Download general scholarship information:
ECCQ’s Advancing Women Scholarships Guidelines – About
Download information specific to Scholarship 1:
ECCQ’s Advancing Women Scholarship 1 Guidelines
Download information specific to Scholarship 2:
ECCQ’s Advancing Women Scholarship 2 Guidelines
About the scholarships:
ECCQ has partnered with local leaders, professionals, and business to develop two scholarship opportunities for culturally diverse women residing in Queensland. These scholarships recognise the contribution of women to making our society more equitable and inclusive. The scholarships aim to provide opportunities for culturally and linguistically diverse women to advance in their leadership and chosen profession by providing mentors, financial aid and educational assistance.
Read more about the scholarship opportunities below, including the eligibility and application questions.
General eligibility:
All applicants must identify as female and culturally linguistically diverse and reside in Queensland. Definitions used for this eligibility are as follows:
Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) is a broad term used to describe a person who may natively speak a language other than English and/or identify with an ethnic background, nationality, cultural traditions or religion that is different to the majority community of Australia. This may be a person who has migrated to Australia, a second-generation migrant
Application process:
Scholarship applications open Friday 6 December 2024 and will close at 11:59pm Friday 14 February 2025.
Each scholarship category has differing eligibility and application questions specific to the aims of the scholarship.
Scholarship applications must be submitted through an online form, with required evidence emailed to scholarship@eccq.com.au. Applications submitted through any other means will not be accepted. Scholarship applications forms can be found under the scholarship below.
A person may only apply for one scholarship category. Please ensure that you read the eligibility of each scholarship carefully to ensure that you are eligible.
The scholarship winners will be announced at ECCQ’s International Women’s Day Event in March 2025.
For any questions regarding the scholarship, including eligibility and the application process please see the FAQ’s here. If you can’t find the answer to your question, email scholarship@eccq.com.au and the ECCQ can answer your question.
ECCQ Scholarship 1:
Cleo Xynias Multicultural Woman of the Year
The Scholarship:
Cleo Xynias is well known as the wife of Nick Xynias AO BEM, a co-founder of ECCQ in 1976. Cleo dedicated her life to ensuring the advancement of multicultural Australians through her support and dedication to her family and community. Today, Cleo is kept busy with family and her beloved grandchildren. However, she still maintains a keen interest in all matters multicultural.
Cleo designed the criteria for the scholarship. It strongly reflects the contribution of women who identify as culturally and linguistically diverse who are committed to making a difference to improving the lives of others from similar backgrounds.
The scholarship winner should demonstrate a commitment to the advancement of Queensland’s multicultural communities and a commitment to the development of their own leadership role in these communities. The scholarship winner may identify as an emerging leader who is continuing to build these skills and their role.
In recognition of Cleo Xynias’s role in the initial establishment of Berlasco, the scholarship winner will give back to the residents of Berlasco Residential Aged Care through 20 hours of volunteer work. This volunteer work can be in any form utilising their personal or professional skills or interests. The scholarship winner has one year to complete their volunteer work.
Click here to apply for Scholarship 1: Cleo Xynias Multicultural Woman of the Year
Scholarship Prizes:
1. Cash prize
The scholarship winner will receive $2,000 cash prize.
2. Education
The scholarship winner will receive a full tuition paid course valued up to $2,500 from the Australian Institute of Management (AIM).
AIM’s range of courses cover a significant breadth and depth of knowledge, including short courses, micro credentials and non-accredited courses. AIM’s courses are a combination of online and face to face (onsite or virtual) workshops. Explore the AIM website to learn more about their courses in leadership, strategy, business and communications.
The scholarship winner will have 1 year to complete the course.
3. Mentorship
The scholarship winner will receive a 6-month mentorship with a professional relevant to their career path. The 6-month mentorship equates to 20 hours with the mentor.
Eligibility:
To be eligible for the Cleo Xynias female leader scholarship, the applicant must meet the following criteria:
- identify as female
- bilingual or multilingual
- born in a country other than Australia (all visa types and current Australian citizens are eligible)
- must reside in Queensland
Application:
The application for the future female professional scholarship has four required questions. Please note the maximum word count and weighting of the question in the scholarship assessment.
