Indigenous Tutorial Assistance Scheme (ITAS)

The Indigenous Tutorial Assistance Scheme (ITAS) aims to help all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students achieve academic success. The Indigenous Tutorial Scheme is a Commonwealth funded program that provides Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with one-on-one private or group tuition. The program is designed to assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in their tertiary studies by aligning them with qualified ITAS tutors suited to the students' needs.

ITAS is an academic support initiative of the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR), which aims to improve educational outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. DEEWR funding covers the costs associated with providing tutors to aid Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in their studies. There is no charge to the students themselves.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible, you must:

• be of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent, and
• identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, and
• be accepted as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander in the community in which you live or have lived.

You must be enrolled full time, part time, or by any mode of distance education, in a formal course of study leading to a certificate, diploma, degree, or other qualification at the University of Sydney, or be accepted for enrolment in a course that commences within one month of lodging an application for assistance.

How to apply

Applications are available from this website (see top right panel), and through the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Support Officer ITAS, . Applications are submitted directly to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Support Officer ITAS at the University on the main campus, Yooroang Garang on the Lidcombe campus, and with student administration on regional campuses.

How it works

Once the application has been lodged, an assessment is made of your needs. This is done by lecturers or course coordinators where possible, or by a counsellor or another appropriate staff member. In exceptional circumstances, an independent assessor may be engaged to provide the assessment, but this must not be an existing or potential tutor.

Successful applicants are then matched by the ITAS Administrator with tutors who have skills, knowledge and expertise of the chosen discipline in which tutoring is required.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Support Officer ITAS then arranges a meeting between the student and tutor. When meeting face-to-face is not possible, telephone and email are used for tutor/student communication. In the first meeting, sessions are negotiated for (in the first instance) a maximum of 4 hours per week.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Support Officer ITAS maintains constant contact with both student and tutor to gather feedback and progress updates. Any concerns that students or tutors may have should be raised with the Officer.

Tutoring is available at any stage in your course

Students often think tutoring support is only there to be used when they are really struggling with their studies, but in fact, it is available to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students enrolled at the University, at any stage of their course, whether they are studying part-time, full-time, on a reduced load or by block-mode.

Please read through the information sheets provided and contact the if you have any questions.

Information for tutors

If you are interested in becoming an ITAS tutor, please complete the Tutor Application form and return to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Support Officer ITAS via or at the address listed on the top right of this page.

Current ITAS tutors can download Pay Claim forms and associated information from this page. Please note the cut-off dates for pay weeks.