Top 20 Australian Private Schools Offering Scholarships (2028 Entry)

Six of the 20 schools below are taking 2028-entry scholarship applications today, and the first deadline is Monday 19 October 2026. Another five open between 2 and 20 November, and two academic rounds have already closed. The deadline that matters most this autumn is Cranbrook's: registration closes on Sunday 22 November 2026 and the Year 7 exam is on Sunday 29 November 2026, more than a year before the first day of Year 7 in 2028.

Dates checked on 9 October 2026 against each school's own scholarship page and ACER's published test dates.

Key takeaways

• Open today (6): Caulfield Grammar, Cranbrook, Sydney Grammar, St Peter's College Adelaide, Brisbane Grammar and SCEGGS. Caulfield's music round closes Monday 19 October 2026; Cranbrook closes Sunday 22 November 2026.
• 9 of the 13 schools with a published test date sit it in February 2027. The exceptions are earlier: Haileybury (June 2026), Melbourne Grammar (August 2026), Cranbrook (28 and 29 November 2026) and Sydney Grammar (Sunday 31 January 2027).
• Two academic rounds have closed for 2028 entry: Melbourne Grammar (Years 7 and 9) and Haileybury (Years 5, 7 and 10).
• Four schools have no exact 2028 dates yet: MLC, PLC Melbourne, Wesley College and The King's School ask you to register interest or wait for Term 4. Somerville House's ACER test date is already set.
• Most awards cover part of tuition. Sydney Grammar's published value is 20%, Hale's is 25%, Caulfield's is typically 25% to 75%, PLC Perth's runs from 15% to 50%. Awards of 100% are means-tested or sit at the top of a range: Haileybury Foundation (50% to 100%), PLC Perth Foundation (100% of tuition) and Barker's Year 7 awards (up to 100%).
• Which test matters. ACER's cooperative program (SCEGGS, Brisbane Grammar, Somerville House, St Peter's) lets one sitting go to up to six schools. AAS (Knox, Barker, Cranbrook, Newington) and EduTest (Haileybury, Caulfield, MLC, Geelong Grammar) schools take their own registration and fee.

Which scholarship rounds are open right now?

Six schools are taking 2028-entry applications today. Sorted by first deadline:

Caulfield's two rounds run to different clocks. Its music round closes in ten days and has no fee or test, only an audition; its academic round closes in February and costs $130 to apply.

Which schools open next, and which have no exact dates yet?

Five schools publish a November opening date. Haileybury's Foundation round also opens in November, and Barker opens in Term 4.

These schools have no exact 2028 dates to quote yet, so register your interest with each one:

• MLC Kew: the 2028 round opens "later in 2026".
• PLC Melbourne: registration "TBA Term 4 2026", exam "TBA Term 1 2027".
• Wesley College: 2028-entry scholarships open in late 2026.
• The King's School: the 2027 round has closed and the school will say when 2028 opens.
• Somerville House: register interest with the school; ACER lists its test for Sat 27 Feb 2027, with applications closing Sun 7 Feb 2027.

Scotch College is a different case: it lists its key dates for 2028 entry on its own scholarships page, so read them there before you plan.

Which rounds have already closed?

Two academic rounds for 2028 entry are over, more than a year before the children start. Melbourne Grammar has closed registrations for Year 7 and Year 9 entry in 2028; its exam is held about 18 months before entry, when a child is in Year 5 or Year 7. Haileybury opened its academic round on 20 April 2026, closed it on 29 May, tested on 20 and 21 June and told families the outcome on 7 August 2026.

A family with a child in Year 5 who starts looking this month for Year 7 entry in 2028 has therefore already missed two of these 20 rounds. The planning horizon is closer to 18 months than 12.

What is a scholarship actually worth in dollars?

A published percentage becomes a dollar figure only when you apply it to the school's own tuition. Three schools publish both numbers, so we can do the sum. All figures use the school's 2026 Year 7 tuition; the award applies to the fee in the year your child starts, which will be higher.

Sydney Grammar's award is the surprise. A school with a $52,410 tuition fee publishes a flat 20% scholarship, so the best a Year 7 student can win on merit alone is $10,482 a year. Any further help comes as means-tested fee assistance.

The 20 schools, one by one

Each entry gives the 2028-entry status, the awards on offer, the test and the school's own wording on value. Dates are as printed by the school on 9 October 2026.

