Student Progression Policy

Purpose

This policy provides a framework for maximising and monitoring student progression in Metavision Institute’s professionally accredited courses. This policy outlines the mechanisms for advising students of course progression requirements and monitoring student progression, and for intervening to support students at risk. Metavision Institute is committed to providing a consistent, clear and documented process for monitoring student progression.

Scope

This policy applies to Metavision Institute academic teaching staff and students in Metavision Institute’s higher education and professionally accredited courses.

Definitions

Course progression rules: The course progression requirements approved by the Academic Board.

Unsatisfactory progress: when students fail to meet defined required minimum standards for progression in a course or fails to comply with a valid conditional enrolment agreement or other requirement, progress may be deemed unsatisfactory.

Students at risk: students who are not progressing through their enrolled course as required by the course rules, and therefore at risk of not completing the course.

Probation: Students at risk who do not meet course progression requirements in the following semester will be placed on probation.

Exclusion: The cancellation of students’ enrolment in their course. Students may re-apply for entry into a course after 12 months.

Policy

The following aims underpin this policy:

• Identifying students at risk of failing in order to support them to successfully complete their enrolled course,
• Identifying students at risk of exceeding the maximum candidature for their enrolled course;
• Providing a fair, reasonable and student-focused process for monitoring and intervening with students at risk, and
• Maximising students’ chance of study success.

1. Monitoring student progress

Metavision Institute is committed to monitoring student participation, progress and ensuring that students at risk of unsatisfactory progress in the course are identified, and offered timely support.

The following mechanisms are used by Metavision Institute to monitor course progression:

• Identifying students who demonstrate unsatisfactory progress at the end of each semester,
• Ensuring decision-making about student progress is transparent and fair, and
• Providing mechanisms for monitoring and supporting students at risk of not completing the course within maximum course candidature.

2. Reducing risk of academic failure

Metavision Institute is committed to ensuring that students at risk of academic failure are identified, monitored and offered support.

The following mechanisms are used by Metavision Institute to maximise students’ chance of study success:

• Ensuring that students admitted into the course have the capacity to succeed in higher education,
• Providing information on progression requirements, academic integrity and student support services at Orientation and unit outlines,
• Ensuring students are regularly logging into their online classrooms,
• Using formative and summative assessment to identify at-risk students in the early stages of the course, and
• Providing constructive feedback on assessments that guides students on how to improve performance in future assessment tasks.

Students are expected to:

• Undertake good study habits to achieve course and unit learning outcomes,
• Meet attendance requirements for intensive workshops and online learning,
• Regularly log into their online classrooms on Sophia,
• Maintain regular contact with their study buddy,
• Attend work-integrated placements as required,
• Follow the marking criteria specified in unit outlines when completing assessment tasks,
• Submit assessment tasks by due dates, and
• Notify the Course Coordinator if special circumstances arise.

3. Monitoring students at risk

The Academic Director, Course Coordinator and Student Liaison Officer monitor the following

indicators for students at risk:

• Not meeting attendance requirements,
• Failure to submit assessments, and
• Fail grades in units.

4. Interventions and support

Phase 1

The Academic Director will invite students at risk of failure to meet course progression requirements to a meeting to discuss any extenuating circumstances and develop an academic support plan.

Students invited to an interview are entitled to bring a support person.

The interview may result in the following actions:

• Granting additional extensions for assessment tasks,
• Requiring the student to undertake additional or supplementary learning,
• Providing students requiring support with academic study and literary skills to specialist academic support with an individual staff member or tutor,
• Referring students in need of personal support to a support service or counselling service, and
• Placing students on a study contract with agreed milestones and support.

The Academic Director reports to the Academic Board and Teaching and Learning Committee on identified students at risk and academic support plans that have been put in place.

Phase 2

If at-risk students placed on study contracts do not meet agreed milestones, continue to fail or otherwise make unsatisfactory progress in the following semester, the Academic Director will formally contact students in and ask them to respond in writing to show cause as to why:

• Their unsatisfactory progress should not be recorded on their student record,
• They should not be placed on probation, and/or
• They should not be excluded from their course.

The student’s response will be considered by a sub-committee of the Teaching and Learning Committee. Failure to submit a response will not prevent further action being taken.

The student will be invited to meet with the sub-committee and present any extenuating or special circumstances affecting their study. The student may bring a support person to the meeting.

The sub-committee may decide to:

• Continue the study contract and monitor the student’s progress,
• Record the unsatisfactory progress on the student’s record,
• Place the student on a period of probation with reduced study load,
• Exclude the student from their course for one or more semesters, or
• Terminate the student’s enrolment in their course.

The decision of the sub-committee will be communicated to the student in writing, with a statement that the student is entitled to appeal the decision by following the appeals provisions in the Student Grievance, Complaints and Appeals Policy (Academic).

5. Course withdrawals and leave

Students may apply to withdraw from their enrolled course or to take a period of leave by completing the Course and Unit Withdrawal and Fee Refund Application form before the relevant census date. Students can re-enrol in the following semester (either at the commencement of a year or mid-year) in the next relevant intake permitted under the usual course progression rules. The maximum period of course leave is 12 months.

Students who require a break that is longer than one year from the course can re-apply to the course at a later date and will be eligible for credit transfer.

Responsibilities

The Academic Board is responsible for oversight of student progression and monitoring student progress.

The Teaching and Learning Committee is delegated responsibility by the Academic Board for monitoring students at risk.

The Academic Director is responsible for:

• Ensuring that students admitted into Metavision Institute’s higher education and professionally accredited courses meet admission requirements and are capable of academic success.
• Intervening with students at risk of not meeting course progression rules,
• Monitoring and intervening with students at risk of not completing the course within maximum course candidature, and
• reporting on course progression to the Teaching and Learning Committee and Academic Board.

The Course Coordinator is responsible for monitoring students' progress through their enrolled course and referring identified students at risk to the Academic Director.

The Student Liaison Administrator is responsible for proactively making regular contact with students to ensure they are adequately meeting course and unit requirements, in conjunction with teaching assistants.

Academic teaching staff members are responsible for using assessment marking and grading to identify students at risk and referring them to the Academic Director for intervention.

Students are responsible for their own learning, making satisfactory academic progress in the course, and for seeking supports necessary to succeed in their enrolled units.

Flow Chart