Information for former students of Gills College Australia Pty Ltd (Gills College, trading as Elite College Australia and/or Sterling Business College 2417/01701G)

Updated statement of regulatory action

13 December 2024

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) has cancelled the qualifications and/or statements of attainment of more than 2,000 former students of Gills College Australia Pty Ltd (Gills College, trading as Elite College Australia and/or Sterling Business College 2417/01701G) as part of its ongoing program of regulatory action.

Gills College was registered to deliver to domestic and international students and was not funded by government to deliver VET qualifications.

An ASQA compliance investigation found it had issued qualifications and statements of attainment without adequate assessment, and did not ensure students had successfully satisfied all requirements prior to issuing VET certification since January 2022.

Given the nature of the issues identified in this matter, and to ensure public safety, ASQA issued notices of intent to cancel qualifications and/or statements of attainment to 3,364 former Gills College students who had an opportunity to respond to ASQA before any decision was made.

Of the 3,364 former students who were sent notices, more than 2000 did not provide a response within the designated timeframe. As a result, ASQA has today cancelled their qualifications and/or statements of attainment.

ASQA received responses from more than 800 former students and is considering these responses and will advise those individuals of an outcome as soon as possible. The affected former students of Gills College collectively hold a variety of qualifications across individual support, early childhood education and care, community services, first aid and automotive.

More than 270 former students still have until 6 January 2025 to provide a response to ASQA where they hold qualifications in business, leadership and management, information and technology, kitchen management, hospitality management, travel and
tourism.

ASQA continues to work collaboratively with other government agencies and state and territory governments and regulators in relation to the impact of this action and other qualification cancellation decisions on former students, as well as any workplaces affected.

ASQA is committed to lifting quality and integrity across the VET sector and the integrity of our qualifications is a primary focus. There is no place for any provider who seeks to undermine the sector or exploit students.

These decisions are part of an ongoing program of regulatory action supported by ASQA’s strengthened capacity to target illegal behaviour and non-genuine providers that threaten the integrity of VET.

Updates and previous regulatory actions at: www.asqa.gov.au
Media contact: media@asqa.gov.au

Former Student Factsheet

Why have I received a Notice of decision to cancel?

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) has cancelled the registration of Gills College Australia Pty Ltd (Gills College, trading as Elite College Australia and/or Sterling Business College 2417/01701G). The cancellation took effect from 21 November 2024 and was published on the National Register.

As a result of the cancellation of Gill College’s registration, ASQA undertook a process to issue notices of intent to cancel qualifications and/or statements of attainment issued by Gill’s College since January 2022.

ASQA issued a Notice of intent to you to cancel your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment on 26 November 2024. You were contacted directly by ASQA only if we had concerns about your specific qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

If you decided to respond to the Notice of Intent, you had to do so within the period specified in the notice, i.e. no later than 7pm (AEDT) 7 days after receiving the written notice dated 26 November 2024 if you had any of the following qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment from Gills College:

AUR30620 Certificate III in Light Vehicle Mechanical Technology
AUR40216 Certificate IV in Automotive Mechanical Diagnosis
CHC30121 Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care
CHC33015 Certificate III in Individual Support
CHC43015 Certificate IV in Ageing Support
CHC43115 Certificate IV in Disability
CHC43315 Certificate IV in Mental Health
CHC50121 Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care
CHC51015 Diploma of Counselling
CHC52015 Diploma of Community Services
CHC53315 Diploma of Mental Health
HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation
HLTAID011 Provide first aid
HLTAID012 Provide First Aid in an education and care setting

What happened if I had the qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment listed above and didn’t provide a response?

ASQA provided all former students an opportunity to respond to the notice of intent. As you have decided not to respond, ASQA has cancelled your relevant qualification(s) and or statement(s) of attainment. ASQA has also provided you a Notice of the decision to cancel via email.

Can I provide a response after the period specified in the notice?

If you had any of the qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment listed above and did not respond by the due date, ASQA will not consider any responses after the due date and has cancelled your qualification.

What evidence did ASQA ask for to consider?

ASQA required former students to submit information and/or evidence that you undertook valid training and assessment and could demonstrate achieving the learning outcomes or competencies required.

