William McIlrath Rural Scholarship

Background

Mr William Mcllrath (1876-1955), was known to Hereford stud cattle breeders throughout the world as the founder and owner of the Windsor Hereford Stud, Myall Creek, Delungra, NSW. He was highly respected in business circles throughout the Commonwealth as chairman of directors of William Mcllrath Ltd., possibly the largest personal firm of provedores and grocers in Australia which was sold to Woolworths in 1955.

William Mcllrath was born in County Down, Ireland, and came to Australia in 1890. With his eldest brother Hugh, and another brother, the late Sir Martin Mcllrath, he founded in Sydney the firm which eventually was to bear his name. The brothers also acquired a number of pastoral holdings, but William Mcllrath's particular interest was Myall Creek, where he established the Windsor Hereford Stud.

The William McIlrath Rural Scholarship is established to encourage and assist rural and regional students to undertake a full-time undergraduate degree at the University of New England.

Details

Value per annum:$10,000 in the first year, then $4,000 annually
Payment method:Bank account
Number available in 2024:1
Duration:Up to the minimum period of candidature for chosen degree (max. 5 years) (subject to funding)
Study Mode:On campus
Study Load: Full-time (48 credit points per academic year)
Course Type:Bachelor degree
Degree/School/Discipline:Any of the following UNE Academic Schools:
School of Science and Technology
School of Environmental and Rural Science
School of Rural Medicine
School of Health
School of Education
School of Law
UNE Business School
New/Continuing Students:New students to university for the first time (Year 12 school-leavers and 1-2 year gap year/s students)
Residential requirement:N/A
Geographic requirement:Permanent home address in regional or remote area/s (RA2-5)
Application Closing Date:1 January 2024

Who can apply?
  1. Australian Citizen/Permanent Resident: The applicant must be an Australian Citizen or permanent resident as defined by the Commonwealth.  
  2. Student and Course Requirement: Open to applicants who are completing Year 12 and 1-2 gap year/s students who are commencing university study for the first time. The applicant is enrolling in any of the following UNE Schools:
    • School of Science and Technology,
    • School of Environmental and Rural Science,
    • School of Rural Medicine,
    • School of Health,
    • School of Education,
    • School of Law, and
    • UNE Business School.
  3. Academic Requirement: For new students an ATAR/UAC Ranking or equivalent mark of at least 80 is required.
  4. Financial Disadvantage: Applicant must be able to demonstrate financial need (see Supporting Documentation/Required Information below)
  5. Geographic Requirements: The applicant’s permanent residential address must be either regional or remote (ASGS Remoteness Areas 2-5) as defined by the Government Remoteness Tool
Selection criteria (in order of importance)

The scholarship will be awarded on the basis of (in order):

Academic merit

And

Financial Need

And

Statement of case

Notes

  • Preference may be given to applicants from RA4 and RA5 remote areas as defined by the regional and remoteness tool.
  • Preference may be given to applicants not in receipt of another scholarship.
  • The scholarship shall be awarded on the recommendation of the Executive Principal Student Experience administered by the UNE Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team.
  • By applying for this scholarship you, the applicant, permit the University to give some personal details contained in your application to the Donor/Trustee/Committee/School, who may not be UNE staff. All information gathered will be treated with discretion.
  • The Selection Committee’s decision is final.
Supporting documents/Required information

The listed documents are acceptable forms of evidence in each of the following criteria:

  1. Financial Need:
    1. Complete the Financial Need Details section of the UNE Scholarship Application Form
    2. The applicant should attach evidence to support financial need, which may be one or more of the following (as determined in Financial Need Details section of application form):
  • Evidence of your income/expected income
  • Evidence of most recent and regular Centrelink/payments
  • Evidence of partners income
  • Evidence of parents’/guardians’ income/s

Evidence of income can include:

  • Income Tax Returns*
  • Regular payslips
  • Centrelink Statement/s
  • A letter from an authorised person (e.g. community leader, school principal, minister of religion, accountant) that comments on your financial circumstances

*Note: if the most recent financial year income information is not available, previous financial year income information may be used and must be accompanied with a letter from an accountant that comments on the estimated similarity/differences.

