Complain about an education provider
Te tuku amuamu mō tētahi kaiwhakarato mātauranga
Part of our role at the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) is monitoring to make sure they deliver programmes in line with their funding agreements with us.
Part of our role at the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) is monitoring to make sure they deliver programmes in line with their funding agreements with us.
We want to hear from you if:
- you think a TEO is not delivering the appropriate amount of teaching hours through your course
- you are concerned about a TEO’s performance standards, or its compliance with TEC’s funding conditions.
Our commitment to supporting complainants
We are committed to resolving complaints fairly, respectfully, and promptly. If something has gone wrong, we encourage you to raise it with us. If another organisation is better placed to help, we will assist you to reach the right service.
Where possible, concerns should first be raised directly with the organisation involved. This gives them an opportunity to understand the issue and resolve it.
Making a complaint
To make a complaint, you can:
- call our complaints helpline on 0800 601 301, or
- email us using our contact form.
It’s useful if you give us your contact details so we can verify the complaint details – but we can receive anonymous complaints.
If you don’t want us to store your personal details, please tell us this when you make your complaint.
Information we need from you
So we can look into your complaint, we need to know:
- the name of the TEO
- who is involved
- exactly what you are concerned about, and
- whether you have raised this complaint directly with the TEO.
Confidentiality
We know that some complainants wish to stay anonymous. We won’t record your identity if you ask us not to.
We also treat personal information relating to complaints as confidential. We will talk with you if anyone wants identifying personal information related to your complaint.
We may not be the correct agency to deal with your complaint
Your complaint may fall within another agency's responsibilities. We will explain why and help connect you with the appropriate agency.
| If your complaint is about | Please contact |
|---|---|
|
An issue with a teacher/lecturer, facilities at your TEO, or student policies and practices |
Your TEO to discuss your concerns |
|
Your student loan, student allowance, or student loan repayments |
|
|
You are an international or domestic student and have a concern about the delivery or quality of your course or study |
|
|
Discrimination |
|
|
Someone’s safety being at risk |
|
|
How information about you has been stored or used |
|
|
The delivery or quality of your course or study at a university |
|
|
Final-year Fees Free |
If you’re unsure whether we are the right organisation to contact, call our complaints helpline to talk this through: 0800 601 301.
If you give us information that seems to raise concerns under a law that another government agency enforces, we may tell that agency about our concern. If we do pass your complaint to another agency, we will let you know.
What happens after you make a complaint?
A member of our team will review the information you have provided and let you know what happens next.
We may contact you for clarification or information relating to your complaint.
Depending on the complaint, we may not be able to advise you directly of the outcome of any further enquiries we undertake. If your complaint results in a TEC investigation – which is a detailed examination of a TEO’s activities – we generally publish final reports at:
Reporting serious wrongdoing (protected disclosures)
If you are an employee (including a former employee) of an organisation that the TEC funds, and/or you wish to report serious wrongdoing, your complaint may be a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act.
The purpose of this Act is to encourage people to report serious wrongdoing in their workplace by providing protection for employees who consider they need to ‘blow the whistle’. This applies to public and private sector workplaces.
To find out how to report a serious wrongdoing to TEC – and how we manage these reports – please go to the ‘Protected disclosures’ section on our contact page.