opening page ornament

Welcome to the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success

The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success acknowledges Indigenous peoples across Australia as the Traditional Owners of the lands on which the nation’s campuses are situated. With a history spanning more than 60,000 years as the original educators, Indigenous peoples hold a unique place in our nation. We recognise the importance of their knowledge and culture, and reflect the principles of participation, equity, and cultural respect in our work. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and future, and consider it an honour to learn from our Indigenous colleagues, partners, and friends.

Enter website
Back to Publications
You are reading: Towards a financially inclusive higher education system

This is the final report submitted for the ACSES Small Grants Research Program project “Towards a financially inclusive higher education system”.

Lead researcher: Dr Anne-Therese McMahon, University of Wollongong

Co-authors: Professor Karen Charlton, Professor Kelly Lambert, Professor Yasmine Probst, Dr Katherine Kent, Professor Karen Walton, Dr Joanna Russell, Dr Kylie Austin, Dr Gabrielle O’Flynn (University of Wollongong)

Read below for the key points of the report “at a glance”. The full report is available for download in PDF [2 MB] or Word [2 MB] format.

At a glance

What we did

This report examined the prevalence and impact of financial hardship on university students. It evaluated the effectiveness of existing financial support services and identified barriers that prevent students from accessing essential assistance. It did so through:

  • a desktop audit of financial aid services across 41 Australian universities
  • a scoping review of the existing literature
  • a national survey of over 900 students complemented by in-depth interviews
  • both qualitative (interview) and quantitative (survey) data on the experiences of university staff.

What we found

  • Financial hardship is widespread, with one in three students experiencing financial insecurity, particularly international students, Indigenous students, and students living with a disability.
  • While most universities offer financial aid services, significant barriers remain—only 21.6% of students were aware of available financial support, and nearly half of these students found application processes were too complex.
  • Financial stress was linked to increased dropout rates, lower academic performance, and adverse mental health outcomes.
  • While emergency aid and scholarships are available at many universities, these initiatives are under-promoted, often lack sufficient funding, and fail to provide long-term financial stability for the students.

What we recommend

Government funded payment schemes, such as Youth Allowance, Austudy and ABSTUDY, should be enhanced to reflect the actual financial needs of all Australian university students.

Universities should:

  • develop comprehensive Financial Inclusion Plans
  • improve webpage design and accessibility of their financial aid information
  • expand emergency support services
  • enhance non-monetary support services, such as providing discounted textbooks, subsidised meal plans, and on-campus services to alleviate financial pressures
  • simplify application processes for aid.

These recommendations have been used to develop guidelines—Improving the Financial Wellbeing of Australian University Students—and a poster (see Appendices 10.1 and 10.2 of the full report).

 

The full report is available for download in PDF [2 MB] or Word [2 MB] format.

Download the full report:
ACSES Quote icon
McMahon-et-al-2026-Towards-a-financially-inclusive-higher-education-system.pdf
2 MB
ACSES Quote icon
McMahon-et-al-2026-Towards-a-financially-inclusive-higher-education-system.docx
2 MB
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Disability General / all students Indigenous International Research Reports
Download the full report
Towards a financially inclusive higher education system
McMahon et al., 2026
Featured publications
Pathway programs and Indigenous student completion: Building the evidence
B Fredericks, K Barney, T Bunda, A Moor, K Hausia, S Parlett, N Richy, and D Taylor-Griffiths​ , 2026
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study identified and analysed the strategies used in three Group of Eight university pathway programs to support Indigenous students to successfully transition into and through university.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
Equity Policy Options: Parity Targets, Final Report
ACSES​ , 2024
This report outlines policy options in relation to parity targets for four priority equity groups in Australian higher education – students from low SES backgrounds, First Nations Australian students, students with disability, and students from regional and remote Australia.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Disability
Is the problem us? Helping part-time students succeed in a full-time world
Kelly Linden​ , 2026
An ACSES Equity Fellowship final report. The project looks at the increasingly complex challenges facing part-time university students and what interventions are needed to help them succeed.
Part-time students
Research Reports
Indigenous university pathways, WIL and the strengthening of aspirations: Robbie’s journey as a learner
Garth Stahl, Sarah McDonald, Jennifer Stokes​ , 2023
A case study documenting the transition of one Indigenous student, Robbie, from an underprivileged school located in the Western suburbs of Sydney to an urban Australian university.
Indigenous
Journal articles
More publications
Pathway programs and Indigenous student completion: Building the evidence
B Fredericks, K Barney, T Bunda, A Moor, K Hausia, S Parlett, N Richy, and D Taylor-Griffiths​ , 2026
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study identified and analysed the strategies used in three Group of Eight university pathway programs to support Indigenous students to successfully transition into and through university.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
Research Reports
Equity Policy Options: Parity Targets, Final Report
ACSES​ , 2024
This report outlines policy options in relation to parity targets for four priority equity groups in Australian higher education – students from low SES backgrounds, First Nations Australian students, students with disability, and students from regional and remote Australia.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Disability
Indigenous
Low SES
Low socioeconomic status
Regional, rural and remote
Regional and remote
Is the problem us? Helping part-time students succeed in a full-time world
Kelly Linden​ , 2026
An ACSES Equity Fellowship final report. The project looks at the increasingly complex challenges facing part-time university students and what interventions are needed to help them succeed.
Part-time students
Research Reports
Indigenous university pathways, WIL and the strengthening of aspirations: Robbie’s journey as a learner
Garth Stahl, Sarah McDonald, Jennifer Stokes​ , 2023
A case study documenting the transition of one Indigenous student, Robbie, from an underprivileged school located in the Western suburbs of Sydney to an urban Australian university.
Indigenous
Journal articles