OS-HELP is a Commonwealth Government loan program that provides financial assistance to eligible students wishing to undertake part of their Commonwealth Supported program overseas.
OS-HELP can be used for a range of expenses such as airfares, accommodation, and other travel or study expenses.
The type of overseas study for which you may be able to receive OS‑HELP assistance could include semester or year-long exchanges, study tours, clinical placements and internships.
Students can apply for an OS-HELP Loan a maximum of 6 months prior to undertaking their study.
Prior to submitting any application for an OS-HELP Loan students should visit the Study Overseas information on the University's website.
Please note: Applications for an OS-HELP Loan will not be assessed until the overseas study application has been approved and registered via the University's required processes..
Students may receive one loan per six-month study period, and up to a total of two OS-HELP loans in their lifetime. The six-month period commences from the start date of your overseas study.
2022 OS-HELP Loan Amounts
- A$7,100 for non-Asian countries
- A$8,519 for Asian countries
- A$1,133 supplementary amount for Asian language study to assist students to prepare for overseas study in Asia. For more information on Asian language study loans refer to UniSC's guidelines for OS-HELP assistance
2023 OS-HELP Loan Amounts
- A$7,348 for non-Asian countries
- A$8,817 for Asian countries
- A$1,172 supplementary amount for Asian language study to assist students to prepare for overseas study in Asia. For more information on Asian language study loans refer to UniSC's guidelines for OS-HELP assistance
Students must meet all the following criteria to be eligible for an OS-HELP loan:
- be an Australian citizen, or a New Zealand citizen who holds a Special Category Visa and meets all eligibility criteria, or the holder of a Permanent Humanitarian Visa
- be enrolled in a Commonwealth supported (CSS) undergraduate or (CSS) postgraduate program at UniSC
- be undertaking full-time study# overseas where your overseas study will count towards the course requirements for the Australian course of study in which you are enrolled
- have completed units of study to the value of at least 1 EFTSL in the Commonwealth supported UniSC program for which the overseas study relates
- the overseas study must count towards the requirements of your UniSC program
- on completion of your study outside Australia, have at least 0.125 EFTSL remaining to complete your UniSC program
- be selected by UniSC to receive an OS-HELP loan
# Short term study may be equivalent to full-time study depending on unit value of approved course/s and duration of overseas study. For more information contact Student Finance.
Students must not have:
- received OS-HELP on more than one other occasion
- received another OS-HELP loan for a period that overlaps or coincides with the six-month period
Please note: Students studying overseas as part of a Diploma program will not be eligible for OS-HELP.
Students must meet all the following criteria:
- be selected for OS-HELP assistance for overseas study in Asia within the same six-month period in which you are seeking the Asian language study loan
- be undertaking Asian language study in preparation for your overseas study towards your UniSC degree program
- indicate on your OS-HELP debt confirmation form that you would like to receive a supplementary loan amount for Asian language study
- been approved by UniSC to receive a supplementary loan amount for Asian language study, and
- not yet completed the Asian language study before applying for the supplementary loan amount
UniSC is allocated a number of loans each year, and determines eligibility and approves loans in accordance with UniSC Guidelines for OS-HELP Assistance (Application and Selection Procedures). Priority will be given to students undertaking Study Overseas semester programs.
Student must complete an application for OS-HELP assistance form and submit via email to Fees@usc.edu.au.
Once the application for OS-HELP Assistance has been approved, students will complete an OS-HELP debt confirmation online when accepting an OS-HELP offer.
More information
- Download the OS-HELP statement of terms and conditions booklet
- Find out more at the Study Assist website, including:
- Viewing the HELP video
- Eligibility requirements for New Zealand citizens who are Special Category Visa holders
* For PDF documents you must have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, which can be downloaded from the Adobe Download page.