Graduate Access Melbourne

Graduate Access Melbourne supports domestic graduate coursework applicants whose personal circumstances may have affected their previous study. This page explains how it works and how to apply.

What is Graduate Access Melbourne?

Graduate Access Melbourne (GAM) recognises that personal circumstances can affect your academic results. We consider the impact of these circumstances as part of the admissions process and for certain types of financial support.

GAM is available to domestic applicants applying for eligible graduate coursework degrees. Not all graduate courses consider GAM for entry. You can check whether it is accepted on Entry requirements tab of the course page.

Search courses

How Graduate Access Melbourne can help

There are three types of consideration available through Graduate Access Melbourne (GAM).

Support with admission to your graduate degree

GAM may assist you in gaining admission into a graduate degree, even if your previous academic results are below the published entry requirements.

When assessing applications, faculties balance opportunity with your capacity to succeed. They consider whether your circumstances have had a sustained adverse impact on your undergraduate studies and/or whether you are part of a group that is under-represented in higher education, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants.

Consideration for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)

The circumstances outlined in your GAM application may also be considered when your application for a Commonwealth Supported Place is assessed.

Consideration for financial support (bursary)

Applicants through GAM may be considered for a Melbourne Graduate Access Bursary valued at $5,000.

Bursaries are awarded to students who demonstrate the highest overall level of disadvantage across one or more GAM categories. If offered, the bursary is paid in two instalments, in April and September of the study year.

Important to know

Submitting a Graduate Access Melbourne application does not guarantee admission, a Commonwealth Supported Place, or a bursary.

Outcomes may depend on:

  • your individual circumstances and supporting documentation
  • the strength of your GAM application
  • the strength of your course application.

Eligibility

To apply for Graduate Access Melbourne, you must meet all of the following criteria:

  • Be an Australian or New Zealand citizen, or an Australian permanent resident, or a holder of a permanent humanitarian or Pacific Engagement visa.
  • Have applied for a place in an eligible graduate coursework degree (not all graduate degrees accept Graduate Access Melbourne consideration – check your course page under entry requirements).
  • Demonstrate the capacity to succeed in your chosen graduate degree.
  • Be eligible under one or more of the following equity categories.

Graduate Access Melbourne recognises a range of circumstances that may affect access to graduate study. The equity categories below explain eligibility criteria and the evidence required to support your application. You may be eligible under one or more.

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible to apply for this category if:

  • you resided in a rural or isolated area* for at least five years (consecutively) or 10 years (cumulatively); AND
  • you have been or continue to be negatively impacted as a result of living in that area, or by your ongoing connection with that area.

* A rural or isolated area is defined as an area with an Australian Standard Geographic Classification of RA2, RA3, RA4 or RA5. If you are based in Victoria, this essentially means anywhere outside of Melbourne or Geelong. You can check the classification of your address on the Department of Health and Ageing website.

Supporting documentation

  1. Personal statement: You must provide a detailed personal statement, including:
    • the address(es) of your residence and dates you lived there; AND
    • an explanation of why you feel you have been negatively impacted by your association with this address. Please be clear regarding whether this impact relates to the past or is ongoing. For example, if your previous tertiary results were impacted as a result of your residence at this address, explain why. If this is no longer your primary residence but you maintain a connection that continues to impact you, explain the ongoing impact of your connection. If you currently live in a rural or isolated location, explain the challenges you will face in relocating for your study, etc.
  2. Evidence: Provide evidence that supports your personal statement, this can include:
    • a letter of support written and signed by a responsible independent source not related to you (i.e. doctor, lawyer, accountant, social worker, counsellor, religious or community leader or teacher). This letter must be dated, signed and on letterhead (if possible) and include dates and duration of impact
    • documents to prove residence, such as invoices for telephone, utilities or bank statements showing your (or your family’s) address.

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible to apply for this category if you:

  • are of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent; AND
  • identify as a person of Australian Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander heritage; AND
  • are accepted as such by an Indigenous community.

Supporting documentation

Your Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander heritage is something that is personal to you. You don't need a document to identify as an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person, however you'll be asked to provide specific documents confirming your eligibility when applying for Indigenous-specific pathways, such as Graduate Access Melbourne, and the full range of services provided by Murrup Barak and the Wilin Centre.

For more information on how to establish your eligibility and to receive support from Murrup Barak, go to Establishing your eligibility.

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible to apply for this category if you:

  • have previously held an Australian temporary protection visa; OR
  • currently hold a permanent humanitarian visa.

