Low completion rate (LCR)

The Australian Government will remove the Job Ready Graduates Low Completion Rate legislation from universities on 1 January 2024. Flinders University will adopt this change ahead of Semester 2 2023 results release on 1 December 2023 which means that affected students can keep their Commonwealth supported place (CSP) or defer fees via HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP loans in 2024. The University will continue to monitor and support students with low completion rates to ensure you have access to the advice and support you need for your academic success.

If you commenced your course from 1 January 2022 and receive Government assistance through a Commonwealth supported place, HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP, you must maintain a 50% or higher completion (pass) rate.

If you have a low completion rate of more than 50%, you will not be eligible to remain in your Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) or use HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP within the same degree. The Australian Government refers to this as a Low Completion Rate (LCR). Flinders will undertake regular checks of your academic results and will let you know when your enrolment is at risk. We will provide you with advice regarding what to do if you have a low completion rate.

From 1 January 2022, the Australian Government introduced an additional eligibility requirement for Commonwealth Assistance for those studying in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) or HELP loans.

Find out more

Criteria

Low Completion Rate will impact you if;

you commenced in your course on or after 1 January 2022,
you are accessing Commonwealth support/assistance including accessing HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP, SA-HELP or OS-HELP,
fail more than 50% of topics after attempting eight (8) or more topics (Bachelor and above); or
fail more than 50% of topics after attempting four (4) topics (below Bachelor).

What is Commonwealth Support?

Commonwealth supported means the cost of your study is shared between the Australian Government and you.

A Commonwealth supported place (CSP) is a place at a university or higher education provider where the government pays part of your fees. This part is a subsidy, not a loan, and you don't have to pay it back.

HECS-HELP is the government loan scheme that assists eligible Commonwealth supported students in paying their student contribution fees.

What is a topic attempt?

A topic attempt for the purposes of the Low Completion Rate (LCR) is;

a topic you were enrolled in after the census date, and
recognition of prior learning that has been credited towards your course which has a census date after 1 January 2022.

What counts towards the Low Completion Rate?

All topics you do not pass but were enrolled in at the census date count towards the same award degree. This includes:

Topics you receive a Withdraw without Fail (WN)
Topics you receive a Fail (F)
Any credit that has been completed from 1 January 2022 will count towards the number of topics completed as part of your course.

Note: Credited topics that have census dates prior to 1 January 2022 are not counted in the completion rate requirements.

If your grade is incomplete (*) for topics you are enrolled in at the time of the LCR assessment, this topic is not included in the calculation. If an incomplete grade changes to a fail grade, this will count toward LCR at the next assessment.

Contact us

Phone 7421 9018

Email: academic.success@flinders.edu.au

No longer Commonwealth supported

As defined by the Australian Government, if you meet the criteria for Low Completion Rate, you will no longer have access to Commonwealth assistance for this course.

You are deemed to have a low completion rate if you have:

attempted at least 8 topics in a Bachelor or higher-level course and failed more than 50% of topics attempted
attempted at least 4 topics in a course below Bachelor level and failed more than 50% of topics attempted.

Frequently Asked Questions

What this means

You have met the low completion rate criteria and can no longer continue in your course with Commonwealth support.

What to expect

You will lose your Commonwealth assistance for this course and the Australian government will no longer provide financial support to subsidise the cost of your studies. Flinders will contact you via your Flinders University email account to discuss options available to you.

What are my options?

Your options include:

Pay your fees in full - If you increase your completion rate to 50% or higher, you will be eligible for Commonwealth assistance for future study periods. You will be charged a tuition fee based on the applicable combined Commonwealth Government and student contribution amount.
Apply to transfer courses - If you transfer to a new course at Flinders or a different provider, your previous completion rate will not carry over and you will be able to access Commonwealth assistance for your new course. The University will determine if you are academically suited to your intended course. Please note, there is no guarantee a transfer will be approved.
Apply for remission/special consideration - If ‘special circumstances’ impacted your ability to pass one or more topics leading you to withdraw or fail, you can apply for these topics to not count towards the low completion rate evaluation. Your fail grade will still stand and be recorded on your Academic Transcript.