Pursuant to section 232 (1) of the Education Act 1989, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority is required to quality assure all courses delivered to foreign students, unless the course is less than three months' duration and is an exempt course, as provided for in section 232 (2).
Further, pursuant to section 236 (1) (d) (iv) of the Act, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority requires private training establishments which enrol foreign students in courses of less than three months to make provision for early withdrawals and refunds.
Following consultation, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority Board has made the following decisions on the exemption criteria and the policy for early withdrawals and refunds.
These policies have been published on the New Zealand Qualifications Authority web site.
Exemption criteria for the exemption of courses less
than three months
A course may be exempt from the provisions of section 232 (1) of the Education Act 1989, if the course is recreational in nature.
A course is deemed to be recreational in nature if its intent meets one of the following definitions:
Hobby:
An activity undertaken regularly for pleasure. The participant is in pursuit of a field of interest rather than an educational outcome.
Leisure activity:
An action taken in pursuit of a recreational outcome. The participant aims to gain skills in the field of a leisure activity. The participant would not expect to achieve an educational outcome in relation to further or higher study, or entry into employment.
Experiential:
Involving or based on experience or observation. The participant would be seeking through experience or observation to gain skills associated with a field of personal interest and would not expect to gain an educational outcome associated with further study or entry into employment.
Withdrawals and refunds for courses of less than three months delivered to foreign students
Section 236 (1) (d) (iv) of the Education Act 1989 states that the establishment allows, or will allow, every foreign student enrolled in a course of study or training that is of less than three months' duration to withdraw from it within a period (being less than seven days) specified by the authority, and refunds, or will refund, to any student who so withdraws a minimum amount or proportion, specified by the authority, of any payments made by the student to the establishment in respect of that course.
The New Zealand Qualifications Authority Board has approved the following in relation to this requirement:
Where a foreign student enrolled at a private training establishment in a course of study or training, that is less than three months' duration, withdraws from such a course, the following minimum refund entitlement will apply:
(a) For courses of up to and including four weeks and six days:
(i) where a foreign student withdraws within the first two days of the course for which attendance of students at the private training establishment is required, the private training establishment may retain up to 50% of the full amount of any payments made by the student to the private training establishment in respect of the course; and must refund the balance to the student; unless
(ii) two days constitutes the full amount of tuition paid for by the student, in which case the provider may retain 100% of the payment made in respect of the course.
(b) For courses of five weeks or more but less than three months:
(i) where a foreign student withdraws within the first five days of the course for which attendance of students at the private training establishment is required, the private training establishment may retain up to 25% of the full amount of any payments made by the student to the private training establishment in respect of the course; and must refund the balance to the student.
These policies were approved by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority Board and were effective as from
1 July 2003.
Dated at Wellington this 22nd day of June 2003.
GRAEME FRASER, Board Chairperson, New Zealand Qualifications Authority.