The heart-warming moment an exhausted koala climbed his way to freedom after being trapped in a mineshaft for days was caught on camera by a number of university students who saved its life.

However, the rescue mission didn't go off without a hitch - the footage shows the animal falling back into the hole after initially climbing out before a second attempt proves successful.

A group of outdoor education students from the University of Ballarat in Victoria, found the fatigued animal at the bottom of a five metre mineshaft in the Victorian Goldfields during a trip to the Lal Lal State Forest, The Courier Mail reports.

After tossing down some eucalyptus leaves for it to eat, the third year students managed to find a fallen tree to lower into the mine for the koala to cling on to and climb to safety.

A group of outdoor education students from the University of Ballarat in Victoria, found the fatigued animal at the bottom of a five metre mineshaft in the Victorian Goldfields

'The little fella appeared tired and could have been down there for a number of days,' the group wrote on their video caption.

Watching eagerly as the tree was lowered down next him, the koala was filmed frantically scrambling up the bark in sheer desperation from the very moment the trunk hit the ground.

Appearing dishevelled and somewhat disorientated, the marsupial slowly edged its way up the trunk while the students could be heard shouting out words of encouragement.

But one woman's cries of 'we saved him' came far too soon. In a split second, as the grey animal attempted to grasp onto a second tree, its grip faltered and it was sent tumbling down almost seven metres back into the mine.

Drop bear: The students managed to find a fallen tree to lower into the mine for the koala to cling on to and climb to safety. However the poor koala was so fatigued that it fell straight back into the mine

Devastated, his saviours could be heard crying out in alarm, with one young man quipping: 'bloody idiot'.

But without a moment of hesitation, it was back on all fours making its way up the trunk towards freedom, this time choosing to place his feet firmly on the ground before making its way up a second tree.

By this point, the sheer exhaustion from his ordeal was unmistakeable as his back paws struggled to grip onto the bark.

It wasn't long, amidst sighs of relief, that the little koala finally rested his backside on a secure tree branch to prevent any further falls.

'We were so relieved that he made it out, then also really excited and proud of what we had accomplished,' One of the students, Luke Parker, told The Courier Mail of their rescue.