POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ABOUT COMMITMENT All the staff at Evolution are dedicated to giving you as much information and help as they possibly can. In the few occasions where something is out of our skill area, we will endeavour to bring in the experts from industry. We are committed to giving you the very best training you can have and we will endeavour to ensure all students achieve at national or International level.
We cannot however, guarantee your success – that’s down to you! You will achieve with motivation, commitment and a willingness to co-operate and succeed. This will ensure a clear path to success. Remember at all times, that we have been doing this for a long time now and we know what works – some things you will like, some you won’t; some you will agree with and some you won’t but whatever happens, remember it’s because it’s the best for you and it works!
The beauty & massage industry is a growing industry and we must grow to accommodate the needs of industry. There will be some aspects of your course that you may not enjoy – stick with them as they are important and are included for a reason. We will not give you anything you do not need. We will, however, expose you to as much extra knowledge as time allows ensuring you have a full grasp of the vastness of this exciting industry. We have certain responsibilities and obligations to NZQA, ITEC and industry and as such, we can afford only a small amount of flexibility within the syllabi.
Self-discipline is of utmost importance. We are an adult School and we expect adult behaviour and commitment from all. You must take responsibility for your own learning and realise that much as we would like to, we cannot do it for you. Learn from experiences had whilst at School and strive towards excellence at all times. When you graduate, you will be up against tough opposition but you can easily exceed anything anyone else can offer.
To enable each student to get the very best from our staff, it is important for you to identify areas of concern in your learning. We cannot help you if we are not aware of problems you may be experiencing. These problems may not be related to your course but if they impact upon it and we can help, we will do so. You just need to let us know.
Together we must commit to making this the hugely respected career it should be – an industry made up of incredible professionals.
We want you to get the best from us and we can only do that if we get the best from you.
WITHDRAWAL AND REFUND POLICIES AND PROCEDURES As per the Education & Training Act 2020: Refund entitlements of domestic students (1) This section applies to a domestic student who— (a) is enrolled at a private training establishment for all or part of a programme or micro-credential of more than 3 months’ duration; and (b) withdraws from that programme or micro-credential within the refund period. (2) The student is entitled to a refund of the payment (or the sum of any payments) made by the student in respect of the programme or micro-credential that exceeds $500 or 10% of the amount of that payment or the sum of those payments, whichever is the lesser. (3) Despite subsection (2), a private training establishment must— (a) allow every domestic student enrolled in a programme or micro-credential that is of less than 3 months’ duration to withdraw from it within a period (being less than 7 days) specified by NZQA; and (b) refund to every domestic student who so withdraws a minimum amount or proportion, specified by NZQA, of any payments made by the student to the establishment in respect of the programme or micro-credential. (4) If the student withdraws from a programme or micro-credential within the refund period, the independent trustee must refund all payments made to it by the private training establishment in respect of the programme or micro-credential— (a) to the trustee of the student’s new education provider; or (b) if the fee has been paid for by student loan, to MSD; or (c) to the student, if neither paragraph (a) nor (b) applies. (5) When the refund period, in relation to any fees paid by or behalf of a student, has expired,— (a) the fees paid must continue to be held in trust by the independent trustee and the private training establishment must be paid from the trust in the manner prescribed in the rules made under section 452; or (b) the private training establishment may, if NZQA approves, make alternative arrangements in relation to the fees paid. (6) An instrument containing a specification by NZQA under subsection (3) is secondary legislation (seePart 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).
Withdrawal (Exit) Interviews You may need to meet with a member of our staff to have a withdrawal (exit) interview.
Fees Due and Refunds Please be aware you may not be eligible for a refund or may owe the school a portion of or your entire course fee, depending on when you withdraw. If you withdraw within the refund period, you must contact us for a Public Trust Refund Form, and you must complete this with your Withdrawal Form.
If we have to pursue you to withdraw, or if your withdrawal is not complete the first time around, we reserve the right to charge you for our time and resources used.