Melbourne and Victoria

Melbourne is the densest scholarship market on the list, with eight of the 20 schools. For the round-by-round picture across more Melbourne schools see our Melbourne scholarships calendar and our Melbourne private school fees guide.

Melbourne Grammar School

Academic scholarships are for Year 7 and Year 9 entry, and registrations for 2028 entry are now closed. The exam is held about 18 months before entry, when a child is in Year 5 or Year 7, and shortlisted students are interviewed. The school lists Academic, Music, Boarding, General Excellence, EH Flack and First Nations scholarships and describes partial remission of tuition without a standard percentage. Details: Melbourne Grammar scholarships.

Scotch College

Scotch publishes the key dates for its 2028-entry process on its scholarships page. Read them there before you plan; we have not repeated them here. Details: Scotch College scholarships.

Wesley College

Wesley says scholarships for 2028 entry open in late 2026 and asks families to register their interest through its enrolment enquiry form, so exact dates are still to come. Details: Wesley College scholarships and bursaries.

Haileybury

Haileybury runs the earliest academic round on the list. Registrations for 2028 entry ran from 20 April to 29 May 2026, the EduTest tests were held on 20 and 21 June 2026 and outcomes were due on 7 August 2026, so that round is closed. Candidates apply from Years 3, 5 or 8 for entry at Years 5, 7 and 10. Foundation (means-tested) scholarships, worth 50% to 100% of tuition for the duration of a student's schooling, open on Monday 9 November 2026. Details: Haileybury scholarships.

Caulfield Grammar School

Applications for 2028 entry are open. Academic and General Excellence applications close on Wednesday 3 February 2027, and the EduTest test is on Saturday 13 February 2027 from 9.00am to 12.00pm: Year 5 candidates sit at the Wheelers Hill campus, Years 7, 9, 10 and 11 at the Caulfield campus. The application fee is $130. Remission is part of tuition, typically 25% to 75%, through to the end of Year 12, and interviews follow within about three weeks of the test. Music (instrumental) scholarships close earlier, on Monday 19 October 2026, with auditions on Saturday 7 November 2026 and Tuesday 10 November 2026 and no fee. Details: Caulfield Grammar scholarships.

MLC (Methodist Ladies' College), Kew

MLC has closed its 2027-entry round and says the 2028 round opens later in 2026; register your details with the school to be told when. Scholarships are based on merit and potential in six categories: Academic, Music, Sports, Indigenous, Science and Boarding. Academic awards are for entry at Years 5, 7, 9 and 11, are applied for through the Edutest online portal and carry a $137.50 registration fee. Details: MLC scholarships.

PLC Melbourne (Burwood)

PLC lists 2028 registration as "TBA Term 4 2026" and the exam as "TBA Term 1 2027". Girls can apply for Academic, General Excellence, Music, Boarding and means-tested scholarships at Years 7 to 11, tested through ACER. Academic awards are worth up to 50% of tuition to the end of Year 12 and boarding awards up to 50% of boarding fees. If a recipient leaves before the end of Year 12, the full scholarship amount must be repaid within 21 days of notice of withdrawal, which is worth reading closely. Applicants must be Australian citizens or hold a permanent resident visa. Details: PLC scholarships.

Geelong Grammar School

Applications for 2028 entry open on Monday 2 November 2026 and close on Monday 1 February 2027. The scholarship examination is on Saturday 20 February 2027, first-round interviews are in April 2027, second-round interviews (if needed) in May and June, and outcomes reach families by June 2027. The school names Edutest as its examination provider. Academic awards (entry at Years 9 or 10) are up to 50% of day or boarding fees, General Excellence awards (Years 5 to 11) up to 75%, and boarding awards up to 75%. Sport works to a separate timetable: expressions of interest run from Mon 2 Nov 2026 to Wed 21 Jul 2027. Visual Arts is not open for 2028 entry and reopens in November 2027 for 2029 entry. More than 200 students hold scholarships at the school each year. Details: Geelong Grammar scholarships.

Sydney

Sydney is mostly AAS territory: Knox, Barker, Cranbrook and Newington test through Academic Assessment Services, SCEGGS uses ACER, and Sydney Grammar names no outside provider. Our Sydney scholarships guide goes region by region.

