Accreditation & Recognition

Accreditation

Think: Colleges Pty Ltd is a national provider of education and training, and trades under the following names: Australasian College of Natural Therapies, APM College of Business & Communication, Billy Blue College of Design, CATC Design School, William Blue College of Hospitality Management, Australian National College of Beauty, Jansen Newman Institute and Southern School of Natural Therapies).

Vocational Education and Training qualifications

Think: Colleges is a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) and is registered by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) ASQA has been conferred authority under the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 to register RTOs that operate across multiple states in Australia. As part of this registration, Think: Colleges maintains compliance and improves the quality of its programs following the Standards for NVR Registered Training Organisations. Think: Colleges is authorised to issue nationally accredited vocational education and training qualifications recognised within the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). ). For a full listing of VET qualifications offered by Think: Colleges please visit the Training.gov.au (TGA) site.

Higher Education qualifications

Please note: Effective 30th January 2012, Think: Colleges higher education registration and courses will be subject to regulation by the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency(TEQSA). Up until this date the following information remains current.

New South Wales
Think: Colleges is registered by the Director-General of the New South Wales Department of Education and Training (NSWDET) and accredited to offer higher education Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Associate and Bachelor degrees which are recognised within the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

The Director-General of the NSW DET is the only legal entity conferred authority under the NSW Higher Education Act 2001 to register non-self accrediting higher education providers in New South Wales. Approval processes undertaken by the NSWDET are aligned with the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes. For a full listing of approved higher education qualifications offered by Think: Colleges in New South Wales, please visit the New South Wales AQF Register of Higher Education.

Queensland
Think: Colleges is registered by the Minister for Education and Training in Queensland and is accredited to offer higher education Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Associate and Bachelor degrees which are recognised within the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

The Minister for Education and Training in Queensland is conferred authority under the QLD Higher Education (General Provisions) Act 2008 to register non-self accrediting higher education providers in Queensland. Approval processes undertaken by the Queensland Office of Higher Education to assist the Minister are aligned with the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes. For a full listing of approved higher education qualifications offered by Think: Colleges, please visit the. Queensland AQF Register of Higher Education.

Victoria
Think: Colleges is registered by the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) in the State of Victoria and is accredited to offer Bachelor degrees which are recognised within the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

The VRQA is conferred authority under the Victorian Education and Training Reform Act 2006 to register non-self accrediting higher education providers in Victoria. Approval processes undertaken by the VRQA are aligned with the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes. For a full listing of approved higher education qualifications offered by Think: Colleges in Victoria please visit the Victorian Higher Education State Register.

Think: Colleges will be subject to periodic quality audits by the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA). The most recent audit report (conducted by TEQSA's predecessor, AUQA in October 2009) is now available.

Courses offered to overseas students

Most vocational and higher education qualifications offered by Think: Colleges are listed on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas students. This is the official Australian Commonwealth Government register that lists all Australian education providers authorised to offer courses to people studying in Australia on student visas. Think: Colleges is bound by the provisions of the ESOS Act 2000 and National Code 2007. Overseas students should read the ESOS framework and a simple explanation of the ESOS framework is available online at Australian Education International (AEI).

Recognition

All AQF qualifications offered by Think: Colleges are accredited by the relevant government agencies listed above and are deemed equivalent to qualifications issued by institutions recognised under Generally Accepted Accrediting Principles (GAAP).  Accreditation by an agency recognised under GAAP is a strong assurance that the qualifications issued by Think: Colleges will be recognised by industry and other education providers throughout the world.

All Higher Education Diplomas, Advanced Diplomas, Associate Degrees and Bachelor degrees offered by Think: Colleges are deemed equivalent and recognised in equal standing to those qualifications issued by self-accrediting Australian Universities.

All Vocational Education and Training qualifications issued by Think: Colleges are required to be recognised by other Australian Registered Training Organisations.