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Assessing students as genuine
Provider requirements
A student is not entitled to Commonwealth assistance for a unit of study if the Secretary of the department determines that the student is a not a genuine student in relation to the unit of study [HESA subsection 36‑5(5) and subsection 104‑1(1AA)].
If the Secretary is satisfied that a student is not a genuine student, a provider must re‑credit the student’s HELP balance with an amount equal to the HELP assistance that the student received for the unit of study concerned [HESA subsection 97-50 and subsection 104-43(1)].
If a provider believes a student is not a genuine student, they should provide this information to the department to assist the Secretary in making a determination for the student.
The department may also request information from a provider in order to make a determination in the relation to a student.
Assessment Criteria
The following criteria may be used when making an assessment of whether a student is or is not a genuine student [HEP Guidelines Chapter 9]:
- whether the student is reasonably engaged in the course
- whether the student has been provided with information about the requirements for the course, and the cost and duration of the course
- whether the student has satisfied course requirements for the course or participated in assessment activities for the course
- if the course is an online course, the number of times a student has logged on
- whether the student has provided up-to-date contact details that would allow the department to verify their enrolment
- if the student is enrolled in another course, whether their concurrent enrolments would make successful completion of a course by the student impossible or highly improbable.
Assessing students as academically suitable
Provider Requirements
Before enrolling a student in a unit of study, a provider must assess the student as academically suited to undertake the unit concerned [HESA subsection 19-42(1)]. This assessment must comply with the requirements of the HEP Guidelines [HESA subsection 19-42(2)].
A student is not entitled to Commonwealth assistance for a unit of study if they have not been assessed as academically suited for their study [HESA paragraph 36-10(1)(ba) and paragraph 104-1(1)(ac)].
Record keeping requirements
A provider must keep a record of the assessment of a student’s academic suitability [HESA subsection 19-72(1)].
In relation to assessments of academic suitability:
- a provider must keep records relating to how the provider assessed the student as academically suited to undertake a unit of study before they enrolled the student in the unit
- the records must be kept in a manner so that they can be readily produced in response to a request, such as from a student or the department; and
- the records must be kept for a period of seven years, starting from when the record was made by the provider [HEP Guidelines paragraph 36]