Scholarship details
Study levels
Undergraduate and Postgraduate
Student type
Current students
Study area
Education, Health and Health and community
Citizenship
Australian and Australian or New Zealand
What you'll receive
From 1 January 2026, you'll receive up to $338.60 per week of placement, up to the maximum entitlement specified for each degree below.
| Degree | Maximum entitlement |
|---|---|
| Nursing (bachelor degree or master degree) | Up to 20 weeks |
| Teaching (bachelor degree) | Up to 16 weeks |
| Teaching (master degree) | Up to 12 weeks |
| Social Work (bachelor degree or master degree) | Up to 26 weeks |
Placement weeks that take place in 2025 will continue to be paid at the 2025 rate of $331.65.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Commonwealth Prac Payment (CPP), you must be:
- a domestic student
- admitted to an eligible nursing, teaching, or social work degree
- enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) unit
- undertaking an average of 30 hours or more per week for mandatory placement/practicum/professional experiences in nursing, teaching, or social work.
You must also be one of the following:
Receiving a Commonwealth Income Support Payment, such as:
Centrelink Income Support Payments:
- Age Pension
- Austudy
- Carer Payment
- Disability Support Pension
- JobSeeker Payment
- Parenting Payment
- Special Benefit
- Farm Household Allowance
- Youth Allowance.
Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) payments:
- Age Pension
- Income Support Supplement
- Service Pension
- Veteran Payment
- Education Allowance.
ABSTUDY:
- ABSTUDY Living Allowance.
If you are applying for CPP with a Commonwealth Income Support Payment, you will need to provide a copy of either your Centrelink Income Statement, DVA Payment Summary, DVA General Statement of Pension, or your Centrelink CRN.
Meet the 'Need to Work Test' and 'Income Test' by demonstrating:
- you worked on average more than 15 hours per week either in the four weeks prior to applying for CPP, or the four weeks prior to commencing your placement, whichever is earlier ('Need to Work Test')
- you earned on average less than $1,536.37 per week gross (before tax) income within the same four-week period, including amounts of scholarships/bursaries, wages/wage subsidies, or similar financial cost of living assistance ('Income Test') (the new Income Test threshold of $1,536.37 comes into effect from 1 January 2026 and replaces the previous 2025 threshold of $1,500.00).
Note: work undertaken during semester breaks or during placement if undertaking back-to-back placements does not count towards the four-week period.
| We've introduced a new Employment Declaration Form (PDF file, 2.0 MB) for the Need to Work and Income Test. It's a faster alternative to uploading individual payslips - just complete the form and submit it with your application. This new approach is designed to collect only the minimum personal information required, reducing the need to provide detailed documents such as individual payslips. We encourage you to use this option. If you use the new form, you may be contacted to share feedback so we can continue to make improvements. Note that random audits will be conducted to verify the accuracy of the information you provide. |
If you are applying with the Need to Work Test and Income Test you will need to provide documentation such as pay slips, timesheets or a letter from your employer. Supporting evidence must show hours worked and income received, including scholarships/bursaries, wages/wage subsidies, or similar financial cost of living assistance.
Students who do not meet the standard eligibility requirements due to circumstances beyond their control may apply under exceptional circumstances. To be considered, applicants must meet the criteria outlined below.
Exceptional circumstances may include:
- health and medical (e.g. a short-term illness affecting your ability to meet the Need to Work Test)
- disability (e.g. your condition prevents you from meeting the Need to Work Test or the 30-hour per week placement requirement for CPP)
- acute personal or family life events (e.g. caring for a sick family member, family or domestic violence, death of a close family member affecting your ability to meet the Need to Work Test).
Applicants must submit the following as part of their application:
- a personal statement detailing the nature of their exceptional circumstances
- supporting documentation, which may include:
- medical certificate or letter of support
- statutory declarations
- QUT Access Equity Plan
- any other relevant evidence.
Each application will be assessed and if you meet the criteria your application will be sent to the Department of Education for review. For further information on exceptional circumstances refer to the Australian Government FAQ.
