Government to Crack Down On Vet Providers

Training providers will be banned from offering ‘miraculously short’ diploma programs, as well as using incentives such as laptops, prizes or cash to attract potential students, under new reforms to the VET FEE-HELP scheme.

The reforms, which are set to be rolled out this month, aim to protect students taking out VET FEE-HELP loans. Providers will be banned from offering enrolment inducements — such as cash, laptops, iPads, vouchers or meals — to convince students to sign up to courses they don’t need. The changes would also require a minimum number of study units for diploma and advanced diploma courses, and will ban providers from charging all of their fees in a single, upfront payment. Providers will also be required to properly assess all students before enrolment to ensure they have the necessary skills and experience to complete the qualification, and will need to provide students with information to help them understand VET FEE-HELP loans.

In addition, the legislation will make it easier for the government to cancel student debts in circumstances where providers have breached the new guidelines, with the training provider required to pay back the costs of the loan.

According to government data, more than 180,000 students accessed VET FEE-HELP in 2014. Students took out more than $1.6 billion in loans.

See New legislation to ban training providers from offering ‘miraculously’ short diploma courses for more information.