course (511770 in 2009) and see where it fits in with the table. As it falls in the range 511716-511797, you should write Engineering and Information Technologies as the faculty you are applying for on the application form. This faculty will assess your application for the scholarship.

If you are offered a scholarship by the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technologies but decide that you actually want to study Bachelor of Engineering or even a Bachelor of Computer Science and Technology (instead of Engineering/Science) there would be no problem as the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technologies administers these degree programs also. If you changed your mind again and decided that you actually wanted to study Bachelor of Physiotherapy, you would not be able to transfer your scholarship offer from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technologies to the Faculty of Health Sciences.

As stated on the application form, for combined Law degrees, you must nominate the Faculty that you intend to combine with Law e.g. for Arts/Law you should nominate Arts, for Commerce/Law nominate Economics and Business.

Health Sciences students should be very careful when nominating their faculty as we often see applicants who have nominated Science on the application form even though they have spoken at length about their life long dream to study Sports Science and Nutrition at the University of Sydney in the personal statement. The application will be sent to the faculty nominated on the application form for assessment so it is worth checking the table if you are not sure.

*Please note that a scholarship offer does not guarantee you entry to your preferred degree program. You may achieve the required UAI to be eligible for a scholarship (95) but not get the required UAI for your top degree preference. For example, Arts/Law has a UAI cut off over 97. If you were on the shortlist to receive a scholarship from Arts and your UAI came in at 96, the scholarship offer would be confirmed for you to study any degree in the Faculty of Arts that you were eligible for based on your UAI. With a UAI of 96 you would not be eligible for entry into Arts/Law but you could take up the scholarship for any other degree program which required a UAI of 96 or below in this Faculty.