Your response and evidence was required to:

Demonstrate that Gills College Pty Ltd provided you with appropriate training and/or assessment; and
Responses must have been supported by evidence as outlined in the table below:

Relevant evidence	Evidence that, on its own, will not be sufficient in this decision
Documents related to your training and assessment with Gills College. For example: completed assessment tasks assessment feedback marked assignments evidence of completing work placements an outline of the period of their enrolment and what training and assessment and/or work placement occurred during that period subject guides or timetable Evidence of current related work/other relevant training: letters of support from current or recent employers (within last 12 months) VET qualifications or Statements of attainment issued by another RTO in a similar or same field higher education qualifications issued in Australia in a similar or same field evidence that overseas qualifications in a similar or same field have been assessed as equivalent to Australian qualifications by another RTO or organisation.	written statements which describe your skills and experience proof of employment in industry letters of support from employers qualifications or statements of attainment from another education provider.

Relevant evidence

Evidence that, on its own, will not be sufficient in this decision

Documents related to your training and assessment with Gills College. For example:

completed assessment tasks
assessment feedback
marked assignments
evidence of completing work placements
an outline of the period of their enrolment and what training and assessment and/or work placement occurred during that period
subject guides or timetable

Evidence of current related work/other relevant training:

letters of support from current or recent employers (within last 12 months)
VET qualifications or Statements of attainment issued by another RTO in a similar or same field
higher education qualifications issued in Australia in a similar or same field
evidence that overseas qualifications in a similar or same field have been assessed as equivalent to Australian qualifications by another RTO or organisation.

written statements which describe your skills and experience
proof of employment in industry
letters of support from employers
qualifications or statements of attainment from another education provider.

Who made the decision?

The decision was made by the Chief Executive Officer of ASQA in her capacity as the Regulator.

When does the decision take effect?

This decision takes effect on 7 days after the date of your letter.

Will the decision be made public?

In accordance with the requirements of section 216(1)(a)(vi) of the NVR Act, ASQA will publish this decision. However, ASQA will not include your personal details in the publication.

What if I disagree with ASQA’s decision to cancel my qualification?

You have the right to have the decision reviewed. As this decision was made by the Regulator, you cannot apply to ASQA to reconsider the decision. You may apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal (the ART) (formerly the Administrative Appeals Tribunal) for a review of the decision. The ART is an independent review authority that has the power to affirm, vary, or set aside ASQA’s decisions.
More information on the review process can be found on the ART website (https://www.art.gov.au/.)

What do I need to do next?

If you received a Notice of decision to cancel, you are now required to return your qualification(s) and/or statements of attainment(s) to ASQA at this address:

Attention: Qualification Cancellations
Australian Skills Quality Authority
GPO Box 9928
BRISBANE QLD 4001

The documents must be returned to ASQA within 7 days of the date of this notice. You may incur a penalty if you do not comply.

If you received your certificates in a digital format from Gills College, you must return them to ASQA by email: gillsstudents@asqa.gov.au

If you continue to use your qualification(s) and/or statements of attainment(s) ASQA may take further action and penalties apply.

ASQA will notify the Office of the Student Identifiers Registrar. They manage the register that holds each individual’s Unique Student Identifier (USI) Record.

Why didn’t I receive a Notice of decision to cancel?

If you have any of the qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment listed above and provided a response, ASQA has received your response and is considering the information and/or evidence that you undertook valid training and assessment and could demonstrate achieving the learning outcomes or competencies required.

What happens next?

ASQA will notify you of the outcome of its decision and provide you with information on the next steps.

What happens if I have other qualification(s) from Gills College?