Sydney Grammar School

The 2028 Form I (Year 7) round opened on Thursday 1 October 2026 and closes on Wednesday 20 January 2027, with the scholarship assessment on Sunday 31 January 2027. There is a non-refundable $300 registration fee. The school says scholarships will be worth 20% remission of the annual tuition fees, with any additional remission given as means-tested fee assistance. Academic entry is at Year 7 only, and the school also lists Music scholarships and Fee-Assisted Places. It names no outside test provider and says coaching for the assessment is strongly discouraged. Details: Sydney Grammar scholarships.

The King's School

King's has closed its 2027 round and asks families to register their interest to hear when the 2028 scholarships and bursaries program opens. Details: The King's School scholarships and bursaries.

Knox Grammar School

Registrations for 2028 open on Monday 9 November 2026 and close at midnight on Thursday 4 February 2027; late applications are not considered. Exams are on Sunday 21 February 2027 (Year 7, Year 11 and Regional Boarding) and Sunday 28 February 2027 (Year 5), on campus, and Knox does not offer remote testing. Tests are run by Academic Assessment Services, the registration fee is $175 and non-refundable, and scholarships are available only to Australian citizens or permanent residents. Awards cover Academic, Music, All-Rounder, Regional Boarding, Sons of Old Boys and Indigenous scholarships (through AIEF); most sit at Year 7, with one Year 5 academic scholarship and limited Year 11 places. Details: Knox Grammar scholarships.

SCEGGS Darlinghurst

SCEGGS tests through ACER's Cooperative Scholarship Testing Program. ACER registrations opened on Monday 21 September 2026 and close at midnight on Sunday 7 February 2027, and the test is on Saturday 27 February 2027; ACER does not accept late applications, and families also complete a SCEGGS application form. A shortlist is invited to interview. Awards include Academic (full or part tuition, mostly Year 7), the means-tested All-Rounder, the Joan Freeman Science and Maths award (full tuition, means-tested, with its own 2028 applications opening in Term 4 2026), the Barbara Chisholm Boarding award (for rural and regional families), Indigenous scholarships, an Old Girls' Union award worth 50% of tuition, and Equity and Music scholarships. Details: SCEGGS scholarships.

Newington College

All scholarship applications are currently closed. Applications for 2028 Senior scholarships open in mid-November 2026, and the school has not yet published closing or test dates, so check its page from mid-November. Scholarships are open to students in Years 7 to 11, tested through Academic Assessment Services. Academic awards give full or partial remission of tuition, and the school does not publish a percentage. Details: Newington College scholarships.

Barker College

The Year 7 2028 scholarship test is on Thursday 18 February 2027 and applications open in Term 4 2026; the school has not yet published a closing date. The exam is conducted online by Academic Assessment Services and cannot be sat at Barker. Awards include up to 100% at Year 7, 50% to 100% for Music, 50% at Year 10 and the 50% Copeland Scholarship for a current Junior School student, plus Co-curricular and Indigenous boarding scholarships from Year 9. Details: Barker College scholarships.

Cranbrook School

Applications for 2028 entry are open for Year 7 and Year 11 only. Online registration closes on Sunday 22 November 2026 at 5.00pm. The Year 11 exam is on Saturday 28 November 2026 and the Year 7 exam on Sunday 29 November 2026, both through Academic Assessment Services, with music auditions and interviews in the week commencing 8 February 2027 and applicants contacted in early March 2027. The process is to register online, submit documents, sit the AAS exam and, if shortlisted, attend an audition and interview. Awards are Academic, All-Rounder and Music, giving full or partial remission of tuition. Details: Cranbrook scholarships.

Brisbane

Brisbane is ACER country, and both schools here use ACER's cooperative test. Our Brisbane private school fees guide shows what the awards discount.

Brisbane Grammar School

Applications for 2028 are open, and online registration for the 2027 ACER Cooperative Scholarship Testing Program (for Year 7 2028 and Year 10 2028 entry) is open. ACER lists Brisbane Grammar's applications closing Sunday 7 February 2027 and the test on Saturday 27 February 2027; the school holds the exam on campus each February. The Trustees' Scholarships have been offered since the school's foundation in 1868, for academic entry at Years 7 and 10, and are awarded by the Headmaster after shortlist interviews. Sports and Cultural scholarships and means-tested bursaries run across Years 7 to 11. The school funds all scholarships and says their value varies with the student's result. Details: Brisbane Grammar scholarships and bursaries.