Supporting documentation

  1. Personal statement: You must provide a personal statement describing the circumstances you have experienced and how they have had a sustained adverse effect on you and/or your academic achievement and any ongoing impact. You may consider including information regarding conditions in the country you relocated from, time spent in refugee camps/relocating, violence/threats of violence experienced by you or one or more members of your immediate family, impact on early education in your country of origin, difficulties relocating to Australia possibly due to non-English speaking background, disadvantaged socio- economic background, cultural issues/dislocation, separation from family, adjustment to a different educational system. Remember to include dates and make the duration of impact clear. If the time period relates to your previous study, you must include how these circumstances impacted your academic achievement. The statement should not exceed 500 words.
  2. Evidence: Provide evidence that supports your personal statement:
    • either a copy of your Australian temporary protection visa and a copy of your passport photograph page; OR a copy of your permanent humanitarian visa and a copy of your passport photograph page.
    • you may also wish to include a letter of support written and signed by a responsible independent source not related to you (i.e. doctor, lawyer, accountant, social worker, counsellor, religious or community leader or teacher). This letter must be dated, signed and on letterhead (if possible) and include dates and duration of impact. If not from an independent source, the person writing the letter must explain how they know you (your relationship), how long they have known you, how they know about the information or facts they are providing and include their contact details.

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible to apply for this category if:

  • you come from a disadvantaged socio-economic background; AND/OR
  • you experienced financial hardship during your tertiary study that had a sustained adverse effect on your academic achievement; AND/OR
  • you are currently experiencing financial hardship

Supporting documentation

  1. Personal statement: You must provide a personal statement describing your socioeconomic circumstances. Remember to include dates and make the duration of impact clear. If the time period relates to your previous study, you must include how these circumstances impacted your academic achievement. You may wish to include time and details of work and /or care responsibilities, your living arrangements, whether you regularly go without food or other basic requirements, any difficulties in accessing resources required to study, transportation issues, levels of debt, etc. The statement should not exceed 500 words.
  2. Evidence: Provide evidence that supports your personal statement. This may include Centrelink statements* relating to the time period detailed in your statement or supporting letters outlining your current and previous circumstances written and signed by a responsible independent source not related to you (i.e. doctor, lawyer, accountant, social worker, counsellor, religious or community leader or teacher). This letter must be dated, signed and on letterhead (if possible) and include dates and duration of impact. If not from an independent source, the person writing the letter must explain how they know you (your relationship), how long they have known you, how they know about the information or facts they are providing and include their contact details.

*Where possible, you should provide Centrelink documents that show the level of fortnightly payments and any hours of work performed for the entire period. If you cannot provide assessment forms for the entire period, include a history of your Centrelink payments. See How to request Centrelink Documents

If your application concerns your family’s financial circumstances, your application will be stronger if you are able to provide supporting evidence, e.g. a parent's Centrelink and/or ATO statements, redundancy notices, pension statements, and any other documents that support claims of financial hardship. You should also provide details of periods of unemployment, date of retirement, etc.

If you received a scholarship of any kind (including to a residential college), please provide full details, including the amount, the dates covered, and whether the scholarship was for financial need or for another criteria.

Additional requirement

If you are submitting a GAM application for a graduate degree from one of the following Faculties, you must complete the Disadvantaged socioeconomic circumstances form. Each course page will note if a supplementary form is required on the entry requirements tab.

  • Faculty of Arts
  • Faculty of Business and Economics
  • Faculty of Fine Arts and Music
  • Faculty of Science
  • Melbourne Law School (Melbourne Juris Doctor (JD) only)

If you are not applying to an eligible course from one of these Faculties, please disregard this requirement.

Supplementary form

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible to apply for this category if:

  • you experienced a disability or chronic medical condition during your tertiary study that had a sustained adverse effect on your academic achievement; OR
  • you have experienced a disability (physical, sensory, intellectual, acquired brain injury or neurological impairment) or chronic medical condition that impacts your life and/or study, either currently or in the past.

Supporting documentation

  1. Personal statement: You must provide a personal statement outlining your disability and/or chronic medical condition, including how it has had a sustained adverse effect on you or your academic achievement. Please include dates, duration and the impact of this condition on your daily life and studies. If the impact is ongoing, make this clear in your statement. The statement should not exceed 500 words.
  2. Evidence: Provide evidence that supports your personal statement, this may include a letter from a relevant health care professional involved in the care /management of your condition. This letter must be dated, signed, on letterhead, and include the dates and duration of the impact. Other evidence is also acceptable, such as medical documents that confirm the dates you were hospitalised or received treatment.

