GJK Conference Scholarship
TEFMA Clever Campus Scholarships
Applications for 2025 are open from 24 March to 2 June 2025.
Visit this page for more information on key dates.
The TEFMA Conference Scholarship provides an opportunity each year for an employee working in facilities management in a TEFMA Member Institution to attend the annual TEFMA Conference and visit Australasian institutions in the immediate Conference location, to broaden their knowledge of contemporary facilities management practice in the sector.
The scholarship is available to all TEFMA Institutional Members from middle management down.
The scholarship has a value of up to AUD$4,500 incl GST towards the cost of attending the conference and local institutional visits.
The successful applicant will need support from their institution for both the time to attend the conference and subsequent visits, and a financial contribution for any costs in excess of the scholarship amount.
The successful applicant will be required to produce a brief written or mixed media report describing their experiences and the resulting benefits to their work and organisation. The report will be published in a TEFMA newsletter, on the Community Portal and the applicant will have the opportunity to present their learnings via the TEFMA Webinar series.
Scholarship applications will be evaluated on the basis of the criteria set out below.
To view application forms and information packs, please refer to Related Resources below.
Applications for the GJK Conference Scholarship open late March each year.
To be considered for the GJK Conference Scholarship, applications and supporting material should be received by TEFMA no later than 5pm AEST on the close date as noted on the TEFMA website. If an extension is required, this request is to be received in writing by the Secretariat by this date.
Submissions must be made on the official application form.
Scholarship criteria should be addressed in applications.
Selection of the successful applicant will be approved by the TEFMA Board following receipt of a recommendation from a panel established to review the applications.
The review panel will include the following members:
- Chair, Membership Services Committee, or nominee
- General Manager, TEFMA
- A Past-President of TEFMA
- Additional panel members may be included at the discretion of the Chair, Membership Services Committee.
Applications will be judged against the published criteria. Panel deliberations will be confidential and TEFMA’s decision is final. No correspondence or appeal process will be entered into.
The panel may decide not to award if it deems that no suitable applications have been received.
More than one scholarship can be awarded in any calendar year.
To ensure we minimise any conflicts of interest, a TEFMA Board member cannot be on the Review Panel if the Applicant is from the Board member’s Institution.
Evaluation of applications for the scholarship will be completed in June / July. The successful applicant will be announced at the TEFMA Awards Dinner, which forms part of the TEFMA Annual Conference. Details on the annual Conference will be on the TEFMA website. Should there be any reason the Awards Dinner is unable to take place in person, an online event will be hosted.
The Conference Scholarship is open for applications from individuals employed in the facilities department of a TEFMA Member Institution.
The scholarship is available to all TEFMA Institutional Members from middle management down.
Only one nomination per institution is permitted each year for this scholarship.
Scholarships will normally be granted to an individual only once.
If the candidate is not already a member of TEFMA, then the host Institutional Member is to arrange for the candidate to become a member of TEFMA.
Scholarship applicants may be required to undertake an interview.
Applications should clearly reference the criteria provided. Words provided are a prompt only, to assist those completing an application, but are not intended to be exhaustive.
A. Professional Development
Applicants should describe how the Conference Scholarship will assist them in broadening their knowledge of tertiary facilities management.
Evidence of your developing professionalism within the sector should be included, and the potential for you to increase the positive impact you can make in property and/or facilities management in your institution. Your application should demonstrate how the scholarship will benefit both you and your Institution.
Your application should demonstrate the value you will get from attendance at the conference and visits to other higher education institutions in the area, and how this knowledge will be passed on to your organisation.
B. Interpersonal skills development
Applications should demonstrate that the applicant is developing leadership and representation skills in their current role, and should provide examples of:
- A workplace task or situation where you showed strong leadership, recognized as such by your peers and/or supervisor. Describe the attributes you needed to perform this role successfully.
- A time when you were required to show strong relationship management in a work situation. Describe the attributes you needed to perform this role successfully.
- A situation where you represented your Department or Institution at a senior level. Describe the attributes you needed to perform this role successfully.
C. TEFMA Participation
Applications should demonstrate that the applicant has a continuing interest in TEFMA and appreciates the value of participating in TEFMA activities.
Applicants should demonstrate their knowledge of the mission and workings of TEFMA by referencing some or all of the following:
- Active participation you may have had with TEFMA in the past.
- Recent understanding you have developed about the activities of TEFMA.
- Ways in which you would be interested in contributing to TEFMA in the future.
- Suggestions with respect to future activities that TEFMA could undertake to expand its work in the higher education property and facilities management sector.
Instructions
1. To be considered for this scholarship you must provide the following:
- Completed application form
- Supporting materials (if any)
- Details of any additional material to be made available should the judging panel choose to make a site visit
2. All sections of the application form must be complete for an application to be considered.
3. Applications must be endorsed and signed by the relevant Institutional Member.
4. Applications must be submitted online via the Online Submission Portal.
5. Save your file name as YOURSURNAME_AWARDNAME_datesubmitted i.e. SMITH_GJK_CONFERENCE_SCHOLARSHIP_15.05.24. Word or PDF is acceptable.
6. If you have supporting documents (up to 2 supporting documents can be uploaded), please ensure they are saved as YOURNAME_AWARD NAME_Attachment A or Attachment B i.e. i.e. SMITH_ GJK_CONFERENCE_SCHOLARSHIP_ATTACHMENT A
7. Once you have submitted your scholarship, you will receive an automatic email within 24 hours. If you do not receive an email, please email the TEFMA Secretariat: info@tefma.com to confirm your application has been uploaded correctly.
8. Applications are due by 5pm AEST as advised on the TEFMA website unless otherwise agreed. Please contact the TEFMA Secretariat on +61 2 9431 8692 or info@tefma.com with any queries.
9. Applicants that are shortlisted may be asked to submit a 2-minute video presenting a snapshot of the nominee and their work proposed for the award.
Be factual and positive.
It is important to provide evidence to back up your claims. As well as describing the situation you are presenting, you should cite actual examples relating to the work done, how well it was carried out, what was achieved, and how it has benefited your institution.
Responses need not be lengthy, but they should be relevant, include meaningful supporting descriptions, and should demonstrate particular characteristics, qualities or approaches that have resulted in the work making a significant contribution to your organisation.
A submission should anticipate the key points a panel member will be looking for in the responses to the scholarship criteria.
To maximise your chances of success it is important that you address the scholarship criteria to clearly identify the suitability of your application for consideration as winner of the scholarship.
When addressing the criteria you should look for things to highlight that might set you apart from other applicants.
Be clear and to the point and do not exceed word limits. Edit your responses for grammar, spelling and punctuation.
See Awards & Scholarships Key Dates here.
Congratulations to:
2024 GJK Conference Scholarship Winner:
Kerry Scanlon, Monash University
The GJK Conference Scholarship is proudly sponsored by:
TEFMA Scholarships are valid for 2 years after the date awarded. Should the recipient leave their Institution, the Scholarship will no longer be considered valid.