Your Withdrawal and StudyLink If you have a student loan and/or allowance, and you are withdrawing from your course, you are legally required to inform StudyLink once you have left your course. We are also required by law to let them know you have withdrawn.
You can contact them via their Web site at www.studylink.govt.nz or by phone on 0800 88 99 00, and they can give you further information on what information you need to provide. Please have your client number available.
Your withdrawal and fees free What are the rules around withdrawals and tuition fee refunds if a learner withdraws from their course?
A. Note the following answer applies to provider-based study only. Withdrawal and refund conditions remain the same whether a learner is eligible for fees-free and/or accessing fees-free support or not. If a learner withdraws before your organisation’s withdrawal date: they are entitled to receive a full refund of fees and course costs, and they will retain their full fees-free entitlement (fees-free support is capped at $12,000 [including GST] per student
If a learner withdraws after your organisation’s withdrawal date: they are not entitled to receive a full refund of fees and course costs. This may differ if the student is withdrawing due to exceptional circumstances (you will need to apply your organisation’s withdrawal policy in this case), and any EFTS/credits they undertake will be counted as prior study and may affect their future eligibility (see point below) and the amount of fees-free support they can access in the future.
To be eligible for fees-free tertiary education, a learner must “not have previously undertaken more than half a year of equivalent full-time tertiary education (0.5 EFTS or 60 credits) at level 3 or above on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF), including tertiary education at an equivalent level undertaken in any other country, but excluding any tertiary education undertaken while enrolled in a school.”
In both cases, learners who don’t use a full 1 EFTS can use the balance later. It is likely that carryover into the following year will take into account the EFTS a student has undertaken and the dollar amount they have consumed.
Non-contact and withdrawal Where a student is absent for ten (10) days and has not made contact with the school, it will be deemed that that student has withdrawn and studylink or any other relevant funding body will be advised. All fees remain the responsibility of the student. Should a student wish to return after this time, they will need to reapply for a place on the next available course and as such pay the full course fee again.
You will be required to complete a Withdrawal Form which will be retained in your student file. This may see your student loan and/or allowance frozen and repayment required immediately. STUDENT PROTECTION IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT OF RECEIVERSHIP OR LIQUIDATION or Other serious event In the unlikely event of Evolution going into receivership or voluntary liquidation or some unforeseen catastrophe occurring, all fees are held in the individual public trust account and so a pro rata refund will be available.
PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEOS From time to time we take photos and make videos for our school library, Facebook, careers expos etc. We assure you we will not take any incriminating or offensive pictures / videos. You can opt to not have your photo published and if you feel you would like to opt out of being in photos or videos, please let the staff know immediately before signing this document. You can see the types of photographs we take by looking on the Facebook page. They are usually fun photos and group shots. We create some lovely mementos and we would like you all to be in them!
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY It shall be the policy of the School to ensure that no prospective student or staff member is discriminated against or disadvantaged in any aspect of training and delivery. This policy extends to all staff and students and is expected to be upheld by all staff and students.
The policy shall cover age, disability, learning difficulties of any sort (medical / educational / personal) employment status, ethnic or national origins, family status, marital status, political opinion, race, colour, religious or ethnic belief, sex and sexual orientation.
The only exception will be in cases where there is a high and unreasonable risk of harm to a person with a disability, or to others.
As the final successful examination is dependent upon being at an International standard all students will be given fair and equal opportunities.
Equilibrium by Elite Ltd t/a Evolution School of Beauty & Massage is committed to equal opportunities for everyone.
HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY It is the intention of the School to comply with all current Health and Safety Legislation now and in the future.
The policy of the School is: -
to establish and maintain a healthy and safe environment and working procedures and practices throughout the School to ensure the observance of all relevant statutory provisions and to promote an active health and safety culture within the organisation as a whole to formulate and implement effective procedures for use in case of fire or other emergency and for evacuation of the School building to introduce effective training in first aid for all nominated staff and to establish procedures in case of accidents to teach health and safety as an integral part of students’ studies rather than an isolated topic f) to develop safety consciousness and responsible attitudes towards safety on the part of all staff and students, via appropriate information, supervision and training programmes
to establish and maintain monitoring processes to measure the effectiveness of this policy This policy refers to all persons employed by the School, all students enrolled on study programmes within the School, all visitors and contractors involved in activities within the School.
