Enrolment information

  • All fees are required to be paid prior to the commencement of a student’s enrolment. Payment can be made through the website or by direct deposit. Following payment, a receipt for payment is sent automatically.

    Where a payment plan is entered into, a deposit of 30% of the full course fee (course cost plus administration fee) is required prior to enrolment. Payment plans must be completed within 8 weeks of enrolment.

  • All refund requests must be submitted to refundrequest@realestatetraining.com.au.

    • Course enrolment payments are refundable, less an administration fee of 10% of the course fee paid.

    • Refunds can be claimed, provided a student withdraws their enrolment no more than 7 days after being given course access via the Student Portal.

    • Once 7 days have elapsed following provision of course access, refunds are not available should a student wish to withdraw their enrolment.

    • Once a student submits an assignment for marking, they acknowledge they are no longer eligible for a refund, regardless of the time that has elapsed following enrolment.

  • Students undertaking nationally-recognised training delivered by a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) need to have a Unique Student Identifier (USI).

    As a Registered Training Organisation (RTO), we are required to collect your USI and report completion of nationally-recognised training.

    Government information relating to the USI can be found on the Unique Student Identifier website.

    Prior to making payment for your course, you will be asked to provide a USI to comply with government requirements.

    To create a USI, you will need one of the following forms of identification:

    • Driver’s Licence

    • Medicare Card

    • Australian passport

    • Non-Australian Passport (with Australian Visa)

    • Birth Certificate (Australian)

    • Certificate of Registration by Descent

    • Citizenship Certificate

    • ImmiCard

  • There are no formal prerequisites to undertake study in any of the courses we offer, however, it is important to remember that the regulatory body for your state/territory may require licence or registration applicants to meet certain education or experience requirements prior to application.

    Should you require further information about course requirements, or if you are unsure about whether you hold the appropriate skills to undertake any of the programmes, we are more than happy to assist you with any queries you may have.

  • Macdonald Education Pty Ltd T/A The Australian Real Estate Training College has a designated bank account set up for the protection of student fees. All fees paid to undertake study in any training product are placed into this account.

    Students are allocated 100% access to all learning materials immediately upon enrolment. No pre-paid fees are kept for any student enrolment.

    Students who wish to pay using an instalment plan are given 100% access to learning materials as they progress through their instalment plan.

    Students are able to apply for refund of fees paid by following the Refund Policy.

Assessment matters

  • All courses offered by the College are competency-based courses. Students are required to submit a portfolio of completed tasks and activities for assessment within each topic (unit) of a course.

    The use of written assessments is an applicable methodology for the real estate sector, considering it relies heavily on written communication, contracts, forms, and administrative/paperwork-related tasks.

    Students are expected to research each task, using either College-supplied material or by gathering information from their own resources. All activities and assessment tasks must be successfully completed for competency to be achieved.

    Students submit completed assessment tasks electronically by uploading them through the Student Portal.

    Students will be assessed as either ‘Competent’ or ‘Not Yet Competent’. All students are given the opportunity to re-submit assessments if, at first, they do not meet the competency standards required.

    All assessments submitted must be the student’s own work.

    Students who are studying at the same time may collaborate with each other to complete their assignments. This must be approved by the College prior to commencing the assignment. Collaboration must be noted on the assignment with the names of the students shown clearly prior to submission.

    A student submitting work that is not their own or has not been approved to collaborate with another student will be considered to have committed an act of fraud and, at minimum, their enrolment will be terminated without credit for subjects completed and without a refund of fees.

    Students are required to agree to the terms of submission outlined on each assignment, prior to submission. Submission of an assignment also denotes to the College that the terms of submission have been agreed to.

    Several strategies have been put into place to ensure that the College is continually monitoring the work of all enrolled students.

    Assessment activities undertaken by the College follow consistent processes as outlined below:

    • Assessment procedures are fully explained to students via the Student Handbook. Information is also included within each course on the Student Portal.

    • Students are made aware of the processes for Recognition of Prior Learning, credit transfer opportunities, and mutual recognition via the Student Handbook.

    • The assessment requirements of each unit of competency are outlined within the course.

    • All evidence-gathering methods comply with the principles of assessment, in that they are fair, valid, reliable, and flexible.

