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Commonwealth supported students

What is a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)?

A CSP is a place at a university, available to domestic students, where the government pays part of your fees.

How does it work?

In a CSP, the tuition fees for your course of study are split into two parts:

Subsidy amount – the Australian Government pays this share of the tuition fees directly to Deakin.

Student contribution amount – you pay this share of the tuition fees. If eligible, you can use a HECS-HELP loan to pay your student contribution amount. Or you may choose to pay your fees up-front or use a combination of an up-front payment and a HECS-HELP loan.

You may still have other fees to pay as part of your study, such as a Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) and academic services charges.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible for a CSP you must meet the following criteria:

  • you must be one of the following:
    • an Australian citizen, who will complete some of your course of study while residing in Australia; or
    • a New Zealand citizen; or an Australian permanent visa holder; or an eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holder; or
    • a pacific engagement visa (PEV) holder who studies the entire course while living in Australia
  • you must have sufficient Student Learning Entitlement available to undertake your studies
  • you must provide your Unique Student Identifier (USI) to the University prior to the first census date.

Being eligible for a CSP does not mean that you will be offered a CSP, as not all courses have CSPs available. To find out whether you are enrolled in a fee-paying place or a CSP, check your course offer or view your invoice in StudentConnect.

How much will my fees be?

Your fees will depend on your course, the units you study and when you commenced your course. Your fees may vary each study period as your enrolled units change. You should view your invoice each study period to check your tuition fees and make sure your enrolment details are correct. You can use the Fee Estimator to estimate your course and unit fees.

You can pay your fees by using one of the options on your Deakin invoice.

If you withdraw early from a unit or your course, you may be eligible for a full or partial refund of fees.

Please note

  • If you are undertaking more than 2 years’ worth of study of higher education within 12 months (either at Deakin or Deakin and somewhere else) you must notify Student Central immediately as pre-approval is required to be eligible for a CSP.
  • If you are enrolled in a CSP and are planning to overload your course requirements by enrolling in additional units, please be aware these units are not eligible for your CSP subsidy. Any additional units to your course requirements will need to be undertaken on a non-award basis and charged at full-fee rates. FEE-HELP will also not be available. Before making any enrolment changes, please discuss your study plans and fee implications with a student adviser at Student Central.
  • Eligibility for CSP and HECS-HELP are not the same. You can learn more about HECS-HELP loans and eligibility on our webpage.

Visit the StudyAssist website for detailed information about CSPs

Student contributions

Understanding your fees

Learn how to view your invoice and how your fees are calculated based on your place type.

Last updated:
Page custodian: Student Services