This policy will be subject to continuous review regarding changes to the legislation and performance of the School in meeting this policy. Information will be circulated to all staff and students. will have a laminated reference chart in their laundry room
INTERNET ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY Computer, email and internet usage All Students and Staff are expected to use the Internet responsibly and productively. Internet access is limited to job and school-related activities only and personal use is not strictly limited to break times and only Facebook, internet banking and personal webmail can be used during break time. Evolution school reserves the right to remove all personal usage if this is abused or inappropriate content is shared during this use. Related activities include research and educational tasks that may be found via the Internet that would help a student – YouTube is an extremely useful tool for techniques and visual learning and so can be used at any time. All Internet data that is composed, transmitted and/or received by evolution school’s computer systems is considered to belong to evolution school and is recognized as part of its official data. It is therefore subject to disclosure for legal reasons or to other appropriate third parties. All sites and downloads may be monitored and/or blocked by evolution school if they are deemed to be harmful and/or not productive to business. If a student is unsure about what constitutes acceptable Internet usage, then he/she should ask his/ her course tutor for further guidance and clarification. Your Account and usage Internet access at evolution school is controlled through individual accounts and passwords.
Each user of the evolution school system is required to read this Internet policy and sign an Internet use agreement prior to receiving an Internet access account and password.
Appropriate Use Individuals at evolution school are encouraged to use the Internet to further the goals and objectives of evolution school. The types of activities that are encouraged include:
1. Communicating with fellow employees, business partners of Evolution School, and clients within the context of an individual’s assigned responsibilities; 2. Acquiring or sharing information necessary or related to the performance of an individual’s assigned responsibilities; and 3. Participating in educational or professional development activities.
Usage terms and unacceptable usage Unacceptable use of the internet by students includes, but is not limited to: Access to sites that contain obscene, hateful, pornographic, unlawful, violent or otherwise illegal material Sending or posting discriminatory, harassing, or threatening messages or images on the Internet or via evolution school’s email service Using computers to perpetrate any form of fraud, and/or software, film or music piracy Stealing, using, or disclosing someone else's password without authorization Downloading, copying or pirating software and electronic files that are copyrighted or without authorization Sharing confidential material, trade secrets, or proprietary information outside of the organization Hacking into unauthorized websites Sending or posting information that is defamatory to the company, its products/services, colleagues and/or customers Introducing malicious software onto the company network and/or jeopardizing the security of the organization's electronic communications systems Sending or posting chain letters, solicitations, or advertisements not related to business purposes or activities Passing off personal views as representing those of the organization Security For security purposes, Students may not share account or password information with another person and no staff can share the tutor password of the computer to any students or other persons. Internet accounts are to be used only by the assigned user of the account for authorized purposes. Attempting to obtain another user’s account password is strictly prohibited. Users must take all necessary precautions to prevent unauthorized access to Internet services. Disclaimer Evolution school assumes no liability for any direct or indirect damages to any hardware or software arising from the student’s connection to the Internet. Evolution school is not responsible for the accuracy of information found on the Internet and only facilitates the accessing and dissemination of information through its systems. Students are solely responsible for any material that they access and disseminate through the Internet.
COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES We are small team and get to know each other on a very personal level. If you have a concern; please talk to your tutor.
If you have a complaint, this is what you do:
All complaints (students or client) should be brought to the tutor’s attention in the first instance. If your subject tutor cannot resolve the issue, you will be referred to the school manager. If the school manager cannot resolve the issue you must put it in writing within 14 days of the occurrence and send it to the Director. The Director will respond in writing within 14 days. If you are not satisfied with the resolution offered you must reply in writing (within 7 days of receiving the response) outlining what you require as a solution to the issue. It may be necessary to hold a meeting and the complainant will be invited to attend. They may bring a support person. Your complaint will be heard by the total Management Team who will contact you by letter with their response. If you are still not satisfied with the outcome you may contact NZQA Wellington, Ph 04 802 3000 who will act to resolve the matter. They will in the first instance contact the School and then respond directly to you in writing.
RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING Some students will bring with them a wealth of prior training. For those of you who have completed any unit standards or previous related training, please inform us immediately because it may be that you can opt to miss out parts of your course.
To begin this process, make an appointment with the school manager who will take you through the process of evidence collation and practical demonstrations where applicable. Do this as early on as you can as it may mean changes can be made to your personal course schedule straight away.
The main advantage of any unit standards is that they are transportable. In other words, if you have achieved a unit standard at one training establishment and it has been registered with NZQA, should you find it is part of another course of learning that you do, you do not have to redo that unit. You may be asked simply to demonstrate you are still competent in that unit.
In most circumstances we would require a selection of the following evidence, ensuring that all criteria are covered: -
Documented evidence from an employer Documented evidence from a client A theory / practical demonstration Any supporting paperwork/ course notes etc to show coverage of the topic Diplomas / certificates Course content information – academic transcript
Recognition of prior learning is capped at 30% of the course material.
ABOUT HELP AND GUIDANCE What you do need to remember throughout your training is that your tutors have been through the same thing and we do understand the pressures and difficulties of being a student. External pressures can affect your learning and we would like to help you to overcome these obstacles. Should you need extra help or just a bit of time with your tutors, please do not hesitate to let us know.
At any time, any member of staff is available to you should you require even just someone to talk to (referred to as your counsellor). Any advice given will be done so after careful listening to your concern and if we cannot advise you correctly we will put you in touch with a professional who can. You may inform your counsellor of something that you require being kept confidential. This is absolutely fine and will be upheld as long as it will not impact upon any aspect of your training or as long as your counsellor doesn’t feel that you need additional support. If there is something we feel the other staff need to be aware of for health and safety reasons, you need to understand that we will have a legal obligation to pass on the information. We will however discuss this with you first.
A list of useful local experts and contacts is on your noticeboard.
Study skills and relaxation techniques can be covered throughout the course and we will endeavour to make things a little easier for you when we can. However, a bit of pressure is a good thing and by being nervous and concerned shows you are committed to your future.
Special provisions for assessment, school and International examinations For students with recognised and documented learning difficulties – eg dyslexia – the following provisions may apply: Documentation from a specialist must be forwarded to your course tutor within 1 week of the commencement of the course. Reader / writer provisions can be used for all theory assessments and school examinations. This reader must be a 3rd party with no prior training or knowledge of Beauty Therapies or related industry. The school management team will approve the reader. When necessary a member of staff will be present during the reader / writer assessment. For International examination purposes, documentation must be sent to the board within 4 weeks of commencement of the course. The student will be allocated extra time at the discretion of the overseas board. Reader / writer provision does not apply to international practical examinations. Where a student has a diagnosed learning difficulty / disorder and provides evidence of their condition all step will be taken to ensure they are not disadvantage in any throughout the course. Where a tutor recognises a student may have an undiagnosed learning difficulty assistance will be offered. Should changes to an assessment procedure be necessary for an individual student, that student must put their request in writing to the school manager as soon as possible.
TE REO MAORI PROVISIONS FOR ASSESSMENT Where a student wishes to be assessed in Maori a provision exists as follows: The student must advise their course tutor at the commencement of the course. An interpreter / translator from the local iwi will be brought in to translate as far as possible, any assessment material. This will not apply to practical assessments – only theory / oral assessment. Assessments will need to be scheduled in advance to ensure the availability of the translator. This process will be at the student’s costs and will require payment prior to each assessment. This is not covered by any school / course related fees. If this requirement is not specified to the course tutor within the first week of the course commencement, the provision will not apply. This provision is only applicable during school examinations.