    • When assessing, College assessors complete a feedback section contained within the student’s online submission. A result is then recorded on the student’s feedback profile and within a computerised student administration system. Students have access to feedback and results during the course enrolment period (indefinitely).

    • No assessment result is released to a third party without written, verifiable authority from the record owner. All student records remain confidential.

    • Post-assessment advice is available to students where required.

    • A fair and impartial appeals process is available. If a student does not agree with the assessment they may follow the appeals process outlined further in this document.

    Assessment moderation and evaluation are ongoing and form part of the College’s approach to effective continuous improvement activities.

  • Students should keep in mind that they are allowed as many opportunities to resubmit an assessment task as needed to gain competency in any given unit/course. We do not require payment of a re-submission fee should a student be asked by their assessor to resubmit an assessment task.

    All assessment appeals will be processed and acted upon (if substantiated) in a timely manner.

    In the event that a student is not satisfied with an assessment decision or process, the following procedure applies:

    1. discuss the matter with the assessor.

    2. if the matter is unresolved, discuss the matter with the Chief Executive.

    3. if the matter is still unresolved, both parties will agree on the nomination of an independent assessor to examine the matter.

    4. should the matter remain unresolved at this stage, the student has the option to take the matter to ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority). ASQA is the national regulator for the vocational education training sector in Australia.

  • Plagiarism is the practice of taking someone else's work or ideas and passing them off as one's own. This includes the use of artificial intelligence (AI) programs.

    It is important for students to understand that committing an act of plagiarism makes it difficult for the College to determine their knowledge. Students should note that an act of plagiarism will likely increase the time it takes to complete training.

    All assessments submitted must be the student’s own work. A student submitting work that is not their own (including through the use of AI programs) will be considered to have committed an act of fraud and, at minimum, their enrolment will be terminated without credit for subjects completed and without a refund of fees.

    Students are required to agree to the terms of submission outlined on each assignment, prior to submission. Submission of an assignment also denotes to the College that the terms of submission have been agreed to.

    Several strategies have been put into place to ensure that the College is continually monitoring the work of all enrolled students.

    Please refer to ‘Assessment processes’ above for information about the process that must be undertaken for students working collaboratively.

  • Macdonald Education T/A The Australian Real Estate Training College (ARETC) will make a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and Credit Transfer (CT) available to all students prior to enrolment for all accredited training products on its scope of registration.

    Credit Transfer (CT)

    Evidence of previously attained unit(s) of competency achieved from another Registered Training Organisation (RTO) will be recognised once validated. Credit Transfer (CT) will be recorded on the student’s record. ARETC will not issue certification for a training product completed entirely on units of competency completed via another RTO.

    Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

    Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is an assessment process that assesses the current skill and knowledge against the learning outcomes of the unit of competency the student is applying for. The skill and knowledge can be acquired through formal, informal and non-informal learning. Students are able to apply for up to 100% of a training product via RPL. ARETC may request an additional assessment to be completed to further support a student’s RPL application to meet the requirements for a particular unit of competency.

    ARETC will only issue full exemption for any unit of competency. No partial exemptions will be granted.

    Fees to be paid by the student will be determined on the result of the RPL application.

    All applications for Recognition of Prior Learning or Credit Transfer are to be submitted using the Recognition of Prior Learning Application available via ARETC website.

    Students will submit all sufficient documentary evidence to support their application. Any applications received with no documentation included will be returned to the student.

    Students applying for Credit Transfer or RPL and using previously completed NRT or tertiary qualification/course are required to submit copies of testamurs, records of results or a Statement of Attainment with their application. Permission will be sought from the student to contact the issuing provider to verify the results shown.

    RPL applications and submitted evidence will be forwarded to RPL Assessor for assessment. Results will be advised within 10 working days of receipt of the application.

    If the Assessor determines the evidence submitted does not meet the requirements for a unit of competency being applied for, the student will be required to study the unit. For those units that require further supporting evidence, the Assessor can decide whether the student is eligible to answer assessment questions and submit for marking. If additional assessment questions are deemed not yet competent the student will have to study the unit.

    Results from the RPL application will be emailed to the student and will include the cost of completing the outstanding units in the qualification/course. Student’s approval is sought prior to an invoice being issued for fees due. If a student hasn’t agreed to completing the outstanding units and the requirements for the qualification/course change the student will need to submit a new application for RPL to meet the new requirements.

