• Annual Report 2023-24 now available

    Our Annual Report 2023-24 is now available.

    The report outlines our progress throughout the 2023-24 year to assure the quality of higher education in Australia.

    The report provides an account of our performance against measures and targets set out in our 2024-28 Corporate Plan and the 2023-24 Portfolio Budget Statements.

    In August, we published our 2024-28 Corporate Plan, which outlines our priorities for the coming years.

    Highlights of 2023-24

     

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  • Gen AI and student learning

    As generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) tools continue to evolve and become more sophisticated they provide both opportunities and challenges for students’ learning.

    The University of Sydney’s Professor Danny Liu has developed a series of videos, on TEQSA’s behalf, to highlight the risks and opportunities of gen AI and their potential impact on academic integrity. He explains some of the ways students can use, and misuse, gen AI and offers some ideas on how to address the challenges gen AI poses.

    The first video in this series looks at the use of gen AI for assessments and is available to view on TEQSA’s YouTube channel.

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  • Fees and charges consultation

    Higher education providers are invited to give their feedback about TEQSA’s proposed updates to our fees and charges to take effect from 1 January 2025.

    TEQSA has reviewed the operation of the fees and charges outlined in our Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS) to ensure it fairly and accurately reflects the cost of our regulatory activities.

    As a result, TEQSA is proposing changes to how the annual Registered Higher Education Provider (RHEP) charge is calculated.

    These proposed changes will ensure the costs of our sector-wide compliance activities and updates to our enquiries management and provider liaison approach are fairly recovered.

    If adopted, these changes will reduce the RHEP charge for smaller providers while increasing costs for larger providers that are responsible for a greater proportion of TEQSA’s sector-wide compliance activities.

    These activities include matters such as to safety and wellbeing on campus, freedom of speech and academic freedom, and the governance of institutional responses to wage underpayments.

    TEQSA will consider all feedback when developing an updated version of the CRIS. We expect that the updated CRIS and any changes to our fees and charges for 2025 will be approved and shared in November.

    The consultation will close at 5:00pm (AEDT) on Monday 28 October 2024.

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  • Protecting academic integrity

    We’re supporting Australian higher education providers and working with overseas quality assurance agencies to uphold academic integrity and address the risks posed by commercial academic cheating services.

    This page brings together TEQSA’s academic integrity resources for providers, academics and professional staff, as well as information about Australia’s anti-commercial academic cheating laws and international resources.

    You can use this form to report a suspected academic cheating service.

    Resources

    TEQSA Masterclass: contract cheating detection and deterrence

    This free masterclass is designed to help academics and professional staff improve their ability to prevent, identify and investigate suspected cases of contract cheating (also known as commercial academic cheating).

    Academic integrity toolkit

    Includes a guide to substantiating when contract cheating occurs, benchmarking tools, advice on policy and case studies from Australian higher education providers.

    Good Practice Note: Addressing contract cheating to safeguard academic integrity

    Advice and examples for providers about upholding academic integrity while addressing commercial academic cheating.

    Guidance note: Academic and research integrity

    Outlines the relevant standards and what TEQSA will consider when conducting an assessment as part our registration or re-registration process.

    Understanding academic integrity (for students)

    TEQSA-developed resources for students, including translated information and materials to support communications with students.

    Academic integrity in the creative arts

    Advice for providers and academics in the creative arts on strengthening and upholding academic integrity.

    Substantiating contract cheating for symbol-dense, logical responses: A guide for investigators

    Outlines how academics can identify contract cheating in symbol dense fields and includes an investigations checklist and questions for investigators.

    Contract cheating

    Information to support the Academic Integrity Toolkit and Good Practice Note to address the risks posed by contract cheating (also known as commercial academic cheating).

    Academic integrity experts advice hub

    Articles from experts in the field for providers, academics and professional staff.

    Predatory conferences: A to Z elements

    Tips to avoid predatory conferences.

    Predatory publishing: A to Z elements

    Tips for research students and early career researchers to avoid predatory journals.

    3 Ps: International Day of Action for academic integrity

    Higher education good practice hub

    Brings together resources and information on a range of topics, including artificial intelligence and assessment design, to support good practice across the sector.

    Information about Australia’s anti-commercial academic cheating laws

    International resources

    Global Academic Integrity Network (GAIN)

    TEQSA is a co-founder of this consortium of international education quality and integrity agencies that is fighting the rise of commercial academic cheating services targeting students.

    Toolkit to support quality assurance agencies to address academic integrity and contract cheating

    This toolkit was developed to share Australia’s lessons with our colleagues at international quality assurance agencies.

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  • International Day of Action for academic integrity

    Wednesday 16 October is International Day of Action for Academic Integrity. To recognise the shared responsibility of academic integrity, TEQSA has released Key considerations: Academic integrity and generative AI.

