Statement of Tuition Assurance

Under the provisions of the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (HESA) and the associated Higher Education Provider Guidelines LCI Melbourne (the First Provider) is required to provide a tuition assurance arrangement for Australian citizens or holders of an Australian permanent humanitarian visa who are enrolled in higher education courses it offers. This requirement is to protect students in the event that LCI Melbourne ceases to provide a course of study in which a student is enrolled. The meaning of the term ‘ceasing to provide a course of study’ is set out in the HEP Guidelines here.

LCI Melbourne also has tuition assurance arrangements in place for overseas students through the Commonwealth Government's Tuition Protection Scheme, under the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (ESOS Act).

In the event that LCI Melbourne ceases to provide a course of study in which a student is enrolled the student is entitled to a choice of:

a) An offer of a place in a similar course of study with a Second Provider without any requirement to pay the Second Provider any student contribution or tuition fee for any replacement units (this is known as the ‘Course Assurance Option’);

OR

b) A refund of his or her upfront payments for any unit of study that the student commences but does not complete because LCI Melbourne ceases to provide the course of study of which the unit forms part (this is known as the ‘Student Contribution/Tuition Fee Repayment Option’) LCI Melbourne has met the tuition assurance requirements of the HESA and ESOS Acts through its current membership of the Council of Private Higher Education (COPHE) TDA Higher Education Tuition Assurance Scheme (for domestic students) and through the Commonwealth's Tuition Protection Service (for international students).

The course/s of study for which LCI Melbourne has TPS coverage and COPHE TDA Higher Education TAS membership is/are:

• LCI Melbourne (the First Provider) Course  

Qualification to which LCI Melbourne Course leads:

• Bachelor of Design Arts incorporating an Associate Degree of Design Arts
• Bachelor of Design Arts Associate Degree of Design Arts

More information about the TPS for international students is available at tps.gov.au.

The following procedure will apply to domestic students:

If LCI Melbourne ceases to provide a course of study, COPHE/TDA will send a student enrolled in the course of study a Written Tuition Assurance Offer (the Offer) advising the student of the options available under the tuition assurance requirements. The Offer will include directions that the student must follow in order to notify the relevant organisation of the choice they have made for each affected unit. COPHE/TDA will provide this Offer within twenty business days after it knows, or should know by reasonable inquiries that LCI Melbourne has ceased to provide the course of study.

A student may choose either:

a) The Course Assurance Option:

If a student accepts a place in a course offered by COPHE/TDA as named above, COPHE/TDA will offer the student the option of COPHE/TDA making all necessary arrangements to ensure a student is able to enrol in a similar course of study with a Second Provider. This offered course will lead to the same or a comparable qualification without any requirement on the part of the student to pay that Second Provider any student contribution or tuition fee for any replacement units. A student will receive full credit from the Second Provider for any units of study successfully completed at LCI Melbourne.

The Second Provider nominated by COPHE/TDA may have different contribution amounts or tuition fees to the amounts or fees the student would have paid for units of study that were part of the course of study LCI Melbourne ceased to provide.

A student is not obliged to enrol in a course of study with a Second Provider offered by COPHE/TDA under the Course Assurance Option. However, if the student enrols with any other provider there is no obligation on that provider to offer full credit transfer for the units of study completed with LCI Melbourne or to offer a replacement/s unit free of charge. tps.gov.au

b) The Student Contribution/Tuition Fee Repayment Option:

If a student chooses the Student Contribution/Tuition Fee Repayment Option COPHE/TDA undertakes to pay the student the total of any upfront payments already paid by the student for any units of study the student has commenced but not completed. Eligible students selecting this option will also get their FEE-HELP balance/s re-credited for uncompleted units.

Contact details for COPHE are:
Suite 244, Level 4, 813 Pacific Highway,
Chatswood NSW 2067
Fax: +61 2 8021 0843
Website: www.cophe.edu.au