Assessing secondary students satisfactory progress for Austudy 010-04050060

Austudy is a payment that can be made to customers who are 25 years or older while they are studying but it is not paid indefinitely. A student must be making satisfactory progress in their course for payments to continue.

A secondary student satisfies the progress rules if the person demonstrates that they are enrolled in an approved course, or intending to enrol when enrolments are next accepted and are making satisfactory progress towards completing the course. In most cases, satisfactory progress will usually be demonstrated where the student is undertaking the relevant study load for their year level.

The Austudy satisfactory progress rules for secondary students only relate to Year 12 level studies. Students undertaking other years of study are automatically deemed to be making satisfactory progress.

Students will not usually be considered a full-time secondary student for Austudy purposes while attempting Year 12 for a third (or subsequent) time. However, a previous attempt at Year 12 can be disregarded if the person:

• failed the course due to:
• an illness that had not been diagnosed when they commenced the course, or
• other circumstances beyond their control that were not evident when they started studying that course
• failed the course because English was not their first language
• completed or discontinued studies within six months of the start of the academic year, or
• undertook the previous courses more than 10 years ago

Satisfactory progress is more difficult to gauge for students enrolled in secondary study in self-paced courses. A self-paced course is a course within which students can progress at a pace which suits their individual learning needs, rather than the pace prescribed for a class of students. However, students enrolled in self-paced courses still need to make satisfactory progress in order to qualify for Austudy payments.

Satisfactory progress in a self-paced course is measured by the student competing the training/study within the period of time that is defined by the institution as undertaking full-time study, or if the qualification was obtained by a conventional course of study, would be regarded as satisfactory progress in that course of study.

For students enrolled in self-paced courses, the submission of assignments on a regular basis or by due dates as prescribed for the course will be the primary measure by which the decision maker can confirm with the institution that 'satisfactory progress' has been made in the course.

A Preparatory Course that is specifically designed for entry to University is at Year 12 level, and falls under these progress rules for secondary study.

Note: a student who is not making satisfactory progress for Year 12 or a Preparatory Course may be eligible for assistance for a different level of study.