    This one-page document outlines key considerations of process, people and practice for every institution to keep in mind when considering academic integrity. It’s available on our website in a printable A4 format.

    The International Day of Action for Academic Integrity is organised by the International Centre for Academic Integrity and this year’s theme is All hands on deck: Making academic integrity everyone’s job.

    Academic integrity is fundamental to the reputation and credibility of Australia’s higher education sector. TEQSA is working to support the higher education sector in addressing the threats posed by contract cheating services and generative artificial intelligence (gen AI).

    In November we will launch a new toolkit, Gen AI strategies for Australian higher education: Emerging practice. This toolkit is informed by TEQSA’s Request for Information: Addressing the risk of generative artificial intelligence, which was issued to the sector in June 2024.

    The toolkit will showcase practical actions providers are putting in place for the short and medium-term horizons to ensure students are learning the skills and qualifications reflected by their qualifications and also graduate knowing how to ethically and effectively use gen AI.

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  • Annual child safety statement of compliance

    In response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, the Australian Government implemented the Commonwealth Child Safe Framework (the Framework) to ensure minimum standards for child safe behaviours and practices are in place at Commonwealth entities.

    TEQSA is Australia’s independent national quality assurance and regulatory agency for higher education. Our purpose is to safeguard student interests and the reputation of Australia’s higher education sector by assuring the quality of higher education providers through a proportionate, risk-reflective approach to regulation. Although TEQSA’s business activities do not directly involve interaction with children, the organisation is committed to regularly reviewing any potential risks, roles and business interactions to ensure a culture of awareness and continuous improvement is promoted. TEQSA does not fund third party providers to deliver services to children.

    TEQSA is compliant with the Framework’s four key requirements; however, we acknowledge the need for continued awareness and compliance to ensure our agency remains child safe. The agency has zero tolerance for child abuse, neglect and exploitation. TEQSA evaluates risks to child safety in relation to its activities and operations, and monitors the strategies implemented in managing identified risks. The annual risk assessment did not identify any additional risks between the 2023 and 2024 assessments; however, it did identify some room for improvement, and TEQSA is committed to enhancing our child safety processes in 2025. The identified risks are rated with minor risk classifications and there are controls in place to manage these.

    TEQSA has reviewed its child safety policy and will continue to regularly review the policy to ensure the agency is up to date with best practice child safety measures. The agency incorporates the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations into its culture and practices where these apply. TEQSA uses the following strategies and practices to support a child safe culture:

    • incorporating the Framework into its annual mandatory training requirements and annual performance review process
    • building staff capability by offering online child safety training
    • during recruitment activities, directors review roles for potential interactions with children and determine if roles will be classified as child safe positions
    • maintaining a register of child safe positions and Working with Children Checks (WWCC).
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  • Annual report

    The annual report outlines our activities and performance during each financial year. The TEQSA Act requires that the report is presented to Parliament.

    2023-24

    TEQSA’s Annual Report for 2023-24 was tabled in Parliament on Thursday 10 October 2024.

    Previous annual reports

    2022-23

    TEQSA’s Annual Report for 2022-23 was tabled in Parliament on Friday 20 October 2023.

    2021-22

    TEQSA’s Annual Report for 2021-22 was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday 25 October 2022.

    2020-21

    TEQSA’s Annual Report for 2020-21 was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday 19 October 2021.

    2019-20

    TEQSA’s Annual Report for 2019-20 was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday 6 October 2020.

    2018-19

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2018-19 was tabled in Parliament on Monday 21 October 2019.

    2017-18

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2017-18 was tabled in Parliament on Monday 15 October 2018.

    2016-17

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2016-17 was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday 31 October 2017.

    2015-16

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2015-16 was tabled in Parliament on 26 October 2016.

    2014-15

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2014-15 was tabled in Parliament on 21 October 2015.

    2013-14 

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2013-14 was tabled in Parliament on 23 October 2014.

    2012-13 

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2012-13.

    2011-12 

    TEQSA's Annual Report for 2011-12.

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  • Nova Higher Education Pty Ltd

    Application for registration and course accreditation

     

    Decision: Rejected
    Date of decision: 22 October 2024
    Main reasons for decision:

    The decisions were made on the basis that TEQSA was not satisfied under Subsection 21(1)(a) of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 (TEQSA Act), that Nova Higher Education Pty Ltd meets the following provisions of the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021:

    • Standard 6.2.1 in relation to governance and accountability including financial viability
    • Standards 7.1.4, 7.2.1, 7.2.2, 7.2.4, 7.3.1 and 7.3.2 in relation to representation, information and information management.

    The decision to reject the application for accreditation of the course was made as a consequence of the application for registration being rejected. 
     

    Furthermore, TEQSA was not satisfied under Subsection 21(1)(b) of the TEQSA Act, that all individuals who make or participate in making decisions that affect the whole or a substantial part of NHE’s affairs, are fit and proper persons.

     
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