Eligibility criteria

You are eligible for this category if:

  • you experienced personal difficulties during your tertiary study, which had a sustained adverse effect on your academic achievement; AND/OR
  • you are currently or have recently experienced personal difficulties.

Examples of personal difficulties include death/illness/disability of a family member or close friend, separation/divorce, either personally or of a close relative, issues relating to abuse, neglect or domestic violence, relationship issues, victim of crime, personal injury, homelessness, drug or alcohol addiction and difficulties living away from home etc.

Supporting documentation

  1. Personal statement: You must provide a personal statement outlining your personal difficulties and describe how they have had a sustained adverse effect on you and/or your tertiary study. Remember to include dates and make clear the duration of impact. If the impact is ongoing, make this clear in your statement. The statement should not exceed 500 words.
  2. Evidence: Provide evidence that supports your personal statement, this may include a supporting letter outlining your current and previous circumstances written, signed and dated by a responsible independent source not related to you (i.e. doctor, lawyer, accountant, social worker, counsellor, religious or community leader or teacher). This letter should be on letterhead (if possible) and include dates and duration of impact. If not from an independent source, the person writing the letter must explain how they know you (your relationship), how long they have known you, how they know about the information or facts they are providing and include their contact details. Other evidence is also acceptable, such as a police report, intervention order, divorce papers, etc.

All domestic female applicants eligible for entry into the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology's masters and coursework doctoral degrees will automatically be considered for a Graduate Access Melbourne Bursary.

You don't need to submit an application if Women in Engineering is the only category you're applying for.

How to apply

Applying for Graduate Access Melbourne is part of your graduate coursework application. Follow these steps to apply.

Start by selecting a graduate coursework degree that considers Graduate Access Melbourne applicants.

Not all courses offer special entry pathways, so it’s important to check the course page to see whether a course participates in GAM before applying.

You apply for Graduate Access Melbourne as part of your online course application.

When completing this section, you don’t need to limit yourself to a single category. You’ll be asked to provide information and supporting documentation relevant to each category.

For details on eligibility and supporting documentation, refer to each of the equity categories listed above.

Note: Female applicants to engineering courses are automatically considered and do not need to submit a Graduate Access Melbourne application.

To help us assess your application and provide the best possible outcome, please include detailed, relevant supporting evidence.

This may include (where applicable):

  • the specific dates you were affected by your circumstances
  • how the circumstance affected your academic performance
  • if the circumstance occurred some time ago, how it impacted your more recent studies
  • details of paid work undertaken to support yourself or your family, including average weekly hours
  • official medical certificates confirming the duration of any condition
  • letters of support (dated, signed, and ideally on official letterhead).

Providing clear, substantive evidence helps ensure your circumstances are fully and fairly considered.

Each equity category above outlines what supporting documentation and evidence are required.

Some courses require a supplementary form if you are applying under the 'Disadvantaged socio-economic circumstances' category.

You’ll need to submit this form if you’re applying for the Melbourne Juris Doctor (JD) or for eligible courses in these faculties:

  • Faculty of Arts
  • Faculty of Business and Economics
  • Faculty of Fine Arts and Music
  • Faculty of Science.

Once submitted, your application will be assessed by admissions and scholarship staff.

When assessing applications, staff will consider:

  • the circumstances you’ve described
  • the timeframe over which you were affected
  • the level and quality of supporting evidence provided.

Admissions staff will assess whether your previous tertiary results may have been impacted when considering:

  • course admission
  • eligibility for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).

For bursary consideration, greater weight is given to the current and ongoing impact of your circumstances.

If your application is successful, you’ll receive an offer with instructions on how to accept. If your application is not successful, you’ll receive an email outlining the outcome.

Frequently asked questions

No. Applying through Graduate Access Melbourne does not guarantee admission, a Commonwealth Supported Place, or a bursary. Each application is assessed individually, based on your documented circumstances and the strength of your course application.

Yes. You can apply under as many equity categories as are relevant to your circumstances. Each category you apply under should be supported by appropriate information and evidence.

No. You apply for Graduate Access Melbourne as part of your graduate coursework application. The Graduate Access Melbourne questions appear within the online application process – there’s no separate application form, however you may need to submit an additional supplementary form if you are applying under the category of disadvantaged socio-economic background.

The type of evidence required depends on the equity category you’re applying under. This may include medical documentation, letters of support, employment records, or other official information that helps explain how your circumstances have affected your study. Details for each equity category are provided on this page.

Yes. Information provided as part of your Graduate Access Melbourne application is treated confidentially and is only used to assess your eligibility and application outcomes.