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<font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3366ff">H<font
color="#3333ff">ello Everyone<br>
</font></font>
<p><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">We have an
issue regarding reference dates for recording completions, particularly
in view of the use of the data </font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">in the
Learning & Teaching Performance Fund allocation model. </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">I am especially
interested to know:<br>
</font></p>
<ul>
<li><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">what <u>reference
dates</u> (ie. date at which a completion is recorded) that different
student systems use for the DEST Past Course Completions (PCC) file; and</font></li>
<li><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">whether
or not others
are able to change the </font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">reference</span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"> dates to pick up <u>all</u>
completers. </font></li>
</ul>
<font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">As you now
the </font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2"
color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">'student
attrition
inversion/retention' measure in the Learning & Teaching Performance
Fund allocation model </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">uses the
enrolment and completions data
files from the student stats submissions to DEST</span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">. </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">Under the
new reporting
regime, the reference year for the PCC file is the calendar year. </span>The
PCC file
specifications state that: <i>"data
are to be provided about each <a href="about:blank" target="_self">student</a>
who
completed the academic requirements of an <a href="about:blank"
target="_self">award
course</a>
in the year prior to the<b> </b><a href="about:blank" target="_self">collection
year</a><b>.</b>" <br>
</i></font><font color="#3333ff"><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"><br>
</font></font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2"
color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">Many
Universities cannot process their completions in time to get onto
the PCC file, as exam results are released in late December giving two
working days before Christmas to change the status of completing
students on the student system - this process includes checking
that students have satisfied all requirements of their degree, paid any
oustanding fines etc etc. </span></font>
<p><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">We believe
that many universities may be </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"><u>locked into</u>
the
calendar year as per file specs (as Student 1 universities are) and may
be disadvantaged in LTPF calculations by 'missing' a significant number
of completing students who are</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;"> changed to
completed on the student system after
the 31st December cut-off date of the reference year up to PCC
submission deadline at end of April in the following year. </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;"> Now that </span></font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">the
collection year is a calendar year</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">, Student 1</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"> has (we think
correctly) interpreted this to mean
that the PCC should refer to the <b>calendar year prior to the
collection
year</b>. Other vendors may have interpreted the scope differently.<br>
</font></p>
<p><b><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">Student
1</font></b><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"><b>
does not give universities any capacity to change the reference
dates of the file, </b>so it would seem that </font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">Student 1</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff"> universities (</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">UTS, Macquarie,
Southern Cross, Curtin, Flinders
and James Cook)</font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
color="#3333ff"> will be
disadvantaged in the LTPF. </font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">
If DEST changes the specifications for the PCC file then student
systems can be changed accordingly, however it is a different matter to
persuade </font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
color="#3333ff">student
systems suppliers</font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
color="#3333ff"> to change their interpretation based on the
current file specs. </font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
color="#3333ff"> </font></p>
<p><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">Interestingly
DEST say that we can really include the
</span></font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">'missed'</font><font
face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2" color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;"> completers
between end December and 30 April submission date but this goes against
the </span></font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" size="2"
color="#3333ff"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; color: blue; font-family: Arial;">specification!
</span></font><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif"
color="#3333ff"> I hope we can find a resolution to this one.<br>
</font></p>
<p><font face="Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" color="#3333ff">I'll be
grateful for anything others can offer on this issue. .... Thanks, best
wishes to all for the festive season and happy 2006. <br>
<br>
Regards .... Andrew</font></p>
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