Ngārimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships

Fourteen scholarships a year for ākonga Māori, from vocational training through to doctoral study. Among the largest available.

Closes

Opens annually mid-year. Applications for 2027 study closed 19 July 2026, with outcomes late November. Applications for 2028 open mid-2027

Who can apply

Of Māori descent or whakapapa to a recognised Māori iwi, and enrolling in or already enrolled to continue full-time tertiary study for the coming academic year. The selection panel gives preference to applicants whose studies aim to improve the social, economic and cultural wellbeing of Māori.

Whakapapa

Māori descent, or whakapapa to a recognised Māori iwi.

Study level

Vocational, Undergraduate, Postgraduate, Masters, Doctoral

Amount

14 scholarships a year. 5 vocational education and training at $10,000 each; 4 undergraduate up to $30,000 each ($10,000 per year for up to 3 years); 3 master's up to $20,000 each ($10,000 per year for up to 2 years); a Master of Education research scholarship up to $20,000; a doctoral scholarship up to $40,000

Funding route

Scholarship

Applicants

Individuals & whānau, Tauira & researchers

Before you apply

The vocational scholarships are the ones most often overlooked. Five at $10,000 each, for study of at least 120 credits at NZQA level 4 to 7 non-degree. That is a trade or a vocational pathway funded at the same rate as a year of a degree, and almost nothing else in this directory does that.

Budget 2026 added $100,000 a year from 2026, which created five more scholarships and took the total to 14.

What the panel is actually looking for is not only marks. You have to describe ngā āhuatanga — the characteristics you hold that align with those of the 28th Māori Battalion — and show how you will give back to your whānau, hapū, iwi and community. The Board was established in 1945 by its own Act to promote Māori education, and the application is written in that spirit.

Applicants have also been asked for written confirmation of whakapapa from a kaumātua or Māori leader, confirmation of enrolment, endorsement of academic achievement or a portfolio of work for hands-on VET programmes, and a statement about te reo Māori capability. Line up the kaumātua confirmation early — it is not something to chase in the last week.

University scholarship pages carry several different versions of the amounts and closing dates for this scholarship and they disagree with each other. Take the detail from the Ministry of Education page, which is the fund’s own.

Official source →

Checked 17 September 2026

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Details change without notice. Check the funder's own page before you apply. Tōku Waka does not administer, assess or award this funding.