The Future of Work Partnership, formed by BHP and the Australian Federal Department of Education, has been established to provide educational opportunities in regional and remote Australia. The Program involves
BHP investing up to $30 million to create skills development opportunities to meet the demands of the future workforce.
The Regional Education and Skills Program is a new offering under this partnership and the purpose of the program is to support skills development in regional Australia. Eligible students will receive a financial contribution towards their tuition fees for a course of their choosing. Students studying an eligible non-Bachelor degree course are eligible for funding up to $15,000, and students enrolled in an eligible Bachelor's degree are eligible for up to $24,000.
Candidates will be assessed against the following criteria to determine if they are eligible for the program:
- The industry area of study. Courses from a broad range of industry areas will be considered, however, key focus areas include health, early childhood education and care, engineering, construction, agriculture, teaching, environmental management, IT and Business.
- Course type. Students must be enrolled or in the process of enrolling in a course that commences in 2023 or 2024. Eligible courses include Certificate I-IVs, Diplomas, Associate Degrees, Advanced Diplomas, Bachelor's Degrees, Undergraduate and Graduate Certificates, VET Skill Sets and Microcredentials listed on the Australian Government Department of Education's national marketplace, Microcred Seeker.
- Place of residence. Students must live in one of the following regional areas to be eligible for the program: Bowen Basin and Mackay in Qld, Upper Spencer Gulf and Roxby Downs in SA, the Pilbara and Goldfields region in WA, or the Upper Hunter Region in NSW. To confirm that your postcode is eligible for the Program, please visit regionalfutureofwork.com
- Purpose and community contribution. Students must demonstrate how they will use the course to support their career progression and local community needs.
- Choice of further education provider. All higher education courses must be delivered by providers listed on the TEQSA national register and all VET courses must be on the national register of VET and delivered by a Registered Training Organisation.
Please note, you must submit this application to be considered for the Regional Education and Skills Program and associated funding support. Funding will only be provided under this Program for study which commences in 2023 or 2024. Depending on the timing of when you apply for the Program, you may be required to pay upfront for some of your student contribution fees and then be reimbursed.
Applicants who are approved to participate in the Program will also be eligible for a resources grant of up to $1,000 to support the purchase of study tools. Applicants will be assessed on the extent to which they meet the selection criteria and align with the Program objectives set by the Program coordinators, and the Steering Committee reserves the right to not approve applications. For any queries regarding the Program, including future application opportunities, please contact
applications@regionalfutureofwork.com or head to
https://regionalfutureofwork.com/. We ask you to please regularly check your emails (including your spam folder) as this is our main communication channel with applicants.
Please note that the Future of Work Program is a social investment program with a primary purpose to promote the uptake of education pathways in target regional and remote areas, with a focus on employees of small-medium sized enterprises outside of the mining industry.
Current processing time is approximately 3 - 4 weeks due to a high volume of applications.
