Opportunity

Australia Awards Cambodia

Australia Awards Cambodia is an Australian Government program that pays for Cambodians to study for master's degrees and PhDs in Australia.[1] It is part of Australia's development aid to Cambodia and is meant to train people who will help shape the country's future, while building ties between the two countries.[1] The program also runs short courses and a pathway program that helps applicants from groups facing barriers become eligible.[1]

Sponsorship

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade runs the scholarships.[2] Tetra Tech International Development manages Australia Awards Cambodia for the Australian Government from an office in Phnom Penh.[1] Since 2026, the Australian Government's Mekong-Australia Partnership has also funded additional awards for Cambodia.[3]

Award and support

The main award, the Australia Awards Scholarship, is a long-term award for a master's degree by coursework or by research, or for a PhD, at an Australian university; undergraduate study is not offered.[2][3] It lasts for the shortest time needed to finish the course, normally about one to two years for a master's degree and three to four years for a doctorate.[3] It pays full tuition, return airfare, a one-time allowance on arrival, a contribution to living costs, an introductory academic program, overseas student health cover and extra academic support, and a fieldwork allowance for research students.[2] It does not support family members who come to Australia with the recipient.[2]

Before leaving Cambodia, every provisional awardee takes about three weeks of full-time pre-departure training, and coursework students who have not yet reached the required English level take up to six months of English training.[2] During this training a monthly stipend is paid: $270 for non-government and $210 for government awardees in Phnom Penh, and $370 and $330 for those based outside the capital.[2] In Australia, the program pays for recipients to attend conferences in their fields and arranges internships and networking events.[3]

Applicants whose study falls within the partnership's themes may also apply for one of up to five Mekong-Australia Partnership awards for Cambodia, open to master's study by coursework or research.[3] These carry the same benefits and add membership of the Mekong Leaders Network, which links award holders from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.[3]

Australia Awards Short Courses are intensive group trainings, usually two to three weeks long but ranging from a few days to five months, taught by Australian universities and training providers.[4] They are aimed at senior staff and mid-career professionals, need no university entry requirements and can use interpreters.[4] Past courses have covered mining regulation, e-commerce, foreign investment, construction safety and diplomatic training for women leaders.[4]

The Equity Pathways Program serves five groups that have faced barriers to scholarships: women, people with disability, provincial residents, Indigenous and ethnic minorities and other marginalized groups such as LGBTQIA+ people.[5] Participants receive three to four terms of part-time English training, paid testing and help preparing applications and interviews, with travel allowances for provincial participants.[5] A paid internship program helps people with disability gain the two years of work experience the scholarship requires.[5] Joining the pathway program does not guarantee a scholarship.[5]

Eligibility

Applicants must hold Cambodian citizenship only, with no second nationality.[2] For Intake 2027 they had to have lived in Cambodia for the 24 months before applications closed on April 30, 2026, apart from short trips for work, training or holidays.[2] By the same date they needed at least 24 months of paid full-time work, or the part-time equivalent.[2] Paid internships count as work experience.[2] People from every sector may apply, from government and universities to civil society, the media and business.[2] The program strongly encourages applications from the same groups the Equity Pathways Program serves, and from people living outside Phnom Penh.[2]

Coursework master's applicants usually need a bachelor's degree.[2] They also need an overall International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic score of 6.0 or higher, with every band at 5.5 or above, or a matching result on one of two other accepted tests.[2] Research master's and PhD applicants need an overall IELTS score of 6.5 or higher, with every band at 6.0 or above.[2] They also submit two academic referee reports and evidence of sustained contact with a proposed supervisor who supports the research topic.[2] Test results must date from after January 1, 2025.[2] Preference may go to applicants who do not already hold a master's degree from an overseas university.[2]

Every field of study is open, and climate-related study is strongly encouraged, but general management degrees such as the Master of Business Administration are excluded.[2] Courses that include the training needed for professional registration, such as medical internships, are not allowed.[3]

Awards stay provisional until the recipient reaches an overall IELTS score of 6.5, with every band at 6.0 or above, gains a university place and receives an Australian visa.[2] Recipients sign a contract with the Commonwealth of Australia and must leave Australia for two years after finishing their course, with the expectation that they return to Cambodia.[2]

Application

Applications for Intake 2027, for study starting in Australia in 2027, opened on February 1, 2026, and closed on April 30, 2026.[2] They are made through the Australian Government's online application system or on a paper form delivered or mailed to the Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh by the closing date.[2] Documents in Khmer must come with English translations, which the applicant may make, and no certification is needed at the time of application.[2] Eligible applicants may claim a refund of their English test fee.[3]

Eligible applications are shortlisted and the shortlisted applicants interviewed, and they are judged on academic ability, likely contribution to Cambodia's development and leadership qualities, including relevant work experience.[2] For Intake 2027 the program planned to tell shortlisted applicants in June or July 2026, hold interviews in July and name provisional awardees in August or September 2026.[2]

Recipients

More than 1,000 Cambodians have gone to Australia for postgraduate study on the awards since 1994.[1]

Recipients named by the program:

  • Nuon Markara, Master of Public Policy and Management, University of Melbourne; an ambassador for Intake 2027[2]
  • Mam Vannaro, Master of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Australian National University; an ambassador for Intake 2027[2]
  • Sarin Lina, Master of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Australian National University (returned 2026)[6]
  • Keth Piseth, Master of Urban Planning, University of Melbourne (returned 2026)[7]
  • HongTholly Sonit, Master of Digital Communication, Queensland University of Technology (returned 2026)[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Australia Awards Cambodia, Home (undated)
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 Australia Awards Cambodia, Australia Awards Scholarships Intake 2027 brochure (2026)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Australia Awards Cambodia, Scholarships (Intake 2027)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Australia Awards Cambodia, Short Courses (undated)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Australia Awards Cambodia, Equity Pathways Program (undated)
  6. ↑ Australia Awards Cambodia, Welcoming home Cambodia's latest changemakers: Sarin Lina (September 8, 2026)
  7. ↑ Australia Awards Cambodia, Welcoming home Cambodia's latest changemakers: Keth Piseth (September 8, 2026)
  8. ↑ Australia Awards Cambodia, Welcoming home Cambodia's latest changemakers: HongTholly Sonit (September 8, 2026)
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This page was last edited on 7 October 2026, at 19:21.