General regulations for students

General regulations for students

1. Students are expected to attend program activities according to the published schedule.
2. In order to prevent students from failing by taking on too much, full-time students may not take on other postsecondary studies unless permission to do so is granted.
3. Students have a right for instruction time to be used for instruction and that the whole time will be used efficiently to attain the competencies prescribed for that instruction. Exceptions may be made for extenuating circumstances and incidental or unanticipated purposes that are necessary or ancillary to the instruction process.
4. Students can expect to study in an environment that is free from:
1. interruption from other students,
2. racial or sexual harassment, vilification, victimization, or discrimination (racial, sexual, disability or otherwise), and
3. anything else that could bring ACAS into disrepute.
5. Attendance
1. In tuition classes, attendance is required at a minimum of 80% of class sessions, unless students are informed in writing otherwise at the commencement of the unit.
2. Students with attendance below the minimum requirement will be deemed to have withdrawn.
3. Students in extenuating circumstances may apply in writing for a waiver of the 80% minimum from the program administrator.
1. The waiver is not automatic upon submission of an application and the program administrator may refuse the application.
2. The program administrator may also grant the waiver with conditions, including substituting requirements equivalent to those missed.
6. Students carrying out individual writing projects shall be entitled to individual supervision according to a schedule agreed upon with the supervisor. Schedules will vary according to the extent that competency standards require the student to be able to work without being dependent on supervision.

Discipline

Discipline

1. ACAS reserves the right to warn, suspend, restrict privileges, or expel students who interrupt the learning environment or harass other students or fail to comply with the rules and regulations.
2. ACAS shall have the right to make judgments on behavior and practices that are not anticipated in the rules and regulations.

Standards of service

Standards of service

1. Staff will respond to all reasonable written inquiries within 14 days except when ACAS is in recess (e.g. public holidays, between semesters).
2. Clerical or administrative errors will be rectified within 14 days from the time that notification arrives at ACAS, except when this involves extra time in relating to a third party.
3. Results of written assessments shall be available at ACAS within 14 days from the time of assessment, except when this involves extra time in relating to a third party (e.g. external assessors).

Assessments

Assessments

1. Students have a right to be clearly informed of:
1. the rationale behind assessments before the assessment is made.
2. the assessment task and outcomes required.
2. ACAS has a right to expect students to be honest in taking assessments.
3. Students have a right to make a preliminary submission of written project or essay work before the final submission. Assessors may either carry out the final assessment on the preliminary submission, or advise the student on ways to meet any unmet criteria. Assessors may, at their discretion, allow a third submission if the written work to be assessed requires only minor changes.
4. Results of written assessments shall be available within fourteen days from the time of assessment, except when this involves extra time in relating to a third party (e.g. external assessors).
5. Students are entitled to immediate feedback and results from oral and practical assessments.
6. Students have a right to be informed of the reasons for assessments resulting in a "not yet competent" assessment outcome, or a grade lower than expected.

Distance education

Distance education

1. Processes for distance education are no different from those of non-distance education except for items below.
2. Scheduling: Distance education courses may normally be commenced at any time, except when ACAS is in recess.
3. Authentication is ensuring that work submitted is the student's own work and is not plagiarized, colluded or based on fictitious data.
1. The assessor must authenticate any work submitted for assessment either directly or through a third party, and contemporaneous written record of the authentication.
2. Direct authentication may be by personal visit for supervisory sessions, personal interview of progress (working with the student from conception of the topic, through data collection, a series of drafts and corrections to a final product), or oral examination of the student's ideas upon which the work is based, either in person or by telephone.
3. Third party authentication may be by telephone call, email reference or written statement by a local organizational supervisor that the work is authentic. The identity of the supervisor and the telephone number, email address, or address shall be obtained independently from the student, e.g. through organizational links.
4. Review: It is preferable to get progress reports from students doing longer papers, including by breaking larger research pieces into stages: topic, proposal, literature review, methodology, data collection, analysis, implications, introduction, or into chapters.

Programs in Languages Other Than English

Programs in Languages Other Than English

1. Programs may be conducted entirely in Languages Other Than English depending on staff expertise.
2. When conducted entirely in a LOTE, the language will be noted on the qualification or Statement of Attainment.
3. The qualification or Statement of Attainment shall be written in English.
4. An official translation may optionally be included on the reverse of the qualification or Statement of Attainment.

Complaints procedure

Complaints procedure

1. This policy applies to fee-paying Australian students. It does not apply to FeeHelp and Overseas students, who have separate complaints procedures.
2. A complaint may be:
1. a problem of unfair or inequitable treatment
2. an appeal against disciplinary action.
3. Before making a formal complaint, the student should ask for verbal clarification of the issue. This does not lessen his or her right in any way to make a formal complaint.
4. A formal complaint will be handled on the basis of a formal written statement on the prescribed form presenting the case to the college Principal. (Form Link opens new window)
5. The complaint will be referred to an independent person appointed by the Principal of the member college. It may be the principal unless the complaint is against the Principal.
6. If the nature of the appeal or complaint requires more than one field of expertise, then a panel comprising independent persons who together have all necessary expertise may be appointed.
7. The independent person or the panel will provide a written statement of the adjudication decision and the reasons for the decision to be sent to the appellant, with a copy filed in a register of complaints.
8. The independent adjudication shall be final.
9. All expenses incurred shall be born by the appellant unless the adjudication finds in his or her favor.
10. Except in mitigating circumstances, the complaint will be handled in one calendar month from the receipt of the written complaint.