    Qualification or Statement of Attainment will be issued upon completion of qualification/course.

    Students may appeal the RPL decision made by contacting training@realestatetraining.com.au in the first instance. If an outcome cannot be reached the student is able to follow the Complaints and Appeal policy.

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  • The College recognises nationally-recognised qualifications issued by other Registered Training Organisations (RTOs). Once the existence of the RTO and its ability to provide the qualification has been confirmed, the student can be provided with an exemption from the relevant competencies.

    In cases where the qualification is older than five years (particularly in modules that have undergone substantial legislative change), the College may require the student to re-do these particular modules to ensure currency of student knowledge.

    The College reserves the right to reject claims for credit transfer where competencies claimed are greater than five years old.

  • Macdonald Education Pty Ltd T/A The Australian Real Estate Training College will investigate all complaints and appeals raised by students, assessors or staff.

    All complaints and/or appeals will be dealt with in a timely and effective manner and will remain confidential at all times.

    ARETC will ensure that each complaint or appeal and its outcome will be recorded appropriately ensuring confidentiality is maintained.

    All complaints and/or appeals should be made in writing and emailed to training@realestatetraining.com.au. If this is not possible complaints can be made by calling ARETC offices. No appeal will be accepted if made verbally.

    Complainants and appellants will be given the opportunity to formally present their cases.

    If a meeting is necessary during the investigation of the complaint or appeal the complainant or appellant can bring a support person, such as a translator or family member with them to the meeting. If a support person is being bought to the meeting ARETC should be advised prior to the meeting commencement.

    The complainant or appellant can, at any time, decide to withdraw their complaint or appeal. Investigations at this time would cease unless further investigations would contribute to the issue not reoccurring.

    The person making a complaint or appeal will be kept informed at every stage of the investigation and will be informed in writing of the outcome.

    If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of their complaint, they then may appeal the decision. The review of the appeal would be conducted by an independent person.

    If still no resolution can be found the appellant can take the matter to an independent arbiter or ASQA for further investigation.

    A review of the reasons why a complaint or appeal was made to implement appropriate action to mitigate the chances of a reoccurrence of the incident.

    Complaint meaning is something that is unsatisfactory or unacceptable.

    Appeal meaning is an application for reconsideration of a decision.

Student information

  • Students can access their records at any point throughout their enrolment. This enables the student to check their course progress, the outcomes of any unit completed, and any records relating to complaints and appeals. All student records are held electronically and are always available to the student following making contact with the College.

    In addition, the College is required to retain all student records for a period of thirty (30) years. This enables a student to access their records over that period. For instance, should a Statement of Attainment or transcript need to be re-issued, a student can contact the College, and after providing relevant information that matches with the correct enrolment data, such requests can be met. It is important to recognise that the archiving of student records occurs on a regular basis. Therefore, a two-week period is required to access records for the re-issuing of Statements of Attainment and transcripts.

  • The College is committed to equal opportunity and positive action in vocational education, training, and employment. As such the College provides an environment that embraces equity, fairness, and respect for social and cultural diversity.

    All teaching methods, assessment and review processes, teaching materials, and support services demonstrate a commitment to an environment that is free from discrimination, harassment, and vilification. All staff is aware that access and equity are their responsibility.

    Further details of this aspect of the College can be found in the Code of Practice.

    Failure by a person or persons to comply with the equality policy outlined in the Code of Practice will warrant disciplinary action against the relevant party/parties.

  • Use of administration strategies that align with the Federal Privacy Act.

    The College is bound to protect students’ individual and personal information. All student administration processes ensure that we do not provide personal information on students and their assessments to unauthorised parties. All employees of the College are aware of the Federal Privacy Legislation and how it affects the dissemination of information, and follow College policies and procedures on the use of the student administration system and the protection of students’ privacy. A student will always have the right to access their own files.

  • Students requiring language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) support are identified on enrolment.

    Students requiring support in these areas are asked to denote this on the enrolment form or to contact the College. Where only a low level of support is required, the Chief Executive may arrange for the student to receive extra-curricula assistance from the Trainer or other staff member. Where extensive support is needed the student will be referred to an LLN specialist. This may attract a fee.

