FAQs

Yes, you need to be in Year 8 at the time of your application. Applicants must be:

• a female student enrolled at a public/government high school
• currently a Year 8 student and entering Year 9 in 2026
• demonstrating academic excellence
• currently experiencing financial barriers
• highly motivated to succeed to school

You also need to demonstrate that you have the motivation to achieve academically and professionally, including an intention to undertake tertiary studies. An interest in extracurricular, community and leadership activities will be considered favourably.

It is easy to apply. Go to hardingmillereducationfoundation.org.au during the application period (1 August until 1 September) and click on the APPLY NOW link.

You can start your application, save it and come back to it later. All applications must be submitted by 11.59pm AEST on 1 September 2025.

No. You can only apply once, and you must be in Year 8 when you submit your application.

You need to consistently achieve outstanding or high academic results across Maths, Science and English, along with NAPLAN results in the Exceeding or Strong bands, You also do well in other subjects.

Your attitude and commitment to studying and doing well at school also need to be evident in your application.

Yes. You can still apply if you meet our criteria. We are happy for you to have more than one scholarship.

Yes, you can still apply.  Evidence of your visa status is required to be included in our application.

We receive hundreds of applications every year – and this is increasing as more people hear about the scholarship and are inspired by the success stories of our Harding Miller scholars.

The number of scholarships is dependent on funding from donors. We currently support almost 800 scholars in Years 9 to 12. In each of 2023 and 2024, we awarded more than 225 scholarships.

A range of factors contribute to financial barriers. This scholarship is specifically designed to support girls from low income households or those experiencing significant barriers for accessing education. Our aim is to support girls who, owing to their family's economic circumstances, find it challenging to pursue their academic ambitions. In our experience we generally see students who experience a combination of the following factors:

• Living with very low income or experiencing financial hardship
• Having an immigrant, asylum or refugee background (personally or parents)
• Identifying as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander
• Living with low parental or carer academic achievement
• Living with a disability (personally or family members)
• Living in out-of-home care
• Living in a geographically isolated area
• Suffering misfortune or destitution
• Living with family violence or dysfunction