If you have any of the qualifications listed below and you decide to respond to the Notice of Intent, you must do within the period specified in the notice, i.e. no later than 7pm (AEDT) 6 January 2025:

BSB30120 Certificate III in Business
BSB40120 Certificate IV in Business
BSB40320 Certificate IV in Entrepreneurship and New Business
BSB40520 Certificate IV in Leadership and Management
BSB50120 Diploma of Business
BSB50420 Diploma of Leadership and Management
BSB60120 Advanced Diploma of Business
BSB60420 Advanced Diploma of Leadership and Management
BSB80120 Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning)
CUA40720 Certificate IV in Design
ICT40120 Certificate IV in Information Technology
ICT50220 Diploma of Information Technology
ICT60220 Advanced Diploma of Information Technology
SIT30222 Certificate III in Travel
SIT30821 Certificate III in Commercial Cookery
SIT40521 Certificate IV in Kitchen Management
SIT50116 Diploma of Travel and Tourism Management
SIT50422 Diploma of Hospitality Management

Your Notice also specifies the due date of your response to ASQA.

ASQA will consider your response before it makes a decision on whether or not to cancel your qualification(s).

What happens if I don’t provide a response?

If you decide not to respond to the Notice of Intent, ASQA will cancel your relevant qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment. ASQA will provide you a notice of its cancellation decision via email.

What happens if I provide a response after the period specified in the notice?

If you do not respond by the due date, ASQA may cancel your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

What options do I have to get appropriate qualifications?

We recommend searching for a registered training provider or training course on Your Career. Your Career is Australia's directory of training. It includes information on training in Australia for school leavers, students, apprentices, and employers.

When choosing a training or education provider, it is important to consider whether the provider and the course will meet your needs and expectations. Our Choosing a course and provider section includes a consumer checklist with important questions to ask a potential provider.

You could undertake a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assessment with another provider. RPL may be based on evidence collected through formal, non-formal and informal learning to determine the extent to which a person has achieved the required learning and/or competency outcomes to be awarded a unit of credit; this is often matched with ‘gap’ training, to meet the full competency requirements of a unit or course.

Formal learning, as the term relates to RPL, may mean units of credit which are related, but not equivalent to, the credit being sought, or credits which are no longer current.

Non-formal learning refers to learning, which is structured and focused, but which is delivered outside the Australian Qualifications Framework; for example, seminars, continuous professional development activities, and non-accredited training.

Informal learning refers to learning which is gained without syllabus or curriculum without any formal or non-formal direction – in the vocational sector this often relates to skills acquired through the workplace, which have not been directed by an instructor or structured to lead to a recognised outcome.

You can provide a variety of documentation. This includes, but is not limited to:

records of previously completed training
assessment items
assessment records and/or
declarations from a student’s employer.

You can also speak with your employer about training opportunities.

Am I entitled to a credit transfer?

As your qualification(s) and/or statements of attainment has been cancelled, you will not be able to seek a credit transfer.

I am an overseas student with a Gills College qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment, will this affect my visa?

The first step is to use the link in the Notice to provide information and evidence. You can also access the response form on ASQA’s website. It is important you reply to the Notice and within the specified period.

If you used the qualification that you have now received a Notice as part of your student visa application process, you should consider telling your current training provider that you are engaging with ASQA in this process if your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment:

is/are required for you to undertake the current or a future course
was/were presented to your training provider for you to be issued a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE).

Can I get a refund on the cost of getting my qualification with Gills College?

There are a number of consumer protection agencies that may be able to assist.

Australian Capital Territory: Access Canberra

New South Wales: NSW Fair Trading

Northern Territory: NT Consumer Affairs

Queensland: Office of Fair Trading Queensland

South Australia: SA Office of Consumer and Business Services (CBS)

Tasmania: Tasmania Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)

Victoria: Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV)

Western Australia: WA Consumer Protection - Department Of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has advice for Problem with a product or service you bought | ACCC on their website.

If you have a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loans debt that you believe you should not have, you can VET student loan complaints | Commonwealth Ombudsman for information and advice, or phone 1300 362 072.

If you are an overseas student, then you are able to contact the Overseas student complaints | Commonwealth Ombudsman for assistance.

I am not sure I have the necessary Recognised Prior Learning (RPL) to obtain the qualification, what can I do?

If you have now gained the relevant experience in industry you could undertake an RPL assessment with another RTO.

Who can I call for help?

Call ASQA on 1300 701 801 (dial +61 3 9613 3910 from outside Australia).

If you are experiencing distress help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anywhere in Australia. If you need help now, call:

Lifeline – 13 11 14
Beyond Blue – 1300 224 636.