Smart & Skilled Government Funded

Students who are completing their training through the government-funded Smart and Skilled program MUST also refer to Smart and Skilled Student Information Guide for Terms and Conditions which includes Administration of Fees and Consumer Protection Strategy.

Courses are funded through the NSW Smart & Skilled program. You can find more information at the Smart & Skilled website –  www.smartandskilled.nsw.gov.au or by calling Smart & Skilled on 1300 772 104.

Face to Face training programs

• There are no refunds for cancellations less than 24 hours* prior to commencement of the training. If you would like to transfer to another course with less than 24 hours* notice, you will be required to pay an administration fee of 50% of the course fee.
• For cancellations less than fourteen (14) days, but more than 24 hours* prior to the commencement of the training, there will be no refunds. The student is entitled to;
  • Transfer the course fee to another course; or
  • Hold the course fee as a credit.
• For cancellations more than fourteen (14) days prior to the commencement for the training, the student is entitled to:
  • Transfer the course fee to another course; or
  • Hold the course fee as a credit; or
  • Request a refund. If a refund is requested, the College will retain a 20% administration fee of the course price.  If this transferred course is then cancelled by the student, no refund will apply.
• If a course is cancelled by ACOP the student is entitled to:
  • Transfer the course fee to another course; or
  • Hold the course fee as a credit; or
  • Receive a full refund of the course fee.

* If your course commences on a Monday, you will be required to notify the College on the Friday prior to the course due to College operational times.

Distance Education training programs

• No refunds will apply after the course materials have been dispatched.

On-line training programs

• Once you have received access to the learner portal no refund will apply

ACOP reserves the right to cancel or condense courses due to unforeseen circumstances and/or if minimum course numbers are not reached. Students will be offered a full refund for any course fees paid for the cancelled course or have their course fee credited towards another ACOP course.

The Australian College of Professionals can, in some cases, arrange access to specialist support for students who require additional support with literacy, numeracy and study skills. Students should initially discuss these requirements with the Trainer/Assessor or the Training Manager. The College seeks to ensure that students obtain the best possible support to help them complete their studies whilst maintaining the strictest confidence.

In some circumstances, due to the level of support required, it may be necessary for the College to refer the student to an external provider in order to meet the literacy, learning or numeracy assistance required by that student. In most cases, the student would be referred to their local TAFE College. This referral to external services would be a cost to the student, and is not covered in the fees paid to the College.

The Australian College of Professionals has implemented policies and procedures for dealing with student’s complaints, grievances and appeals in a constructive and timely manner.

The policies and procedures ensure that:

• each complaint and appeal and its outcome is recorded in writing;
• each complaint and appeal can be heard by an independent person or panel; and
• each complainant and appellant:
  • has an opportunity to formally present his or her case; and
  • is given a written statement of the complaint or appeal outcome, including reasons for the decision.

All complaints and appeals are in the first instance referred to the College Principal for her information and attention. Any appeal made by a student against any training and assessment process or outcome, must be lodged with the College within 4 months of that decision or outcome.

All complaints and appeals are treated with the utmost confidentiality. There will be no discrimination against any person who makes a complaint or appeal.

The Principal shall mediate in an endeavour to resolve the complaint or appeal in the first instance.

If the complaint or appeal cannot be resolved internally then the matter is to be referred to a mutually agreeable independent body for resolution. The Australian College of Professionals will refer complaints for mediation to the Australian Commercial Disputes Centre and the cost of this will be met by the College. The decision of the independent review officer shall be binding on both parties.

When a student appeals a decision by the Australian College of Professionals, the Training Manager must appoint, at no expense to the student, an independent external arbiter to conduct the appeal and propose a resolution. The independent, external arbiter must be acceptable to both parties. The student is also entitled to nominate a person of their choice to be a second person to conduct the appeal and propose a resolution (at no cost to Australian College of Professionals).

The College is keen for all students to successfully complete their training programs, gain their qualifications and use this newly acquired knowledge and competence to further their careers and professional growth. The support that the College offers to students throughout their student journey is detailed fully in the Participant Handbook, which can be located on the ACOP website, is provided as link to all students at their time of enrolment and is referenced in all course information brochures.

The Participant Handbook covers issues ranging from access and equity to services, student amenities, assessment policies and appeals, grievance procedures, privacy policy, assignments, attendance policy, relevant legislation, counselling, record administration, the enrolment process, equal opportunity policies, learning materials, language and numeracy support and many other student related policies. It is strongly recommended that every student reads the Participant Handbook prior to commencing a program of student with the College.

Because of the flexible delivery options available through the College, some subjects involve projects, assignments and a range of other learning and assessment activities.  Trainers/Assessors will provide written project and assignment outlines as required for these activities.  Trainers will also indicate the due dates for projects and the completion of other activities.  If you have any difficulty meeting these time constraints, student should speak immediately to their trainer(s).  For those students undertaking study via online or distance education modes, you can access support from trainer/assessors during business hours.  You can either contact the College via telephone, or email the College and the appropriate trainer/assessor will be allocated to provide the necessary support.  As the most appropriate trainer/assessor for your specific question may not be available on the day you make contact, each student will be given a timeline of when that trainer/assessor will respond to their query.

Students are encouraged to plan their study activities to ensure that projects are completed on time.  If you are having any difficulty please immediately discuss the problem with your trainer or assessor.

