Withdrawal Procedures

1. Governing policy

These procedures relate to the Terms and Conditions of Enrolment. They describe how staff will enact the terms and conditions in respect to the steps taken for students to withdraw from an enrolled course of study or subject(s) at the Institution.

2. Scope

These procedures apply to all students seeking to withdraw entirely from their studies and discontinue their enrolment at the Institution or withdrawing from enrolled subject(s) after they have signed the offer of acceptance or have commenced their study (on or after the course commencement date), subject to the conditions in these procedures, and staff involved in processing the withdrawals. These procedures are aligned with applicable Australian Government legislation including the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 and the National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training of Overseas Students 2018 (National Code).

3. Procedures

3.1.These procedures set out the four key processes involved when a student officially notifies the Institution they are withdrawing from their course or subject(s) at the Institution as per Table 1 below:

1. Submit request

Once a student has signed the offer of acceptance or has commenced their study (on or after the course commencement date) in a course at the Institution, they must officially notify the Institution in writing if they wish to withdraw from their enrolled course of study or subject(s). If the student wishes to withdraw from their enrolled course of study, students are advised to speak to Student Services prior to making this decision as they may wish to consider applying for a leave of absence and returning to studies at a later date. Students need to be aware of the academic and financial implications of withdrawing from their course or subject(s) and the related Refund of Fees Policy – Domestic StudentRefund of Fees Policy – International Student.

International students also need to consider the requirements of their student visa in their decision making and requests ( https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/). If a student discontinues their enrolment at the Institution and chooses to continue their studies in the future, they will be required to reapply for admission.

2. Withdrawal processing and notification

The withdrawal from studies is processed as per these procedures. International students on a student visa who are withdrawing from their enrolled course of study will have their Confirmation of Enrolment (COE) cancelled via PRISMS and are advised to contact the Department of Home Affairs.

3. Appealing the financial or academic outcome

Students have the right to lodge a complaint regarding a decision about the financial or academic outcome, as a result of their withdrawal in accordance with the Complaints and Appeals Policy and Complaints and Appeals Procedures.

4. Recording/reporting

Withdrawal requests are recorded accordingly and reported on PRISMS (international students).

Table 1

Process Responsibilities Timeframe
Step 1 Submit request
1.1 Students considering withdrawing entirely from their course should first discuss their intentions with Student Services to discuss other options, such as applying for a leave of absence.

1.2 Students considering withdrawing from enrolled subject(s) should first discuss their intentions with Student Services to ensure they are meeting minimum study load requirements and expected completion timeframe, importantly for international students. For international students changing study load, please refer to the Change of Study Load Procedures.

1.3 The Student Services team can also advise students of the academic and financial penalties of withdrawing, depending on when the withdrawal occurs. Students submitting their request before census date will not incur an academic or financial penalty. Please refer to the Grading Policy for academic penalty and Refund of Fees Policy – Domestic StudentRefund of Fees Policy – International Student for financial penalties.

1.4 A student is required to:

a. complete the withdrawal form;

b. complete a refund request form (only applicable to students who are upfront full fee-paying or fees paid in advance).

c. International students who wish to withdraw prior to completing the first six months of their principal course and wish to transfer to another education provider or enrol in an alternative course with another education, must complete the release request section of the e-form and satisfy the conditions outlined in the Transfer Between Providers Policy and Release Request Procedures.

d. Complete the exit with alternative award form if a student wishes to withdraw from a course of study and be awarded an exit qualification (nested course of study) (if eligible).  Please refer to the Qualification Issuance Procedures.

1.5 International students on a student visa must be aware of the following:

a. A condition of your student visa is to maintain your enrolment at the Institution for the duration of your visa. If you withdraw from your course the institution is obliged to inform the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). The DHA may cancel your student visa within 28 days unless you contact DHA to arrange an alternate visa.

b. If you do not arrange an alternate visa, you will be required to return to your home country.

