Frequently asked questions

No. You can meet our entry requirements through our non-academic entry route by providing evidence of general and professional qualifications or professional experience, including membership of professional organisations, which satisfies us that you have the capacity to undertake postgraduate study. Admission is initially on a conditional basis (see Admissions Policy). The academic entry route remains open for applicants who have a degree, including overseas degrees awarded by a recognised overseas university or higher education provider.

Yes. You must provide a Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) that clearly states your study entitlements whilst in Australia. Please note, Governance Institute of Australia is not on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS) and as such cannot accept applicants on a Student Visa.

No, we are not registered to provide FEE-HELP. We have a payment plan option whereby you can spread your student fees over three equal payments (see Student Fees Policy).

Awards study entails seeking admission to a course such as a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma and completing the subjects in the required sequence. The core subjects that make up the Graduate Certificate must be completed before you can progress to the remaining subjects in your chosen pathway in the Graduate Diploma. You must elect which pathway you intend following at the point of admission. If you later decide the alternative pathway is better suited to your career path, due to a change of job for instance, you can request to change your pathway. 

If you only intend studying up to a maximum of two subjects you can do so on a non-award basis, the subjects not contributing to a course. Subjects studied on a non-award basis can later be transferred to an award course, hence the entry requirements for this type of study are the same as those for award study. 

If your aim is to simply gain or refresh your knowledge, and you have no interest in gaining academic credit for the subject, you can study subjects without having to undertake the assessments. 

Yes. If you successfully complete the four core subjects of the Graduate Certificate you can choose to graduate with this qualification. You can later return to complete the requirements for the Graduate Diploma. 

Subject enrolments must be concluded in full, including finalising of applications for admission where applicable, and payment of student fees, on the Friday before the commencement of the semester. Refer to the key dates, timetables and fees page for specific dates.

Information about the courses is available on the Graduate Certificate of Applied Corporate Governance and Risk Management page and the Graduate Diploma of Applied Corporate Governance and Risk Management page. Information about subject content is on the subject outlines page. 

Yes. If you are undertaking an award course you can apply for a leave of absence (LOA) to take a semester off, providing you meet certain eligibility criteria. You must submit a LOA Form by the subject enrolment deadline for the semester. If you are not registered in a subject or on an approved LOA period for each semester of your study, your enrolment in your course will be cancelled. Students are required to make ongoing progress through their course and complete it within the maximum completion times - 4 years for the Graduate Diploma and 3 years for the Graduate Certificate.

No. An extension into the next semester is not an option. If you fail to complete one or more of the mandatory assessment requirements for the subject you will receive the grade 'absent fail', unless there are extenuating circumstances that support an application for special consideration (see Special Consideration Policy). You will need to re-enrol in the subject the following semester and complete all the assessment items. 

Subject materials will be made available in two parts – Modules 1 to 6 will be available two weeks prior to the semester start date, Modules 7 to 12 will be available the day after the census date for the semester. Materials are available on the Online Learning Centre. Please refer to our key dates & fees page for semester dates. Governance Institute has provided access to a printing service for those students who wish to purchase hard copies of the materials once they are available on the Online Learning Centre. 

*Please note you will only receive access to your subjects notes once you have paid for your subject enrolment.

Yes. Applications for provisional advanced standing can be made prior to admission and any advanced standing awarded remains valid for a period of one academic year. Offers not taken up within that period will be considered to be expired. 

No. All students must study 'Corporate Governance', and any student undertaking the Qualifying Program for Chartered Secretary must study 'Corporate Accountability: Meetings and Disclosure' or 'Public Sector Accountability and Transparency'. 

Most of our subjects require you to undertake an examination at the end of semester as part of the overall assessment for the subject. The examination typically is worth 50% of the overall mark, and students are required to meet a 40% threshold in the examination itself to pass the subject, regardless of the total aggregated mark. All examinations are held online during the examination week each semester and all exams are held in the AEST/AEDT time zone. Students located in other time zones must sit their exams at the equivalent time in their location. 

All students who successfully complete the requirements for the award of Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma will be conferred their award in absentia following a meeting of the Education Committee at the end of each semester. Your testamur and transcript will be mailed to you. More information is provided on the course completion and graduation page. Students who are eligible for the award of academic prizes will be invited to an online awards ceremony, which is held once per year, usually in March or April. Prize awardees will be advised of the online ceremony date and time separately prior to the online ceremony.