Students warned of unregistered courses

Independent Online 16 December 2012

South Africa’s Department of Higher Education and Training has warned students to be wary of registered private colleges that offer qualifications that do not have an official stamp of approval, writes Leanne Jansen for Independent Online.

Spokesperson Vuyelwa Qinga said there was concern about institutions that secure registration for some programmes, and then “hide behind” this status to offer unregistered courses. The Mercury recently reported on how a private design college in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, was shut down for offering unaccredited programmes. Style Design College said it had found itself without full accreditation for certain programmes because of how “complex” the system was, and inordinate delays in processing applications.

According to the department, the college was granted provisional registration in 2009, and last month the application for full registration was rejected. Felicity Coughlan, director of the Independent Institute of Education, said while there was malpractice in the sector, it was not widespread and it was very easy to pick up – provided students asked the right questions.
Full report on the Independent Online site

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