Assessments are conducted for all courses delivered by the Australian College of Professionals.  Your trainer/assessor will outline the assessment procedure and requirements for your course at the induction to the course.  If you require further information please speak to your trainer/assessor or the Training Manager.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of a training course or assessment, you may appeal the decision within four (4) months of the completion date.  The appeal process will be provided to students as part of the complaint process.  If you require any further information please speak to your instructor, the Training Manager or the Principal.

If you have any other complaint or grievance please immediately bring it to the notice of one of the following personnel:

• your trainer,
• your assessor,
• the Training Manager, or
• the College Principal

All complaints or appeals are dealt with in the strictest confidence and there will be no reprisals for any person raising any issue.  The management of the Australian College of Professionals is extremely anxious to ensure that all courses and assessments are conducted in a proper manner.

Your assessment documentation is kept by the College as an archived document for a period of six (6) months after the issue of the relevant Statement of Attainment or Academic Testamur.  After this six month period, your assessment document will be destroyed.

The Australian College of Professionals is student focused at all levels of the provision of qualification-based training programs.  The College Participant Handbook clearly details the rights and responsibilities of both students and the College.  The College views the relationship between students and the College as one of mutually beneficial outcomes, and the College aims to always support the student to achieve their educational goals.

As per the requirements for each training program offered by the Australian College of Professionals, students are not required to pay more than $1,500 prior to the commencement of any training program.  In cases where the fees for the program exceed $1,500, the remainder of the fees will be collected by the College from the student, throughout the duration of the training program. Each program has specific requirements and the details of these are included in the Course Information Brochures which are forwarded to all potential students and they are also accessible on the College website. No additional payments over the initial $1,500 will be required until the students have commenced the training program and have completed a proportion of the program equal to the percentage of the course that has already been paid.

All applications for a refund will be dealt with on their merits. In cases of extreme hardship or for other compassionate reasons, a full refund may be granted.  This policy is also detailed above.

Payment for training programs:

• for face-to-face training programs, payment (up to a maximum of $1,500) is required 7 days prior to the commencement of the first day of the program. If the full fee exceeds $1,500, a payment schedule will be provided to the student at the time of enrolment.
• for on-line and distance education programs, payment (up to a maximum of $1,500) is required prior to the issue of any learning materials (either paper-based or logins for online learning programs). If the full fee exceeds $1,500, a payment schedule will be provided to the student at the time of enrolment.

Please see Cancellation and Refund Policy question above, and also in the Participant Handbook, for specific information.

ACOP undertakes to provide a safe learning environment that conforms to State and Commonwealth legislative requirements.

Students are reminded to observe safe work practices when completing training activities on the premises of the Australian College of Professionals or in premises hired by the College.

Students should not be involved in the moving or lifting of any equipment.  However, if this occurs, students should observe standard workplace principles for safety.  If in doubt, always seek advice from a trainer or another College staff member.

Students are required to report to a trainer, assessor or the Training Manager any damaged or faulty equipment or any other dangerous situation.

Any injuries received by any person are to be immediately reported to a trainer, assessor or the Training Manager.  If an incident or injury occurs and is reported to the College, the person making the notification will be required to complete documentation in relation to the incident or hazard.  ACOP has specific hazard identification and incident forms for such occurrences.  These documents will be provided to the student if required.

The Australian College of Professionals is firmly committed to providing a healthy and safe workplace for all employees, contractors and visitors.  The management team of the College considers Workplace Health and Safety an integral part of the business.  As a business, the College is committed to the reduction and control of accidents that can result in injury to employees, contractors and visitors.  This will be achieved by the development, implementation and maintenance of Workplace Health and Safety systems, procedures and standards in line with the Health and Family Services Guidelines.

The Australian College of Professionals shall recognise and work within the bounds of all relevant State Workplace Health and Safety Workers Compensation regulations.  In order to minimise work related injuries and illness, the College will provide safe work facilities, equipment, resources and the training necessary to assist in maintaining a safe and healthy work environment.

Workplace Health and Safety is both an individual and shared responsibility in which everyone employed by the College must ensure their jobs are performed safely and that a safe environment is provided for students and visitors to the College premises.

The Australian College of Professionals does not accept any level of harassment towards students or staff from any other person. Any incidents of harassment should be immediately reported to a trainer, assessor or the Training Manager and it will be immediately investigated.

Please see more detailed information in the Workplace Health and Safety Policy section of the Participant Handbook.

ACOP develops training in alignment with AQF guidelines regarding the volume of learning in years. The conversion to hours is shown in the Table below.

The volume of learning identifies the notional duration of all activities required to achieve the learning outcomes of the course, including all teaching and learning activities such as guided learning (classes, lectures, tutorials, online or self-paced study), individual study, research, learning activities in the workplace and assessment activities.

You can calculate the volume of learning as follows:

nominal (supervised) hours + unsupervised hours = volume of learning

Nominal (supervised) hours represent the supervised structured learning and assessment activity required to sufficiently address the content of each unit (acknowledging that progress can vary between learners). Nominal (supervised) hours are assigned to learning and assessment activities that are delivered via face-to-face, online and/or structured distance education. Unsupervised hours represent activities that contribute to achieving the course outcomes that are not supervised by an RTO trainer or assessor. These may include activities such as non-supervised work experience, field placement, private study and/or assignment work.

It should be noted that some students will have extensive practical experience in a specific learning area.  This will significantly affect the number of hours required for them to complete the training requirements.  As such, the nominal hours required for those students to complete their qualification will be significantly reduced.

Conversion of AQF volume of learning to hours