Eligible courses
Nursing
- NS42 Bachelor of Nursing
- HL17 Bachelor of Nursing / Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology)
- HL18 Bachelor of Nursing / Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology)
- HL19 Bachelor of Nursing / Bachelor of Paramedic Science
- HL16 Bachelor of Nursing / Bachelor of Public Health
- NS89 Master of Nursing - Entry to Practice
Teaching
- ED29 Bachelor of Educational Studies
- ED34 Bachelor of Early Childhood Education (Birth to Five)
- ED39 Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood)
- ED49 Bachelor of Education (Primary)
- ED59 Bachelor of Education (Secondary)
- ID25 Bachelor of Education (Secondary) / Bachelor of Business
- ID57 Bachelor of Education (Secondary) / Bachelor of Creative Arts
- ID24 Bachelor of Education (Secondary) / Bachelor of Fine Arts
- ID22 Bachelor of Education (Secondary) / Bachelor of Information Technology
- EU30 Master of Teaching (Early Childhood)
- EU40 Master of Teaching (Primary)
- EU50 Master of Teaching (Secondary)
Social work
- HL20 Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology) / Bachelor of Social Work
- HL27 Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology) / Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)
- SW04 Bachelor of Social Work
- SW05 Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)
- SW81 Master of Social Work - Qualifying
Note: Double degree students are only eligible to receive payment towards their nursing, teaching, or social work degree placements. Paramedicine and other allied health programs are not eligible for CPP.
How to apply
Instructions on how to apply for CPP will be sent to you via email two weeks before your placement start date. We will not make this form available to you any earlier. If you haven’t received the instructions and your placement is confirmed, contact QUT Scholarships via email scholarships@qut.edu.au.
What happens next?
Your application will be assessed to determine your eligibility. It typically takes up to 21 days to process your application. This may vary depending on the volume of applications received.
If we need any additional information, we’ll contact you. This will delay the processing time.
You will be notified of the outcome via email.
If successful you will receive your first payment within ten business days from the start date of your placement. Payments are made on a weekly basis via direct deposit to your nominated bank account. Payments will be delayed if we have not received your bank details.
Conditions
Submitting an application does not guarantee approval.
You have six months from the end date of your placement to apply for CPP, provided you have not yet graduated. QUT reserves the right to not accept your application if submitted more than six months after your placement end date and/or submitted after you have graduated.
QUT and the Australian Government's Department of Education reserve the right to randomly audit any application received to verify the accuracy of information provided.
Applications will be assessed in line with the latest CPP laws and guidelines issued by the Australian Government.
You may only receive CPP payments for the maximum number of weeks set for your discipline, based on professional accreditation standards.
The CPP is considered taxable income. If you receive the payment, you are responsible for reporting it to:
- the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) in your annual tax return. You should seek your own tax advice if you're unsure how this applies to you
- Centrelink if you receive income support, consistent with your existing obligation to report other forms of income and financial assistance
- Department of Veterans' Affairs, if applicable.
If you withdraw from your course or do not complete your placement:
- you may be required to repay part or all of your CPP payment
- we may report the withdrawal to the Department of Education for funding reconciliation.
If you fail to declare a change in circumstance, including enrolment, income, Commonwealth Income Support Payment status, or placement dates, your CPP payment may be:
- withheld
- recovered
- referred for further compliance action.
Applications based on exceptional circumstances may be considered on a case-by-case basis. Supporting documentation will be required and approval is subject to both QUT and Department of Education review.
If your placement has deferred for any reason (including placement provider cancellation, student withdrawal or illness), you may retain the amount already received. Further payments may be withheld until you have undertaken an eligible placement equivalent to the amount retained.
About the scholarship
From July 2025, eligible students in nursing, teaching, and social work will be able to access the new Commonwealth Prac Payment. This financial support is designed to ease the cost of mandatory placements, helping you focus on gaining valuable practical experience.
QUT is administering CPP on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Education. If you have questions about CPP, refer to the Australian Government FAQ.
Contact us
Scholarship Team
- scholarships@qut.edu.au
- Website
- https://www.qut.edu.au/scholarships