    Assessments can be adjusted where allowed in order to assist in the successful completion of the units of competency for those students who require support in LLN.

    Where a student’s language, literacy, or numeracy deficiencies will clearly inhibit the achievement of learning outcomes and the applicant refuses to support, enrolment may be declined.

    If you feel you need assistance with LLN, please contact us.

  • In some cases, College staff will be dealing with children and, as such, staff are required to undertake a Working with Children Check (WWCC).

    Staff members who may be involved with children must have a current Employee Working with Children Check and be verified to be engaged in any role relating to children. Staff members agree to the College Code of Conduct for working with children.

    Any person convicted of a serious sex offence will not be permitted to work in a position with the College where they may be required to work with children.

  • The College endeavours to promote a safe and fair environment for staff and students. Disciplinary action will occur if students:

    • engage in harassment or discriminatory behaviour

    • fail to pay any fee or charge owing to The College within a reasonable period

    • plagiarise material for assessment

    If a student is reported to have committed any of the above acts, an internal investigation will occur. The student will be given an opportunity to present their case at this time. If the individual is found to have breached any of the above, disciplinary action will take place. Dependent upon the act committed, this may constitute expulsion from the course, or a strict penalty may be imposed in line with relevant legislation.

Student support

  • Macdonald Education Pty Ltd T/A The Australian Real Estate Training College will support the needs of individual students where English is not their first language or there may be a deficiency in their literacy or numeracy skills.

    No student will be discriminated against at any stage of their learning journey with ARETC.

    Students will not be enrolled into a training product that does not meet their career goals or legislative requirements.

    Specific support needs, if possible, will be identified at enrolment. Specific action will be identified for each individual student who has had support needs identified. An LLN assessment may be recommended to assist in determining the support required.

    If a low level of support is determined the Chief Executive Officer may arrange to support to be provided by a qualified Trainer or Assessor. If a higher level of support is needed the student will be referred to an LLN specialist. This support may attract a fee to the student.

    Where a student’s language, literacy, or numeracy deficiencies will clearly inhibit the achievement of learning outcomes and the applicant refuses to accept the support offered, enrolment may be declined.

  • Students can contact the College for learning support at any time by using the below methods.

    • email - studentsupport@realestatetraining.com.au

    • telephone - 02 9987 2322

    • online chat

    Confidentiality of the name of any person asking a question will be maintained.

  • As an education provider, the College cannot guarantee the granting of a licence or registration to students upon successful course completion. Applicants must ensure they meet the eligibility requirements as set out by the relevant state or territory licensing regulator. Similarly, the College does not have any involvement in guaranteeing employment following successful course completion.

  • The College Chief Executive or individual assessors are available to provide academic or vocational counselling. If you would like to discuss your course or anything related to your course, do not hesitate to contact the College.

    Relevant support services:

  • Centrelink has payment and products available to people studying or training. Payments and products are liable in many instances to asset tests and may also be determined based on the number of hours undertaken for study.

    Individual opportunities need to be discussed with your local Centrelink office.

    The College is approved for Centrelink student-related payments, as follows:

    • Registered Training Organisation: NSW Real Estate Training College

    • Reference No: 2P849

    For information on the following allowances, contact Services Australia

    • Youth allowance

    • Austudy payment

    • JobSeeker payment

    Youth Allowance and AUSTUDY Payments

    Youth Allowance is available to eligible full-time students aged 16-24, full-time students aged 25 or over who were getting Youth Allowance before they turned 25 and are still doing the same course, and young people up to 21 who are combining part-time job search and part-time study.

    Austudy payment is available to eligible full-time students aged 25 years and over.

    Youth Allowance and Austudy payment are subject to income and assets tests.

    Claim forms and information about Youth Allowance or Austudy payments (including rates of payment) are available from Centrelink.

    ABSTUDY provides financial assistance for Australian Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders who undertake approved full-time or part-time study. ABSTUDY enquiries line is 1800 132 317.

    The following services are available from the Department of Education and Training:

    • Literacy and numeracy training

    • Career development

    • Adult Migrant English Program

    • National Office of Overseas Skills recognition

    • Apprenticeships and Traineeships

    The Department of Home Affairs undertakes Adult Migrant Education programmes. International Student Enquiries: phone 131 881.