National

Concession card call for all Aussie uni students

By Tess Ikonomou

Sep 8, 2026

Students at The University of New South Wales, — Cash-strapped students face rising rent, food and transport costs, Universities Australia says. -AAP Image

Concession cards should be expanded to all Australian university students as cost-of-living pressures bite, the peak body representing the higher education sector says.

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Universities Australia is urging the federal government to provide new assistance to cash-strapped students facing rising rent, food and transport costs.

The body is also calling for international students to receive equal access to public transport student discounts.

New analysis shows student rents have risen by about 40 per cent since 2021, groceries by 27 per cent, utilities by 39 per cent and fuel by 43 per cent.

In an address at a student equity policy event in Brisbane on Tuesday, Universities Australia chief executive Luke Sheehy will discuss how students sitting next to each other in a classroom face different costs.

"Opening the door to university is only half the job. Students need to be able to afford to stay once they get there," he says.

"For our nation to thrive in the future, we need more university graduates ... but asking more of those Australians to go to university means making sure they can afford to stay there.

"This isn't separate from the equity challenge: it's a big part of the equity challenge."

Concession cards reduce the cost of essentials including medicines, public transport and utility bills.

While some domestic university students qualify, studying alone does not guarantee access.

One in three university students are experiencing financial insecurity, according to research published by the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success.

Universities Australia also wants the government to adopt the Australian Universities Accord recommendation that 55 per cent of the nation aged 25 to 34 hold a bachelor's degree or higher by 2050.

The government's existing ambition is for 80 per cent of working-age Australians to hold a tertiary qualification by 2050.

Jobs and Skills Australia forecasts the nation will add almost two million jobs in the decade to 2035, with more than one million of those expected to require an undergraduate degree or higher.

"If Australia needs more university graduates, we should be prepared to set the ambition and make sure more Australians have the opportunity to achieve it," Mr Sheehy will say.