by: Heather Sainsbury
In response to recommendations in the Australian Universities Accord Report (released in 2024), the Federal Government has initiated a suite of measures to increase participation in higher education and support the achievement of student success. This includes ramping up regulatory requirements that aim to improve the provision of support for disadvantaged student groups and students at risk, including by:
- requiring providers to publish a support for students policy to ensure that appropriate supports are available and students are aware of them, and to submit an annual report on compliance with the policy (see Higher Education Provider Amendment (Support for Students Policy) Guidelines 2023);
- commencing implementation of a National Higher Education Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence (under the Action Plan Addressing Gender-based Violence in Higher Education); and
- establishing an independent National Student Ombudsman with a broad remit to handle student complaints on a wide range of issues.
These initiatives build on existing mechanisms for promoting and monitoring the quality of the experience and success of Australian higher education students, creating an interconnected web of regulatory requirements. As a result, providers need to apply even greater care and rigour to assure the adequacy of their policies, student support structures and mechanisms for monitoring and reporting on student success.
Student Support Requirements
Student support has long been a focus area of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). The minimum requirements in the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021 (HESF) relating to student support (monitored by TEQSA) are wide-ranging and include:
Additional requirements specifically aimed at supporting international students studying in Australia (also monitored by TEQSA) are specified in the National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students 2018.
Under the more recent Government student support requirements, higher education providers must now also publish a support for students policy that includes the following information:
- how students at risk of not completing their units of study are identified
- academic and non-academic supports available to assist those students
- how support is communicated and delivered, including before census dates
- specific provisions for students with disability, First Nations students, and those affected by trauma, violence or harassment
Providers must review their support for students policy annually and submit an annual report to the Minister by 1 March each year about compliance with its policy, including information about the effectiveness of available support services and opportunities identified for improvement.
Keeping up to date with and understanding the complexities of these overlapping regulatory requirements can be challenging. DVE’s Governance and Compliance team can help by conducting regulatory health checks to confirm the extent to which all or any of these requirements are being met.
For more information, email info@dvesolutions.com.au.
Student Complaints
The National Student Ombudsman (NSO) was established by the Government at the end of 2024 as a free and independent service for students to resolve complaints about their higher education provider. The NSO is both a recommendation of Australian Universities Accord and a key measure of the Action Plan Addressing Gender-based Violence in Higher Education .
The NSO has a broad remit and can handle complaints on a wide range of issues in a variety of ways.
Students who are not satisfied with the way their higher education provider has handled their complaint or who believe that a decision was made in error can seek advice from or lodge a complaint with the NSO. The NSO can also start an investigation into an issue that is not based on an individual complaint, usually when they consider that an issue requires investigation at a systemic level.
To minimise the occurrence of unresolved student complaints and avoid the escalation of complaints, higher education providers need to ensure that their own internal complaints resolution processes are as effective and as possible, with minimal adverse consequences for the student(s) involved. There should be a genuine attempt to resolve complaints through the consistent and fair application of the provider’s own policies and procedures. Guidance by TEQSA on its expectations regarding these procedures is provided in its Guidance note: Grievance and complaint handling.
DVE’s Governance and Compliance team can help by reviewing your complaints handling policies and processes to confirm that they are effective and meet all regulatory expectations.
For more information, email info@dvesolutions.com.au.
