The Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program is part of Set up for Success: An Early Childhood Strategy for the ACT.
This initiative aims to expand Early Childhood Degree Scholarship recipient’s skills for the benefit of the children they educate and care for and to contribute to the continuing implementation of the National Quality Framework in the ACT.
By providing incentives for individuals to undertake higher level professional development, this initiative aims to contribute to an increase in the number of ACT degree-qualified educators and their professional profile.
Degree qualified educators are invaluable to the quality and care of ACT’s early childhood education and care (ECEC) services and deliver high-quality teaching and learning to young children.
Educators with an early childhood degree also benefit from improved employment outcomes and career paths.
The ACT Government has awarded more than 100 Early Childhood Degree Scholarships to educators working in the ACT’s ECEC sector since the commencement of this program.
2024 Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program
The 2024 Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program offers up to 16 Early Childhood Degree Scholarships to educators currently working at non-government and non-school approved ECEC services in the ACT.
The 2024 Program offers:
- funding of up to $25,000 per scholarship, for full-time or part-time study.
- encouragement to employers to contribute to the funding, enabling higher numbers of scholarships to be offered.
- funding to employers to backfill staff while they are on study placement.
- funding to employers to support students to attend a placement in Children’s Education and Care Assurance in their final year of study.
- an Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program Deed between the student, employer, and ACT Government.
Reimbursement for the eligible expenses will be processed once proof of expenditure is provided.
First phase
The first phase of the 2024 Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program has now commenced. This phase will provide up to eight Early Childhood Degree Scholarships for eligible applicants.
A further eight Early Childhood Degree Scholarships will be offered later this year.
How to apply
Educators and their employers should read and understand the requirements of the 2024 Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program documents:
- Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program Application Guidelines 2024
(232kb) - Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program Application Form 2024 (256kb)
Applications close 29 April 2024. Late applications will not be accepted. Your application can only be submitted by email to: ceca@act.gov.au
If you have any questions, please contact Children’s Education and Care Assurance (CECA) on email at ceca@act.gov.au or call 6207 1114.