MORE than 20,000 tertiary students could be left without scholarships next year if the Federal Government's youth support reforms fail to pass the Senate this week.

The Government pushed an amended student support plan into the Senate last week with changes negotiated with the Greens and independent Senator Nick Xenophon to give further concessions to students on a gap year to qualify for the independent rate of youth allowance.

But the Coalition is standing firm with support from Family First Senator Steve Fielding, saying the plan still hurt future students, especially from rural areas, by forcing them to work for an average 30 hours a week over 18 months to qualify for the independent rate.

The Government wants to crack down on access to the independent allowance and spend more boosting other allowance rates and increasing numbers on support by easing income tests and reducing the independence age from 25 to 22.

It's also planning new start-up and relocation scholarships, but if the reform is voted down, these will not come into force.

The problem is that existing Commonwealth scholarships have already been scrapped, which puts about 21,000 students in danger of having no scholarship support next year.