Junior Leadership Bursary

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ESU Junior Leadership Bursary

A grant of up to $1,500
to assist people in regional Victoria to develop leadership skills

Applicants must be aged 17 years or younger
as at 31 December in the year of application.

Information and Application Form

Closing date: 15 November in the year of application

The English-Speaking Union (Victoria Branch) (the “ESU”) was established in Melbourne in 1919. It is a non-government body, reliant on members, volunteers, supporters and donors to undertake and fund activities. Its mission is to shape the future by promoting the heritage, culture, identity and fellowship of the English-speaking peoples.

The ESU shares the outlook of Winston Churchill, former Chairman of the English-Speaking Union of the British Empire, in his A History of the English-Speaking Peoples (1956-58) in defining the English-speaking peoples as the people of the British Isles and their descendants who settled in countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States of America.

As a registered Australian charity, the ESU engages in and supports educational and cultural projects that relate to its mission.

The ESU invites applications for the Junior Leadership Bursary. This Bursary provides up to one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) to enable the successful applicant to further develop their leadership skills by undertaking a development program or an experiential leadership course (e.g. Outward Bound course or similar program).

One Junior Leadership Bursary is offered each year. Applications close on 15 November in the year of application. Decisions will normally be advised by mid-December in the same year.

1. Entry is free.
2. To be eligible to enter, applicants must be:
      (a)   Australian citizens or permanent residents,
      (b)   residing in a Victorian location outside the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area, and
      (c)   aged seventeen (17) years or younger as at 31 December in the year of application.
3. The Junior Leadership Bursary Application Form must be completed in full, in accordance with the ‘Application Guidelines’, and must be accompanied by all the required supporting documents.
4. Applications for retrospective funding (for expenses that have already been incurred) will be ineligible.
5. The ESU may use relevant material provided in the application for media and promotion.
6. By submitting your application, you agree to participate in media publicity and promotion associated with the Bursary, including the use of photos submitted or taken at any Awards presentation ceremony that may be arranged.
7. Applications close on 15 November each year.
8. Bursary recipients will be requested to acknowledge the ESU’s support in any publication (print or online) that mentions their award.
9. Bursary recipients will be required to provide a brief report of their experiences and the benefits of undertaking the leadership course within two months of completing the course/program. Reports must be in writing and may be supported by a video presentation (optional). These reports may be used by the ESU for public relations and future marketing.
10. Decisions of the judges are final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Applications should follow these guidelines:

1. Video presentations, of no more than three (3) minutes, providing a summary of the written application and relevant supporting documents, photographs or pictures are optional, but will be accepted.
2. Applications may be supported with evidence of relevant past achievements.
3. In all documents provided for this application, please use Arial font no smaller than 11 point.
4. Please write precisely and concisely.
5. The application must include certified copies of (a) proof of applicant’s date of birth and, if not born in Australia, (b) proof of Australian Citizenship or Permanent Residency status.
   (See: https://www.justice.vic.gov.au/certifiedcopies for advice on how to obtain certification of original documents.)

In the relevant sections of the Application Form, please:

1. Describe your community involvement and leadership, setting out the actions you took and outcomes achieved.
2. Where relevant, include quantitative evidence of improvements and outcomes resulting from your leadership actions.
3. Reflect on the skills you have developed through these activities. In your application, show how you:
   1. applied problem solving or creativity
   2. communicated and collaborated
   3. showed persistence and adaptability
4. Outline how you propose to further your self-development through training and education. Please provide the cost and timing of any course or program you propose to undertake.
5. Summarise your application in two or three sentences. Highlight how you have previously shown leadership in your educational institution, community or social setting, your achievements and impacts made, and outline your future goals. This summary will be used as the basis for all media purposes and presentations.

In addition:

6. Provide at least two testimonial statements supporting your leadership activities and potential from your teacher/s or senior community representative/s.

To assist individuals in drafting their applications, we provide HERE a Word version of the Information and Application form. Please note, however, that each application must be submitted using the online form, below.

The ESU, as the organiser of the Bursary, will appoint a judging panel to assess all applications. The judging panel reserves the right to decide not to award a Bursary in any year.

The winner will receive a certificate and a Bursary of up to one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500). Judges may award one or more runners up a Bursary of up to seven hundred and fifty dollars ($750).

All Bursary amounts will normally be paid directly to the leadership development course/program nominated by the winner or runner up.

Click HERE to access the Application Form
for the ESU Junior Leadership Bursary

Receipt of succesfully lodged applications will be automatically acknowledged upon submission. 

All applicants will be notified of the outcome of the selection process with the winner/s featured on the ESU website.

Winner/s will be invited to attend a presentation ceremony at a date to be confirmed.

It is acknowledged that in administering the Bursary, the English-Speaking Union (Victoria Branch) will need to collect personal information from the applicant. The ESU is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of individuals. Click HERE to read the ESU Privacy Policy.

Please note that our preferred method of correspondence is by email to awards@esuvic.org.au