Quality of training experience

Providers and their education agents must ensure students have sufficient information to make informed decisions about studying in Australia.

To recruit responsibly, you (and any education agents you work with) need to:

• set out prerequisites, including any English-language proficiency requirements for completing the course
• ensure prospective students are assessed for prerequisites as part of the recruitment process
• provide accurate and comprehensive information—in plain English—about:
  • the services your training provider will offer
  • the rights and obligations of the student
  • the rights and obligations of your organisation/training provider
• provide written advice to students about their enrolment, including the grounds on which an enrolment can be deferred, suspended or cancelled.

Your students need to be adequately informed about the course they are planning to undertake. They need to understand both their rights and responsibilities, and those of the training provider. 

You are responsible for making sure that:

• your potential students have the existing skills, knowledge and experience required to undertake the course successfully
• your enrolment process identifies any additional support a student may need to complete the course
• you give the prospective student a written agreement, which includes information about:
  • the rights and responsibilities of the student
  • the rights and responsibilities of your organisation
  • the course and its duration
  • any related education services that will be provided
  • tuition and other fees payable
  • course refund policies.

All of your students must have access to a safe learning environment. Your students need to understand the progression requirements for their course and how to seek help if they need it.

Your organisation must:

• assist students in adjusting to study and life in Australia
• have an appropriate orientation program to help your students access information and services they need
• manage any critical incidents that may affect a student’s ability to undertake or complete a course
• clearly articulate to students their requirement to attend class and participate in training
• monitor students’ progression through their courses.

To ensure students receive high quality training and assessment, your organisation needs to:

• develop and implement approaches that ensure students gain the relevant skills and knowledge, including by providing access to suitable:
  • resources
  • facilities
  • trainers
• deliver training and assessment of at least 20 scheduled course contact hours per week
• deliver at least two-thirds of the VET units for each student face-to-face
• ensure training and assessment meet the requirements of the relevant training package or accredited course (in line with the current expectations of the relevant industry area)
• be sufficiently resourced, including having qualified trainers and assessors, and appropriate facilities and learning resources.

To ensure students are eligible to receive certification and receive it in a timely manner, providers must:

• assess transfer requests appropriately and issue a statement of attainment (or a record of results) for any unit that has been competently completed
  • please note, certification documents are required instead of a statement of attainment in the case of ELICOS courses
• have controls in place to ensure each student has verified a Unique Student Identifier (USI)—except in the case of ELICOS—and has completed all assessment requirements before qualifications, statements of attainment, records of results and certification documentation (for ELICOS) are issued.