Study help for care leavers | Raising Expectations | Youth Central

Every year over 500 young Victorians leave foster, kinship and residential care.

If you've lived in care, you may have experienced more disruption to your education than other young people – like changing schools a lot, or not being able to get enough support to finish school or study when you leave school. You may not think going to TAFE or university an option for you.

Well, they are options! Programs like Raising Expectations and the Skills First Youth Access Initiative are increasing the number of care leavers accessing vocational and higher education every year.

Raising Expectations

Raising Expectations is a program that helps young people with a care experience go on to TAFE and university. Federation University Australia, La Trobe University and Swinburne University of Technology offer services, supports and financial help to make TAFE and university study a real possibility for care leavers. 

They also offer pathways and programs that can give you the skills you need to feel more confident and better prepared for study. 

At the moment there are over 300 care leaver students studying vocational and higher education courses at Federation University Australia, La Trobe University and Swinburne University of Technology across 13 campuses.

Together, the universities and the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare partner to make sure young people with a care experience and the people who support them, get the information, support, and services they need to access and succeed in vocational and higher education.

Raising Expectations funding partner, the Victorian Department of Education and Training has committed to Raising Expectations until December 2022.

For more information about Raising Expectations for care leavers and those who support them, visit the Raising Expectations website or follow Raising Expectations on Facebook.