Somerville House

Somerville has closed its 2027 round and invites families to register their interest for 2028. ACER lists its cooperative test on Saturday 27 February 2027, with applications closing Sunday 7 February 2027. The school offers Academic, Boarding, Music, Sport and Foundation scholarships and uses an ACER test for academic applicants. Details: Somerville House scholarships and bursaries.

Adelaide

St Peter's tests through ACER's South Australian program, which closes and tests earlier than the cooperative dates used by the other states. Our Adelaide private school fees guide covers what the awards discount.

St Peter's College

Applications for entry in 2028 are open. Academic scholarships are for entry at Years 5 and 7 and use the ACER Scholarship Examination; ACER lists the Year 7 test on Saturday 6 February 2027 (South Australian program), with applications closing Thursday 21 January 2027. General Excellence and boarding scholarships close on Tuesday 9 March 2027, and both are means-tested. The General Excellence Scholarship gives 70% remission of tuition for three years (Year 10 entry); the J B Bennett and Donlan-Bowen Family scholarships give 50% for up to four years (Years 9 or 10); all three are for day students not currently enrolled. The Doc Ross boarding scholarship gives 100% of boarding fees for up to five years. Details: St Peter's College scholarships.

Perth

Perth's two schools publish different models: Hale's flat 25% remission with a means-tested extra, and PLC's 15% to 50% band with a separate full-tuition Foundation award. Our Perth scholarships guide and Perth private school fees guide cover more of the city.

Hale School

Year 7 Academic Scholarships for 2028 open on Friday 20 November 2026 and close on Wednesday 10 February 2027; shortlisted applicants are interviewed in Term 1 2027 and outcomes are notified by the end of Term 2 2027. Successful applicants receive 25% remission of tuition fees, and the scholarship may offer further remission subject to means testing. Hale's David Bean, Ryan Murphy General Excellence and Stow Music scholarships for 2027 entry are closed and run on their own timetable, so check the school's page for the next round. Hale does not name a test provider on its page. Details: Hale School scholarships.

PLC Perth

Academic, General Excellence, Boarding, Music and Foundation applications open at 9.00am AWST on Monday 2 November 2026 and close at 12.00pm AWST on Wednesday 3 February 2027. Testing is on Thursday 11 February 2027 at PLC (remote online testing on Wednesday 17 February 2027), interviews are in March 2027 and academic offers go out on Monday 22 March 2027. Performing Arts auditions are on Friday 12 February 2027. Tuition reductions run from 15% to 50%, and the means-tested Foundation Scholarship provides 100% of tuition from Year 7 to Year 12 for girls starting Year 7 in 2028. First Nations scholarships open in December 2026 and close on Friday 23 April 2027. The school asks you to nominate PLC as your first-preference school to be considered in its first round of offers. Details: PLC Perth scholarships and bursaries.

Which test will your child sit?

The test decides how many schools one sitting can serve. ACER's cooperative program lets candidates register for up to six schools, sit once, and have the result reported to all of them. AAS and EduTest schools take their own registration, and the fees add up: $175 at Knox, $137.50 at MLC, $130 at Caulfield.

• ACER cooperative test: SCEGGS, Brisbane Grammar, Somerville House and St Peter's College. PLC Melbourne also uses an ACER exam, set for PLC.
• AAS (Academic Assessment Services): Knox, Barker, Cranbrook and Newington.
• EduTest: Haileybury (academic), Caulfield, MLC and Geelong Grammar.
• Not named on the school's page: Sydney Grammar, Melbourne Grammar, Hale and PLC Perth. Scotch, Wesley and King's give theirs on their own pages.

Most Victorian schools use ACER's alternative-date program instead of the cooperative one, so the candidate sits the test at that school and the result goes to that school only.

How should you prepare?

Start earlier than feels necessary. Independent school enrolments grew 3.4% in 2025, the fastest of any sector, against 1.4% for Catholic schools and a 0.2% dip for government schools (ABS, Schools 2025), and the exam usually falls a year or more before entry. Our guide to when to start preparing sets out a realistic runway by age, and how to improve scholarship chances without tutoring covers what to do at home. If you are new to the process, read our complete guide to private school scholarships first, then compare the three tests in ACER vs EduTest vs AAS. Our private school entry timeline maps the full calendar.

