Policy_

Policies

Policies, guidelines and resources
Please review our student policies at the Centre for English Teaching (CET) below.

If you have a question, issue or request please:

  • Talk to one of your class teachers first if it relates to your course, progress, absence, or class work
  • Message the teacher directly in Canvas to ask when you can talk (online or on campus) about it
  • Contact one of the CET counsellors if it relates to your mental health, wellbeing, or if you require advice about non-class issues
  • Contact us for assistance or to make an appointment with a CET staff member or University service

CET monitors daily attendance of all students to conform with the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act, National Code 2018 Standard 8: “Overseas student visa requirements”.

Please review the CET Student Attendance and Suspension Process (pdf, 196KB), which outlines the attendance requirements.

Please also view our course attendance table below for a summary of the attendance requirements.

Attendance Implication
100% Congratulations, you attend every class and always arrive on time.
95% You have used 1/4 of your available "away from class" time for your whole course.
90% You have used 1/2 of your available "away from class" time for your whole course. You will receive a first warning email about your attendance.
85% You have used 3/4 of your available "away from class" time for your whole course. You will receive a second warning email about your attendance.
80% You have used all of your available "away from class" time for your whole course. This is the minimum level of attendance you must maintain for your student visa.
<80%

You will receive a "Notice of Intention to Report" email. You have 20 working days to contact us if you want to appeal this decision.

CET will cancel your CET course enrolment and report you to the Department of Home Affairs if you do not appeal or if your appeal is unsuccessful. 

You may also make an external appeal to the NSW Ombudsman.

<70% CET must report you to the Department of Home Affairs.
Failure to meet attendance requirements

CET contacts you via your official University student email address (if you have one), your personal email address and SMS (if you have provided those to us).

If we report you to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA), you will need to see an Immigration Officer within 28 days of the date we inform DHA. You can make any submissions about your circumstances, take photo identification with you.

You may contact the DHA directly regarding your visa status or ask a registered migration agent to assist with your case.

Support available

At any time, if you need advice or support, please contact us or make an appointment with a CET counsellor.

Please see the Request for Change of Provider Guidelines (pdf, 133KB) for information regarding changing to another education provider.

If you have a complaint, please contact the relevant CET Manager by email, including your name and CET Student ID number.

Escalation and formal complaints

If the CET manager is unable to resolve the complaint and you would then like to lodge a formal complaint to the University, please send an email to studentaffairs@sydney.edu.au that includes:

  • your full name
  • your CET student ID (please indicate you are a CET student)
  • the class you are in
  • your UniKey
  • details of your complaint.

Student Affairs will contact CET to advise us of the complaint. We will try to arrange local resolution with you if a CET manager has not already attempted this. CET will respond formally to your complaint.

After this, if you believe that your complaint has not been resolved, you can contact the NSW Government Ombudsman.

Things to note
  • Meetings with CET staff to discuss your complaint may be online.
  • At any time during the complaint and appeal process, you can be represented by a nominee of your choice (e.g. a relative, another student, a friend, an education agent).
  • You can also have a support person who does not necessarily act as a representative present at meetings.
  • If you are under 18 years of age, the person responsible for your welfare must attend any complaints and appeals meetings with CET staff.

Please review the CET Course Progress Guidelines (pdf, 550KB) for information on the steps taken if you do not meet the progression requirements of your CET English course. You may bring a friend or support person to any meeting you have at CET.

Student conduct