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Your experience matters to us. We welcome the opportunity to listen and learn from your feedback. Your insights help us strengthen our programs, services and student experience.
Informal feedback
You may choose to submit an informal feedback anonymously or by including your name and email address if you would like us to follow up with you directly. We appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
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Formal complaints and the Student Grievance Policy
We are committed to maintaining an effective, timely, fair and equitable grievance handling system, which is easily accessible to all current students including international students. If you have a grievance that is not resolved to your satisfaction at the informal resolution stage, you may lodge a formal grievance in line with the Student Grievance Handling Policy.
A copy of our Student Grievance Handling Policy (Academic and Administrative Grievances) can be found here. The policy applies to grievances relating to actions or decisions taken by CIHE Australia in matters relating to administrative processes, teaching services, learning support, or breaches of CIHE Australia policy. It also includes academic issues such as assessment, unit grades, content and/or delivery in units of study. This procedure can be used to submit both academic and administrative grievances. A summary of this process can be found in the section below.
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Student Grievance Handling Policy: Process Summary
Below is an outline of the procedure for grievance handling. The Student Grievance Handling Policy (Academic and Administrative Grievances) can be found here.
Stage one – formal grievance:
Formal grievances must be submitted in writing marked to the attention of the Dean for Academic Grievances or the Registrar for Administrative Grievances via the CIHE website Making a complaint portal.
Receipt of the grievance will be acknowledged in writing. The grievance handling process aims to commence within ten working days of the receipt of the formal grievance and completed within six (6) weeks.
The Dean or Registrar, or their nominee, will then, if necessary, seek to clarify the outcome that the student making the complaint hopes to achieve. Such clarification may be sought by written or verbal request or by a face-to-face interview with the student making the complaint. When such clarification occurs in a face-to-face interview the student or respondent may ask another person to accompany them as a support person.
The Dean or Registrar, or their nominee, will then endeavour to resolve the grievance and will provide a written report to the student making the complaint on the steps taken to address the grievance, including the reasons for the decision, within ten working days. The report will further advise the student of their right to access the internal appeals process if they are not satisfied with the outcome of their formal grievance.
Stage two – internal appeal:
If a student making complaint is dissatisfied with the outcome of their formal grievance they may lodge an appeal with the CEO within twenty working days of receiving notification of the outcome of their formal grievance. The CEO will appoint an appropriate person or committee to consult with the student and other relevant parties within ten working days.
Where possible such consultations should take the form of face-to-face interviews. The student making complaint or the respondent may ask another person (not being a qualified lawyer acting in a professional capacity to accompany them to these interviews as a support person.
Following the consultation, the CEO, or their nominee, will provide a written report to the student advising the further steps taken to address the grievance, including the reasons for the decision, within ten working days. The report will further advise the student making the complaint of their right to access the external appeals process if they are not satisfied with the outcome of their internal appeal.
Stage three – external appeal (domestic students):
If the student making the complaint is not satisfied with the outcome of their appeal then an independent mediator can be requested through the Resolution Institute. The student can contact the Resolution Institute directly as follows:
- Address: Suite 602, Level 6 Tower B, Zenith Centre, 821-843 Pacific Hwy, Chatswood NSW 2067
- Phone: 02 9251 3366
- Freecall: 1800 651 650|
- Fax: 02 9251 3733
- Email: infoaus@resolution.institute
The costs of such mediation will be shared equally by CIHE and the student making the complaint. As a guide, mediator’s costs would be $385 for the first four hours (or part thereof). Subsequent hours would be $137.50 per hour. It is common for most disputes to be resolved within the initial four-hour allocation.
If the internal or any external complaints handling or appeal process results in a decision or recommendation in favour of the student, CIHE must implement the decision or recommendation and/or take the preventative or corrective action required by the decision and advise the student within 20 working days.
Stage three – external appeal (international students):
If the student making complaint is dissatisfied with the outcome of their appeal and they are an international student, then they may lodge an external appeal by contacting the Overseas Students Ombudsman.
The Overseas Students Ombudsman offers a free and independent service for international students who have a complaint or want to lodge an external appeal about a decision made by their provider. Refer to the Overseas Students Ombudsman website https://www.ombudsman.gov.au/complaints/international-student-complaints or phone 1300 362 072 for more information.
CIHE agrees to be bound by any recommendations from the Overseas Students Ombudsman and the CEO will ensure that any recommendations made are implemented within 30 days of receipt of such recommendations.
Further action
The procedures set out in this document do not replace or modify procedures or any other responsibilities which may arise under other policies or under statute or any other law. Nothing in this policy and procedure limits the rights of individuals to take action under Australia’s Consumer Protection or other laws. Also, these procedures do not circumscribe an individual’s rights to pursue other legal remedies but it would be expected that a complainant would first seek to have their grievance resolved under this policy.