COVID-19 Emergency Support Fund and other financial or material support

You will be able to request a contribution towards the costs of IT hardware (mainly laptops), internet access (data plans) and office furniture required for remote study.

You will need to provide evidence of purchase as part of your application, or you can request an advance payment in which case you must agree to provide proof of purchase before 30 November, 2020.

The grant allocation will be based on the cost of the items purchased or to be purchased with the following maximum amounts:

• up to $1,000 for a laptop/computer
• up to $250 for internet upgrades
• up to $150 for a desk and $75 for an office chair.

To be considered in this category you must:

1. Be:
   1. currently enrolled in at least one subject for Semester 2, 2020, or
   2. a graduate research candidate who is not in receipt of a living stipend scholarship, and whose candidature has not lapsed, and
2. Either be:
   1. a domestic student from a disadvantaged background defined as per the University Access Melbourne and Graduate Access Melbourne special entry scheme categories:
      1. Be the recipient of means tested Centrelink benefits or be able to provide evidence of receiving income from other sources below the average weekly income benchmark
      2. Be registered with Student Equity and Disability Services as having a medical condition or disability
      3. Be from a rural or regional area at the time of completing Year 12
      4. Be of Australian Indigenous descent as confirmed by Murrup Barak, or
   2. a domestic or international student experiencing financial hardship, and
3. Purchase or have purchased the item(s) before 1 November, 2020.

As part of your application, you must declare why you need to upgrade your IT equipment or home study furniture and why you are unable to afford the upgrades. You may also be asked to provide banks statements for your transaction, savings and investment accounts from 1 January to the date of your application.

You will be able to request assistance where you have lost or could not secure a source of income due to COVID-19 for Semester 2, 2020 and can no longer pay for rent, food and similar necessities, and you are now experiencing financial difficulties. This could include paid work, family support or other sources of income.

The grant allocation will be based on your loss of income with a maximum amount of $6,500.

To be considered in this category you must:

1. Either be:
   1. currently enrolled in a coursework degree course in at least one subject for Semester 2 2020; or
   2. a graduate research candidate who is not in receipt of a living stipend scholarship, and whose candidature has not lapsed
2. And either:
   1. have commenced your course in Semester 2, 2020 and have lost secure sources of income (eg employment or family support) or were unable to find employment in Melbourne as a result of COVID-19
   2. be continuing your course in Semester 2, 2020 and have lost secure sources of income (eg employment or family support) as a result of COVID-19

If you have received a grant under Category 2 during Semester 1, 2020, you can apply for further funding, provided you have not reached the maximum allocation of $7,500 for both the COVID-19 Emergency Support Grant and Student Support Grant combined.

If you have reached the limit of $7,500 and are still experiencing financial hardship and require immediate crisis support, you are encouraged to contact Financial Aid.

As part of your application, you must declare how COVID-19 has caused a loss of or reduction in income or inability to find employment in Melbourne, and details about your financial position. You will also be asked to provide banks statements for your transaction, savings and investment accounts from 1 January to the date of application.

If you are currently in receipt of Centrelink payments, you will not be eligible.

You will be able to request assistance towards covering some of the additional costs not covered by travel insurance, if you were on, or about to commence, an approved study overseas activity for Semester 1, 2020, but had to abandon your overseas study plans as a result of COVID-19, or incurred unforeseen expenses as a result of the COVID-19 disruption, and where travel insurance does not cover genuine, reasonable costs.

The amount awarded will be determined from the gap between all reasonable costs that are claimed with insurance and the settled amount awarded by the insurer. The total eligible amount you can receive is $7,500 and will take into account any other University or other grant (inc. COVID-19 support grant) already provided by the University.

• Funding support is provided as a contribution towards additional costs not covered by insurance, and may not cover costs in their entirety.
• Students should review the Chubb Travel Insurance Claims Response – Coronavirus (COVID-19) updated March 19, 2020 (PDF 147.2 KB), alongside the standard Travel Policy Wording (PDF 2.1 MB) document and follow the travel insurance claims process. Chubb considered COVID19 a foreseen circumstance from 5pm on 22 January 2020 for Hubei province, China; 9am 2 February 2020 for mainland China; 4pm 2 March 2020 for all other destinations outside of Australia.
  
  When COVID-19 is considered a foreseen circumstance there is unlikely to be cover for any event related to or resulting from COVID-19. Students who commenced or/and booked travel and accommodation prior to the above dates, are likely to be covered and encouraged to claim against Section 6 – Cancellations and Disruptions (PDF 2.1 MB) due to campus and/or residential colleges closures. Under the policy Chubb may cover the non-refundable unused portion of forfeited travel and accommodation expenses paid in advance and/or any necessarily incurred reasonable additional travel or accommodation expenses and/or out-of-pocket expenses as a result of unforeseen circumstance outside their control.
  
  Note that each claim will be assessed by the insurer and this information is provided for administrative guidance only. All decisions relating to travel insurance will be made by Chubb, not the university.

To be considered under this category you must:

1. Have been enrolled in at least one subject in Semester 1 2020, or be a graduate research candidate whose candidature has not lapsed, or have taken a subsequent leave of absence as a result of overseas study being cancelled
2. Have been on approved University travel which has been recorded on relevant University systems
3. Provide evidence that you have lodged an insurance claim and that the claim has been processed (ie evidence of settlement)
4. Confirm you understand that if you are in receipt of or have received, any other travel grant or other forms of official support from the University, these amounts will be deducted from the overall eligible amount of $7500.