Inducement policy principles

Condition SAC122[1] specifies that the principles for learner enrolment exclude the prospect of material gain and Condition SAC123[2] specifies that government funding may not be used for lobbying or enrolment inducements.

Offering inducements, whether funded from public or private funding sources, can promote outcomes that conflict with the Tertiary Education Strategy. These outcomes could be:

• competition rather than collaboration among TEOs
• enrolment by learners with little or no intention of educational participation. This can multiply the demand on public funds beyond the cost of the gain to learners, and potentially deny enrolment to genuine learners.

We strongly recommend that TEOs discuss with us items or activities offered with courses for which the TEO intends to claim TEC funding or other government funding.

Condition SAC124[3] applies whether:

• the sources of the material or financial gain or other personal advantage unrelated to educational provision are public or private
• possession of the material items involves legal transfer of ownership or not
• the TEO or a third party offers or promotes the gain or advantage
• learners gain possession of the material items directly from the TEO or indirectly through a third party.

Learner scholarships that consist of fee refunds must be repaid to StudyLink or Inland Revenue as appropriate in accordance with Condition SAC125[4]. We take the following position if it is required to address a particular practice under this policy:

• A merit scholarship comprises financial aid given to learners as a result of high academic achievement exceeding that of their fellow learners or cohort. It would typically be awarded only to a small percentage of top-performing learners
• A needs scholarship comprises financial aid given to learners who would otherwise be significantly disadvantaged in accessing education. A robust application and assessment process is required to demonstrate this need for each individual learner. Such scholarships are not intended to cover a group of students as a general entitlement
• Any scholarship will have a clear, focused rationale for its existence, and would be expected to have a clearly identified philanthropic aim, or to support study in a particular area of importance to the donor.
  

• [1]

  Condition SAC122: Inducements

  The following principles underlie all requirements regarding inducements and are to be read as part of all conditions:

  • Tertiary education organisations (TEOs) should not use public funds, whether in the form of tuition subsidies or student loans for fees/course costs, to fund private possession of material items
  • Educational involvement and learning outcomes should be the motivation for learner enrolment in a particular course or with a particular TEO, rather than the prospect of material gain.
• [2]

  Condition SAC123: Inducements and use of government funds

  Tertiary education organisations (TEOs) that receive Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) funding must use the funding responsibly.

   

  Example: TEOs must not use TEC or other government funding to fund items or activities such as lobbying or enrolment inducements.

• [3]

  Condition SAC124: Personal gain from enrolment

  No course is eligible, or retains approval, for Student Achievement Component funding or approval for learner access to student allowances and the Student Loan Scheme if:

  • learners obtain, as a result of enrolment or course completion, ongoing post-study possession of material items other than those that the TEC specifically allows
  • the prospect of material or financial gain or personal advantage is likely to become the motivation for enrolment in that particular course or with that TEO, rather than learning outcomes. The following are exceptions to this requirement, subject to the TEC’s right to review individual schemes for compliance with the policy principles:
    • Discounts or scholarships designed to increase access of particular groups of learners identified in the Tertiary Education Strategy
    • Scholarships based on merit or financial need.
• [4]

  Condition SAC125: Scholarships and fee refunds

  To comply with inducement policy, a scholarship comprising a fee refund by the tertiary education organisation must be paid directly to StudyLink or Inland Revenue (as appropriate) to offset any student loan amount owed by the learner recipient in relation to the course to which the scholarship applies, before any residual amount is paid to the learner.