Conspicuous Service Medal
Significance
The Australian Conspicuous Service Medal is awarded for meritorious achievement or dedication to duty in non-war like situations to members of the Australian Defence Force.
It is the second level award of the Conspicuous Service Decorations.
History
The Conspicuous Service Medal and the Conspicuous Service Cross are distinctly Australian military awards.
The medal recognises commendable achievement or commitment to duty in a non-combative context such as peace-keeping missions. It is awarded to members of the Australian Defence Force and certain other people for example, defence force chaplains.
The Conspicuous Service Medal was established on 18 October 1989 by Letters Patent.
Past recipients
Warrant Officer Sandra Wilson was awarded the medal in 1999 for exemplary service as Warrant Officer Operations and Plans at the Joint Movement Control Office in Darwin. This was during the time of the Australian Defence Force deployment to East Timor.
Search the Australian Honours List for past recipients of the Conspicuous Service Medal.
View the numbers awarded for the Conspicuous Service Medal.
How it is awarded
The Governor-General makes the award on the recommendation of the Minister for Defence.
The award is announced on the Australian Day and the Queen’s Birthday.
If the same person receives a further conspicuous service award it is in the form of a nickel-silver bar displaying the medal emblem. The bar is attached to the ribbon of the original award.
Recipients have the post-nominals of CSM. Those awarded a bar or bars may also use ‘and Bar’ or ‘and Bars’ after their name.
The decoration may be awarded posthumously.
The Conspicuous Service Medal is announced on Australia Day (26 January) and the Queen’s Birthday (June) of each year.
Medal design

Conspicuous Service Medal - front and back
The Conspicuous Service Medal is a circular nickel-silver medal 38 millimetres in diameter. It is ensigned with the Crown of Saint Edward in nickel-silver. The front of the medal bears the Southern Cross surrounded by a laurel wreath. The back of the medal has a horizontal panel that is superimposed on a design of fluted rays.
Medal Ribbon
The medal is suspended from a 32 millimetre wide ribbon, by a nickel-silver suspension bar. The ribbon has alternating equal-width, diagonal stripes of bush green and sandy gold
Print fact sheet
The information on this page is available as a printable fact sheet.
- Conspicuous Service Medal - Fact Sheet - PDF 62KB | RTF 911KB
Note: For more information on PDF files and their use see the PDF Help page on this site.



