Low completion rate
The requirement to pass 50 percent (%) of subjects studied to remain eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) or HELP Loans such as FEE HELP will be removed from 1 January 2024. This requirement will be removed for all study periods with a census date after 1 January 2024.
If you are currently on a low completion rate sanction, your eligibility for CSP or FEE HELP will be restored in January 2024. If you are currently enrolled in any subjects with a Census Date in 2023, you will still be subject to the 50% pass rate for those subjects.
Students will be identified for the low completion rate sanction after Spring Session Results Release if they are enrolled in Summer Session 2023, as they will still be subject to the 50% pass rate for those subjects. If students wish to remain in Summer Session they will be a full fee-paying student or can choose to be withdrawn early from their subjects with no financial or academic penalty.
For more information, please check Higher Education Provider Updates November 2023 - Department of Education, Australian Government.
Domestic students who commenced their course on or after 1 January 2022 will need to maintain a minimum completion rate in order to remain eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) or access to HECS-HELP and/or FEE-HELP.
Domestic students who have not maintained a minimum completion rate will be classified as having a low completion rate.
A low completion rate is defined as having failed more than 50% of subjects, after having attempted:
- eight subjects if enrolled in a Bachelor’s degree or above, or
- four subjects if enrolled in a course lower than a Bachelor’s degree e.g. Diploma.
Students who fail more than 50% of their attempted subjects will no longer be eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP), HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP. They will however still be able to continue their enrolment in that course by becoming a full fee-paying student subject to meeting all other UTS progression requirements. Full fee-paying students pay their fees up-front at the start of each session.
More information can be found on the Australian Government's StudyAssist website.
Frequently asked questions
When will UTS stop applying the LCR Sanction?
UTS will stop applying the LCR sanction to students from 1 January 2024.
I currently have an LCR sanction. Will this be lifted in January 2024?
Yes, if you currently have an LCR sanction, this will be ended in January 2024. Your eligibility for a Commonwealth Supported Place and HECS-HELP Loan will be reinstated for subjects with census dates that fall within or after 2024.
What if I have already been withdrawn from my course due to the LCR?
Students who have previously withdrawn due to the LCR sanction can reapply for admission to the same Course in a Commonwealth Supported Place (if available). An application for entry would still be subject to the applicable admission entry requirements.
If I paid full fees for subjects before 1 January 2024, can I have a refund?
No, HELP loans and CSP cannot be retrospectively reinstated for any subjects which a student may have paid for upfront, for census dates that occurred before 1 January 2024.
Who does the low completion rate legislation apply to?
The low completion rate legislation will apply to you if you:
- are a domestic student who commenced a course on or after 1 January 2022 and are enrolled in subjects with a census date prior to 1 January 2024;
- are enrolled in a Commonwealth supported place (CSP);
- and/or want to defer all or part of your tuition fees to HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP.
I am enrolled in Summer 2023 and currently have LCR for my course. What are my options?
If you are identified as having a low completion rate in your course and have an enrolment for Summer 2023 your options will be one of the following:
- Continue your studies as a full fee-paying student, subject to fulfilling other progression requirements.
- Withdraw from the subject on My Student Admin (MSA) by the Summer 2023 census date (19 December 2023).
- Submit a subject withdrawal application.
When is the completion rate calculated?
The completion rate is calculated once you have attempted:
- eight or more subjects in a bachelor level or higher course; or
- four or more subjects in a higher education course lower than a bachelor course (e.g., Diploma)
Once you meet the criteria above you will be assessed after results have been released each session.
How will I know that I have a low completion rate?
You will receive an email notification if you have a low completion rate and have a LCR sanction applied to your UTS record. The email notification will detail your options and support available.
How is the completion rate calculated?
An automatic process will count the number of subjects you have attempted and the number of subjects you have not successfully completed. If you fail more than half of the subjects that you have attempted throughout the duration of your course you will be identified as having a low completion rate.
