Getting a Scholarship at Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University offers multiple scholarships for different types of students. There is a range of scholarships awarded to both undergraduate and postgraduate students, which will help them achieve their academic excellence stress-free.
- Undergraduate Scholarships
There are three main scholarships awarded for undergraduate students who are studying for their first time at Victoria University. These three are as follows: School-leaver scholarships, first-year scholarships, and returning undergraduate scholarships.
A) School-leaver Scholarship
Each year the Tangiwai, Totoweka and Kahotea scholarships are awarded to hundreds of talented students who are leaving secondary school.
Each scholarship has named after a type of Pounamu (greenstone). Māori consider Pounamu to be a Tonga that offers protection and acts as a source of strength for those who possess it.
These scholarships have developed to help support and encourage students leaving school who embody the critical qualities of excellence, leadership and community.
The Tangiwai Scholarship celebrates academic excellence. These scholarships are for the top applicants enrolling in any of the University’s Bachelor degree programmes.
Up to 600 scholarships will be awarded, with a value of $5,000 each, which is for accommodation costs at a Victoria University of Wellington hall of residence, or as a contribution towards your first-year living costs.
The Totoweka Scholarship recognises the University’s commitment to supporting students with access to education. The University encourages strong academic applicants who are Māori, Pasifika, from refugee backgrounds, have a disability, or come from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
Up to 200 scholarships will be awarded, with a valued of $5,000, which can be towards accommodation costs at a Victoria hall of residence, or as a contribution towards your first-year living costs.
The Kahotea Scholarship recognises exceptional students with a value of up to $35,000 over three years of study. The University encourages applicants who have achieved outstanding academic results or another high achievement within the areas of culture, community involvement, leadership or equity.
Only 30 scholarships are open because this is for exceptional students. The package includes full accommodation costs for the first year at a Victoria University hall of residence, plus a grant of $5,000 for three years.
B) First-Year Scholarships
There are numerous (51) scholarships for first-year students. All of these scholarships are different from one another and given access to exceptional students with a range of skills, abilities and commitments.
These scholarships can range from Pasifika female students, music students, language students, first in the family, engineering, etc. It means that there are numerous scholarships that many students can get access and apply.
To find the perfect scholarship for you, go through the scholarship database
C) Returning Undergraduates Scholarship
The returning undergraduate scholarships are for those students who have already done their first-year studies and are moving forward to their second and third year.
There are 67 scholarships awarded to returning students, with a range of criteria, excellence, skills and qualities. There are scholarships for science students, music students, students facing financial difficulty, law students, etc.
To find the perfect scholarship for you, if you’re a returning undergraduate student, go through Victoria University scholarship database.
Post-graduate Scholarships
There are two main scholarships awarded for postgraduate students, which includes Masters/Honours Scholarships and Doctorate Scholarships.
A) Masters/Honours Scholarships
The masters and honours scholarships have allocated into three sections: Master’s by Thesis Scholarship, Wellington Graduate Awards, and Other scholarships.
Master’s by Thesis Scholarship
The Master’s by Thesis Scholarships are available for students from any university who are intending to undertake a Master’s with a thesis component of 90 points or more at Victoria University of Wellington. Applications close on 1 November each year.
Applications are invited from those who are eligible at the time of application, or who will become suitable at the start of Trimester 2 the following year, to enrol for a Master’s degree by thesis worth 90 points or more. Applicants undertaking a 180 points Master’s degree will not be eligible for this scholarship. Applicants would usually be expected to have completed a Bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree Part 1 demonstrating academic achievement equivalent to a First-Class Honours degree from a New Zealand University.
The Scholarship comprises of $15,000 reward, plus tuition fees for one year (domestic student fees for the thesis component only).
Wellington Graduate Awards are available to graduates from any university who are intending to study towards an Honours degree or Master’s by coursework with less than 90 points, at Victoria University of Wellington.
Applicants for this scholarship are expected to have achieved a minimum A grade average (GPA 8.0) at 300-level or above.
All offers of the scholarship will be conditional upon the recipient completing all pre-requisite course requirements and being fully enrolled at Victoria University of Wellington in a full-year programme by the start of Trimester 1 in the following year in at least 90 points of coursework in either; an Honours degree; or a Master’s degree taken via coursework with at least 90 points at 500 level and a thesis/research component of fewer than 90 points.
Contribution of tuition fees up to the value of $5,000, International students will be liable to pay the difference between the full international student fee and the domestic tuition fee.
Other Postgraduate Scholarship
Victoria University offers a wide range of postgraduate scholarships to students with a range of criteria, excellence, skills and qualities. There are 203 different scholarships for students.
Further postgraduate scholarships can be found on their database, or at external scholarship opportunities.
B) Doctorate Scholarships
There are many scholarships available to you as a doctoral candidate, whether you’ve just started your PhD, are part way through, or nearing completion. There are three main categories for Doctorate Scholarships, which includes: Wellington Doctoral Scholarships, Current PhD candidate, Doctoral Hardship Scholarship, and other scholarships.
Wellington Doctoral Scholarships
Applications for Wellington Doctoral Scholarships and admission as a PhD candidate placed in the same application process. There are three closing dates—1 March, 1 July and 1 November. The application is available from the Wellington Faculty of Graduate Research website.
To encourage postgraduate research, Victoria University grants scholarships based on academic merit and are open to New Zealand and international students in any discipline.
Current PhD candidates
The Wellington Doctoral Submission Scholarship is designed to support candidates in the lead-up to thesis submission. This scholarship provides a reward of $2,000 per month for up to three months, minus any outstanding tuition fees.
The purpose of this scholarship is to enable doctoral candidates to concentrate on completing their thesis fully. Applicants and their supervisors must carefully consider the amount of time required to finish as the scholarship is only available for the final three months before submission of the thesis for examination.
Wellington Doctoral Hardship Scholarship
The scholarship is to assist doctoral candidates who are experiencing financial difficulties. The budget for this fund is limited, and priority is for the candidates who are nearing completion, who are under examination or who are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In order for applications to be granted this scholarship, specific criteria must be followed. Applicants must be currently enrolled in a doctoral programme at Victoria University of Wellington. Applicants must have achieved full registration except in cases related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Applicants must not be on suspension. Applicants must be living in Wellington except in cases associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other Doctoral Scholarships
Just like all the other scholarships, there are numerous different kinds of scholarships that can be awarded to Doctoral studies. All of these scholarships range from criteria, skills, qualities and ability.
There are 203 scholarships awarded to Doctoral students, and you can view their database to find the perfect one for you, or look at their external scholarship Opportunities.