  1. Statement of Case:
    1. Why are you studying your chosen course and what are your career aspirations?
    2. Tell us about your personal strengths, leadership, and community activities you are involved in. How have you used them to make a difference in the lives of others?
    3. What impact will NOT receiving the scholarship have on your studies?
    4. What special conditions or obstacles have you overcome in your path to study? e.g. financial, geographic, cultural, or other disadvantage. Tell us what you have done to address your situation, in light of the challenges you outlined.
How to apply

Applications for the William McIlrath Rural Scholarship should be made through the Application for University of New England Scholarship/s Form.

Only complete applications will be processed, so please ensure that you have submitted all required documentation with your application. The Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team will notify you via email when your application has been processed.

Conditions
  1. Undergraduate/Postgraduate (coursework) scholarship recipients may not hold more than one UNE scholarship (excluding the UNE Residential Financial Assistance Scholarship and/or the Betty Fyffe scholarship) if the combined value is greater than six thousand dollars ($6,000) per annum.
  2. The scholarship is intended for the nominated course and may not be deferred or transferred.
  3. The scholarship is payable into the recipient’s bank account in two instalments within 30 days following the Trimester 1, 2 or 3 census dates.
  4. Continuation of the scholarship, if applicable, is subject to:
    1. Achieving a Trimester GPA of at least 5.0. For continuing students, results for Trimester 2 and 3 will be combined for the purpose of calculating eligibility for continuation of the scholarship in Trimester 1 in the second and subsequent years.
    2. The student continuing to maintain eligibility in relation to their enrolment status as stipulated by the Scholarship Terms.
    3. Full-time students are expected to complete their course in the minimum period of candidature.
    4. Submission of a brief Donor Report upon request each year reporting on progress with their studies and involvement in sporting, cultural and community activities as well as participation in university life, where applicable. In submitting this report, the recipient understands that some of the information and/or personal details contained in each report will be sent to the Donor/Trustee/Committee/School, who may not be UNE staff. All information gathered will be treated with discretion.
  5. If you wish to make any significant changes to your enrolment (e.g. change of degree, study mode and/or load) you must notify the UNE Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team prior to doing so. If you no longer satisfy the criteria and conditions of the scholarship, you may not retain it.
  6. Any request to vary the terms and/or conditions of the scholarship must be made in writing and will be determined at the discretion of the Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships Committee (in consultation with relevant Donor/Trustee/Committee/School/Head of College).
  7. If at any time during the scholarship term the student is found to have committed behavioural misconduct in accordance with the University’s Student Behavioural Misconduct Rules, the scholarship will be terminated and any outstanding payments to be made under the scholarship will not be paid.  You may also be required to repay any instalment already received. Students who are residential college residents are also subject to the Residential College Code of Conduct.
  8. The student may be required to attend the annual scholarships donor event if they are invited to do so, and may be asked to participate in activities to promote this scholarship and other scholarships in general, including public speaking, donor liaison, media interviews and photographs.
  9. Some scholarships may affect other government payments (e.g. Centrelink). It is the recipient’s responsibility to seek advice from the relevant government agency.
  10. From time to time minor changes may be required to the administrative conditions of this scholarship. If this occurs recipients will be given advanced notice in writing. Donors will also be consulted where appropriate.
  11. Failure to meet the requirements of these terms and conditions may lead to the termination of the scholarship, and your being required to repay any instalment already received.

Enrolment Notes and Definitions

    • Full-time is defined at UNE as an enrolment of 48 credit points in the academic year.
    • Enrolment is required for Trimester 1 and 2 study periods (with Trimester 3 optional), where if there is no active enrolment in these periods and a request for a leave of absence from their scholarship is not made and approved to the UNE Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team, the scholarship may be suspended.
    • For full-time scholarships, payments will be made in Trimester 1 and 2 each year provided there is a minimum enrolment of 18 credit points in each period. If fewer than 18 credit points are undertaken in Trimester 1 and/or 2, payments will be deferred to the following Trimester.
    • For 1 year duration scholarships or for continuing scholarship recipients in the final year of their scholarship, the second payment will only be made when the 48 credit points (or the last remaining units for that course) requirement for that academic year has been satisfied.
    • For on campus required scholarships, students must be enrolled in all on campus units, subject to availability, not just registered in ON mode. Students unsure about this should contact the UNE Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team to discuss their situation.
    • If a problem presents in meeting the above requirements, the recipient must liaise with the Alumni Relations and Student Scholarships team to discuss their specific situation.
Acceptance

In accepting the William McIlrath Rural Scholarship, the recipient acknowledges that they have read, understand and accept the terms and conditions outlined above.