What subjects count as “attempted”?
Any subject that you enrol in and remain enrolled in after census date has passed will be counted as having been attempted. This includes if you withdraw from a subject after census date. If you withdraw from a subject before census date it will not be counted.
What is a successfully completed subject?
Any subject for which you receive any of the following grades is counted as being successfully completed:
- High Distinction (HD)
- Distinction (D)
- Credit (C)
- Pass (P)
- Pass – Not Graded
- Satisfactory
What subject is not counted as being successfully completed?
If you receive one of the following fail grades the subject is counted as being not successfully completed:
- Fail (X)
- Fail (Z)
- Withdrawn Fail
How are subjects with W, Q, E or T grades counted?
If you receive one of the following grades it will be counted as an attempted subject but will not be counted as successfully completed or not successfully completed until the result is finalised:
- Withheld (W)
- Results pending (Q)
- Result not submitted (E)
- Supplementary exam to be completed (T)
What happens to subjects that I have withdrawn from after census date?
If you successfully apply to withdraw without academic penalty this subject will count as having been attempted but it will not count as a failed subject.
Is Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) counted in the low completion rate calculation?
In most cases recognition of prior learning except Advanced Standing will count towards the number of subjects attempted and successfully completed when calculating your completion rate for subjects that were completed after 1 January 2022.
What if I am placed on Exclusion and have a low completion rate?
If you also receive an email advising that you have been excluded then you cannot study at any course at the university for one academic year.
You can appeal your exclusion status within 20 working days of the date of notification. If you are successful in your appeal, this will not change your completion rate, which means you will still need to select one of the options outlined in the low completion rate notification.
If your appeal is unsuccessful, or you do not appeal your exclusion, you will be withdrawn from all courses at UTS. You may reapply for entry to the university at the end of the period of exclusion. If you are readmitted into the same course your low completion rate status will remain unchanged. You will therefore still be ineligible for Commonwealth assistance and will need to pay your fees upfront.
Can I request a review of a subject result?
To request a review of a subject result, students should email their Subject Coordinator within 5 working days of receiving a result for an assessment task or overall results for the subject. Note that if you receive a successful outcome after the census date of your next enrolled session and you are again eligible for Commonwealth assistance you will not be able to be re-instated in your course as a Commonwealth-assisted student until the following session.
Can I regain access to a Commonwealth Supported Place, HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP?
If you continue your course as a full fee-paying student and improve your completion rate to 50 per cent or more, you will regain access to Commonwealth assistance for that course. If this happens, you will receive an email confirmation.
If you are currently on a low completion rate sanction, your eligibility for CSP and HECS or FEE HELP will be restored in January 2024.
Can I apply for a new course?
You may apply for a different course at UTS, or to study at a different university. If you change to a new course, your low completion rate will not carry over and you may be able to access Commonwealth assistance for your new course if eligible.
Please note if you apply for the same course or a similar course (e.g. same course with different major or stream) at UTS, it is likely your low completion rate will carry over and you will still be ineligible for commonwealth assistance and will need to pay full fees up-front.
To apply for a new course at UTS, you will need to submit a new application through UAC or directly to UTS depending on the course application process. Please ensure you withdraw from your current course first.
Where can I find information about full fees?
If you are an undergraduate student, you can use the Fees search: Non-award and non CSP (subject) to find subject fees for the current year.
If you are a postgraduate student, you can use the Tuition fees search calculator to find the course fee.
You will receive an email confirmation when your tax invoice is available from My Student Admin after you enrol.
Where can I find fees due date?
Fee due dates are available in the UTS Handbook Principal Dates page or the Tuition payment due dates page.
Where can I get help?
There are multiple support services available for UTS students who need a helping hand.
The UTS Counselling Service is available for confidential counselling to help with a wide range of personal, psychological, study-related and administrative difficulties
If you have any questions or want to discuss your options, please reach out to AskUTS.