Merit awards are only one kind of help. Means-tested bursaries are often easier to win, and we cover them in scholarships and bursaries for independent schools. To see what an award discounts, compare each school's fees in our capital city fees guide and the school fees pages by state, then find and compare schools near you.

Frequently asked questions

Which private schools have 2028-entry scholarship applications open now?

Six of the 20 in this guide: Caulfield Grammar (music and academic), Cranbrook (Years 7 and 11), Sydney Grammar (Year 7), St Peter's College Adelaide, Brisbane Grammar and SCEGGS (through ACER). Five more open between 2 and 20 November: Geelong Grammar, PLC Perth, Knox, Newington and Hale.

What is the next scholarship deadline?

Caulfield Grammar's music scholarships close on Monday 19 October 2026. The next is Cranbrook, which closes registration on Sunday 22 November 2026 at 5.00pm, with exams on 28 and 29 November 2026.

Do all of these schools test in February?

No. 9 of the 13 schools with a published test date test in February 2027. Haileybury tested in June 2026, Melbourne Grammar in August 2026, Cranbrook tests in late November 2026 and Sydney Grammar on Sunday 31 January 2027. Check each school's dates rather than assuming the February pattern.

Can my child apply to several schools with one test?

Yes, at ACER schools. ACER lets a candidate register for up to six schools in its cooperative program, sit once, and have the result reported to every school applied to. AAS and EduTest schools each take their own registration and fee.

How much is a private school scholarship worth?

Mostly part of tuition. Sydney Grammar publishes 20%, Hale 25%, Caulfield typically 25% to 75%, PLC Perth 15% to 50% and PLC Melbourne up to 50%. Awards of 100% are usually means-tested or limited, as with Haileybury and PLC Perth Foundation scholarships and Barker's Year 7 awards. Apply the percentage to the school's own tuition to see the dollar value.

Are scholarships means-tested?

Some are and some are not. St Peter's General Excellence and boarding scholarships, PLC Perth's Foundation award and Haileybury's Foundation round are means-tested, Hale adds further remission subject to means testing, and Sydney Grammar gives extra help only through means-tested fee assistance. Pure merit awards ignore family income.

Can a primary-age child win a scholarship?

Yes, at some schools. Haileybury, Caulfield, Knox, St Peter's and MLC all list Year 5 entry points, and PLC Perth and Geelong Grammar list entry from Year 5 in some categories. Most awards still sit at Year 7.

What if my school is not on this list?

Don't read anything into it. We chose 20 schools with substantial, published scholarship programs across the five biggest capital-city markets, not by results or reputation. Go straight to your school's scholarship page, and use our complete scholarships guide to read what you find.

Related reading

• Private school scholarships in Sydney: a region-by-region guide
• Private school scholarships in Melbourne: the 2028 entry calendar
• Private school scholarships in Perth
• The complete guide to private school scholarships in Australia
• Private school fees by capital city
• How families pay for private school fees

How we checked

Every date and figure was read on the school's own scholarship page on 9 October 2026, or on ACER's published dates for its cooperative test, and the dates that matter most were read a second time. Where a page still shows dates from an earlier round, we used only the 2028-entry dates. Percentages are each school's own wording, and the dollar values use each school's 2026 fee schedule. For Scotch College we point you to the school's page instead of repeating figures. Schools reset these dates every year, so confirm on the official page before you plan.

To cite this: "AroundSchools, Private school scholarships for 2028 entry: 20 Australian schools compared, dates read 9 October 2026." Please link to this page.

Sources

Official scholarship pages, read 9 October 2026:

• Melbourne Grammar School
• Scotch College
• Wesley College
• Haileybury
• Caulfield Grammar School
• MLC Kew
• PLC Melbourne
• Geelong Grammar School
• Sydney Grammar School and its 2026 fees
• The King's School
• Knox Grammar School
• SCEGGS Darlinghurst
• Newington College
• Barker College and its 2026 fees
• Cranbrook School
• Brisbane Grammar School
• Somerville House
• St Peter's College Adelaide
• Hale School
• PLC Perth
• Caulfield Grammar School, Scale of Fees for 2026
• ACER scholarship tests for parents and ACER participating schools

Enrolment statistics: ABS, Schools, Australia 2025.