Quality assurance
Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency
The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) is the national, independent regulator of Australia’s higher education sector. TEQSA’s primary aim is to ensure that students receive a high quality education at any Australian higher education provider.
TEQSA regulates and assures the quality of Australia’s large, diverse and complex higher education sector by registering and evaluating the performance of higher education providers against a legislated set of national standards.
All higher education providers in Australia must meet these standards in order to enter and remain within Australia’s higher education system. Australian providers offering courses overseas and international providers currently providing, or seeking to provide courses in Australia must also meet the standards.
TEQSA also registers education institutions approved to advertise, enroll and deliver education and training services to overseas students under the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (the ESOS Act).
Code of Ethics
Universities Australia has strengthened and updated its Code of Ethical Practice in the Provision of Education to International Students by Australian Universities, and associated guidelines. Vice-Chancellors of all Australian universities have signed the code, which aims to safeguard the interests of international students, and assure the quality of the information and educational experience provided by universities. The code provides ethical practice guidelines for universities on promotion and marketing, agents and partners, and provides information on admission of students, arrival and orientation, student support, fee-charging and refunds, university infrastructure and returning home support.
Education Services for Overseas Students ESOS
All students on a student visa are covered by the consumer and financial protections of the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act 2000.
A brief summary of the ESOS framework is available. (pdf 51 kb or rtf 319 kb)