Student After the student signed the offer of acceptance or has commenced their study.
Step 2 Withdrawal processing and notification
2.1 Student Services assesses a request and approves or rejects request indicating the outcome on the form.

2.2 A request to withdraw from a course of study, from an international student on a student visa, may be rejected if insufficient evidence has been submitted.

2.3 If a request to withdraw from a subject(s) is approved, the student is notified in writing within 10 working days.

2.4 If a withdrawal request is approved and the student has completed the refund request form, a refund request is created in the system and referred to the Finance Department for consideration in accordance with the Refund of Fees Policy – Domestic Student and Refund of Fees Policy – International Student.

2.5 If a withdrawal request is approved, a student is notified via email confirming their withdrawal from the course at the Institution within 10 working days of submission. The student is notified of the outcome of the refund request separately.

2.6 The notification for international students includes:

a. Advice to contact the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) regarding their student visa as their COE at the institution will be cancelled as per Step 4.

2.7 If a request is rejected for either withdrawal from a course of study or subject(s), a student is notified via email within 10 working days of submission, indicating the reasons for rejection and their right to submit a complaint as per Step 3. Following a rejection of a withdrawal request the student must maintain their enrolment with the Institution pending the outcome of any further appeal.

2.8 Finance process and notification: Any pre-census approved withdrawals, and associated fee recalculations, are processed within Student Services. Any other refund requests related to subject and/or course withdrawals are subject to the Refund of Fees Policy – Domestic Student and Refund of Fees Policy – International Student.

Student Services

 

 

 

 

 

Finance Department

 

 

 

 

 

Student Services

Notification of outcome within 10 working days
Step 3 Appealing the financial or academic outcome
3.1 A student has the right to submit a complaint regarding the decision about the financial or academic outcome, as a result of their withdrawal, as per the Complaints and Appeals Policy and Complaints and Appeals Procedures.

3.2 Student Services and Finance are notified of the outcome of the review of the decision.

3.3 If the refusal decision is upheld, no further action is required from the departments.

3.4 If the outcome is to amend the financial or academic outcome, Student Services and/or Finance will proceed with the necessary steps.

Student As per timeframe in the Complaints and Appeals Policy
Step 4 Recording/reporting
4.1 The withdrawal from course of study or enrolled subject(s) is recorded on the student management system.

4.2 Grades are recorded in accordance with the Grading Policy for withdrawn subject(s) and assigned with the appropriate grade notation.

4.3 The Institution is obliged to report to DHA (via PRISMS) any termination of an international student’s studies before the student’s course is completed.

4.4 The report via PRISMS must be completed (if after the first 6 months of completing their study) within:

a. 14 days after the student’s withdraws from their course for students under 18 years of age; or

b. 31 days after the student withdraws from their course for students above 18 years of age.

4.5 The COE for each student must be reported on by performing a Student Course Variation (SCV), and selecting the reporting option termination of student studies prior to completing the course and the reason type student notified cessation of studies which cancels the COE.

4.6 If the student also submitted a release request and it was approved, the COE reporting is performed as per the Release Request Procedures.

4.7 The withdrawal documentation is saved in the student management system.

Student Services COE reported within 14 days for students under 18 years of age

And

COE reported within 31 days for students above 18 years of age

4. Roles and responsibilities

The Registrar is responsible for overseeing the withdrawal procedures and the required legislative reporting requirements.

5. Compliance and monitoring

These procedures are written in accordance with the National Code and ESOS Act.

6. Records management

As detailed in Table 1 above, withdrawals are recorded in the institution’s database and international students’ COEs are reported in PRISMS and records of the withdrawal are filed and saved for two years.

7. Related documents

Terms and Conditions of Enrolment

Complaints and Appeals Procedures

Change of Study Load Procedures

Grading Policy

Refund of Fees Policy – Domestic Student

Refund of Fees Policy – International Student

Release Request Procedures

Qualifications Issuance Procedures

 

Approved by the Executive Management Group on 3 March 2023