Download form Link opens new window

Lapsed students

Lapsed students

1. Students lapse if they have not made contact for 12 months nor submitted written work.
2. To receive Statements of Attainment for any studies successfully completed before lapsing, lapsed students must re-apply and pay the application fee as new students.
3. To continue studies, lapsed students must re-apply and pay all fees as new students.
4. Students may apply in writing for an extension before the 12-month limit:
1. The student must give their reasons, specifying their intentions and show cause for extension.
2. The staff person shall decide whether or not to grant the extension.
3. The staff person may place conditions on the extension.
4. The staff person shall respond to the student in writing.

Qualifications and Statements of Attainment

Qualifications and Statements of Attainment

1. Issuance
1. The Principal, Academic Dean, or Academic Secretary shall sign and issue Statements of Attainment. The Executive Committee retains the right to specifically authorize other persons to issue Statements of Attainment.
2. Testamurs shall be signed by not less than two persons appointed by the Board, and shall bear ACAS's Graduation Seal.
3. Testamurs and Statements of Attainment shall comply with the Australian Qualifications Framework guidelines current at the time.
4. Qualifications and statements of attainment will be issued within 30 days of the student's assessment.
5. Written records of qualifications and statements of attainment shall be retained in ACAS’s permanent records.
2. General requirements
1. Students must be correctly and currently enrolled, and not at the time under suspension.
2. Students must have met all academic requirements.
3. All fees must be paid.
3. Qualifications
1. Students will automatically be issued testamurs when they have satisfactorily met all requirements.
4. Statements of Attainment
1. Students will automatically be issued with Statements of Attainment for all satisfactorily completed units when they cease studies.
5. Managing conflict of interest
1. When the issuance of a graduation testamur of an ACAS staff member would be in conflict of interest with that person as a signatory:
2. The staff member shall declare an interest.
3. The assessment shall be independent of the staff member.
4. The staff member may not append his/her own signature to any authorizing documentation.
5. The original records must be kept in a separate office from that of the staff member.
6. Another person shall be appointed signatory.

Graduation ceremonies

Graduation ceremonies

General regulations

1. Graduation ceremonies are normally separate occasions. They may only be held in conjunction with another activities if they are a distinctly separate component and all requirements below are met.
2. Dress should be formal (e.g. ties and jackets for men, and the equivalent standard for women).
3. Behaviour should be appropriately formal.
4. All staff and graduands should be wearing correct academic dress according to their qualifications. Those not doing so will not participate and will sit with ordinary guests.
5. Colleges may conduct other kinds of ceremonies for issuing diplomas if they do not meet all these requirements, but they will not be called graduations or graduation ceremonies.
6. Member colleges may invite representatives of the ACAS Centre to attend member college graduation ceremonies.
7. Graduation ceremonies shall be held and paid for by the member college unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Recommended order of service for graduations

1. Procession
1. The Master of Ceremonies (MC) asks all present to stand.
2. The staff and graduands proceed in with senior college office-holders at the front.
3. All procession members go to their assigned places and remain standing.
4. The MC invites all present to sit when all procession members are standing at their seats.
2. The MC opens the ceremony with an announcement.
3. Graduation
1. The MC reads the name of each graduand, who will come forward to receive his/her testamur.
2. The names of students graduating in abstentia are also read out.
3. Graduations start with the lowest qualification first and finish with the highest qualification.
4. Students receiving the same qualification are graduated according to the alphabetical order of their surname.
4. Other appropriate activities (optional)
1. Any other appropriate activities may be included at this point, for example academic prizes or awards, acceptance speeches, prayers and commissioning, and/or speeches on behalf of the graduating students.
5. Speaker
6. Close
1. The MC asks the staff to form a procession, which will leave the room or go off the stage, and the graduation ceremony will be finished.
2. Graduating students will not join the closing procession.

Academic dress: Staff

Academic regalia of staff is that of their highest award recognized by ACAS. If they do not have a qualification recognized by ACAS that entitles them to wear a hood, then they shall wear a black mortarboard with black tassel, a black stuff gown, and a black unlined silken hood in simple shape.

Academic dress: Students

Certificate graduands are not entitled to wear academic dress.

All other graduands shall wear a black stuff gown of exactly the same shape. It will normally be in the Oxford shape.

Caps and hoods are prescribed as follows:

	Cap	Hood
Socius (Fellows)	Black mortarboard with black tassel	Colored* unlined silken hood in Cambridge shape
Graduate Diploma	Black mortarboard with black tassel	Colored* stuff unlined hood in simple shape
Advanced Diploma	Black mortarboard with black tassel	Colored* knee- length sash, four inches wide
Diploma	No cap	Black knee-length sash, four inches wide, with colored* one-inch wide trim across each end

* Colors:

• Theology: Scarlet
• Arts and humanities: Royal blue
• Education: Emerald
• Music: Spectrum Violet
• Management: Drab (light brown)

Any other colours follow Curtin University of Technology.