The four questions are:
- tell us about your role as a leader and why you identify as a leader
- tell us how your leadership role has advanced multicultural Queensland, or a local area in Queensland
- tell us how the scholarship prizes will support you in advancing your leadership skills and/or role
- Tell us what form of volunteering you would do at Berlasco Residential Aged Care and how would this benefit the residents/facility?
Along with the application questions, the applicant must provide the following evidence by emailing scholarship@eccq.com.au:
- evidence of migration status
- evidence of residence in Queensland
- at least one, maximum of three, reference letters. The referee cannot be related to the applicant and must have known the applicant for at least 6 months.
- The letter/s should substantiate the following:
- the applicant’s leadership role within the multicultural community
- the applicant’s commitment to the advancement multicultural Queensland
- the applicant’s bilingualism or multilingualism
- identifies as culturally and/or linguistically diverse
ECCQ Scholarship 2:
Emerging Professional Scholarship
The Scholarship: The Emerging Professional Scholarship acknowledges that unique and complex barriers that exist for culturally diverse women to enter professional employment. Despite progress in advancing women’s representation and progression in the workplace, Australia still has a significant gender pay gap and career progression discrimination and under representation in leadership.
The scholarship is for women who identify as culturally diverse and are beginning their professional career in Queensland.
Click here to apply for Scholarship 2: Emerging Professional Scholarship
Scholarship Prize:
1. Education
The scholarship winner will receive a full tuition paid course valued up to $2,000 from the Australian Institute of Management (AIM).
AIM’s range of courses cover a significant breadth and depth of knowledge, including short courses, micro credentials and non accredited courses. AIM’s courses are a combination of online and face to face (onsite or virtual) workshops. Explore the AIM website to learn more about their courses in leadership, strategy, business and communications.
The scholarship winner will have 1 year to complete the course.
2. Training
The scholarship winner will receive credit to attend one of the Transcendence workshop trainings of choice. Transcendence Framework Coaching Program focuses on equipping women with the necessary tools and strategies to overcome barriers and achieve their potential which primes them to become successful, purpose- led leaders. The recipient will select from one of the training sessions:
- Self-discovery and unique contribution
- Calibration and emotional intelligence
- Effective communication and networking
- Personal brad development
- Resilience building
- Empowerment and integration
3. Mentorship
The scholarship winner will receive a 6-month mentorship with a professional relevant to their career path. The 6-month mentorship equates to 20 hours with the mentor.
Eligibility:
To be eligible for the Emerging Professional Scholarship, the application must meet the following criteria:
- Have completed a tertiary qualification within the last three years, or will complete within 6 months of application date
- Tertiary qualifications include all formal post-secondary education, including universities, colleges, technical training institutes, and vocational schools
- reside and study in Queensland
- identify as female
- identify as culturally and/or linguistically diverse
Application:
The application for the future female professional scholarship has four required questions. Please note the maximum word count and weighting of the question in the scholarship assessment.
The four questions are:
- tell us about your professional field and why you have chosen this field
- tell us about the unique barriers that you, as a CALD woman, face in entering this field
- tell us what ‘mentorship’ means to you
- tell us how you will utilise the mentorship to break the barriers mentioned above. Include examples and details (e.g., weekly one-hour meetings, setting specific goals, review of cover letters)
- how integrated are your personal and professional goals, and what steps can you take to ensure they align for greater fulfilment?
Along with the application questions, the applicant must provide the following evidence by emailing scholarship@eccq.com.au as one attachment:
- evidence of residence in Queensland
- at least one, maximum of three, reference letters. The referee cannot be related to the applicant and must have known the applicant for at least 6 months.
- The reference letter/s should substantiate that the applicant
- Have completed a tertiary qualification within the last three years, or will complete within 6 months of application date
- Tertiary qualifications include all formal post-secondary education, including
- has barriers to succeeding in their chosen career
- identifies as culturally and/or linguistically diverse
