• Section 1 - Policy Statement
• Section 2 - Policy Scope
• Section 3 - Precursor Institutions
• Section 4 - Australian Government requirements
• Section 5 - Production
• Section 6 - Academic Documents
• Section 7 - Testamurs
• Testamurs for Honorary Awards
• Reissue of Testamurs
• Replacement of Testamur
• Section 8 - Academic Transcript
• Content
• Issuance
• Content
• Issuance
• Replacement
• Section 10 - Roles and Responsibilities
• Changes to Format of Academic Documents
• Section 11 - Treatment of academic documentation in cases of Rescission or Revocation of an Award
• Section 12 - Fees
• Section 13 - Recordkeeping
• Section 14 - Revisions Made to This Policy
• Section 15 - Associated Information

Section 1 - Policy Statement

(1) This Policy defines the requirements and responsibilities for the issuing of official and certified academic documents at Australian Catholic University (ACU), and the reissuing and replacement of such documents. It ensures that all academic documents provided to current, graduating and former students of ACU are accurately recorded, authenticated, verifiable and secure.

Section 2 - Policy Scope

(2) This Policy applies university wide.

(3) This Policy applies to Higher Education qualifications as defined in the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) and to non-award courses comprising of units drawn from approved undergradute and postgraduate coursework programs.

(4) The academic documents described in this Policy meet the requirements of relevant Australian Government legislation, the Constitution of Australian Catholic University Limited and other University statutes, regulations and policies and include:

1. Testamurs
2. Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement (AHEGS)
3. Academic Transcripts

Section 3 - Precursor Institutions

(5) ACU was established on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamation of four Catholic tertiary institutions in eastern Australia, namely:

1. Catholic College of Education Sydney in New South Wales
2. Institute of Catholic Education in Victoria
3. McAuley College of Queensland
4. Signadou College of Education in the Australian Capital Territory.

(6) Academic documents issued prior to 1 January 1991 will be reproduced in accordance with this Policy where academic records are available.

Section 4 - Australian Government requirements

(7) All ACU academic documents must comply with the requirements of the AQF Qualifications Issuance Policy, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021 and the Guidelines for the Presentation of Australian Higher Education Graduation Statements - Department of Education, Australian Government.

Section 5 - Production

(8) All ACU academic documents will be:

1. Issued with security features;
2. printed on official ACU stationery, where applicable;
3. issued in English (Roman) character set with standard English punctuation marks;
4. issued in English language only;
5. printed in braille if requested (with the exception of the Testamur);
6. identified as AQF documents, if applicable;
7. signed by delegated officers only.
8. Once issued, recorded on the student file or on a central document repository.

Section 6 - Academic Documents

(9) All graduates who have completed an ACU program that leads to the award of an AQF qualification will receive academic documents.

(10) Prior to 2018, graduates were issued academic documents in printed format only.

(11) From 2018, documents are issued to new graduates digitally through the My eQuals platform.

(12) Upon course completion graduands will receive a digital copy of their academic transcript (record of results) via the My eQuals platform.

(13) On conferral of the award, graduates will receive the following academic documents via the My eQuals platform:

1. a testamur; and
2. a graduation statement (AHEGS)

(14) A hard copy testamur will also be issued after conferral of the award.

(15) Students who have completed an ACU program that does not lead to the award of an AQF qualification but is comprised of units drawn from approved undergraduate and postgraduate coursework programs are entitled to receive the following academic documents on completion of the qualification:

1. A hard copy certificate of completion, where applicable: and
2. A digital copy of the transcript via the My eQuals platform.

(16) Incoming study abroad and exchange students will have a hardcopy transcript sent to their home institution upon completion of study abroad/exchange study.

(17) Where applicable, a replacement hard copy testamur or additional copies of other academic documents may be issued on payment of the relevant fee in accordance with the Academic Documents Procedure.

(18) Digital documents may be reissued free of charge where an error has been identified.

Section 7 - Testamurs

(19)  The ACU testamur is an official document bearing the Seal of the University stating that the student has successfully completed the award named on the testamur. The testamur includes:

1. Ceremonial Crest;
2. student’s full name as recorded on their student record at the time of conferral;
3. award title;
4. subsidiary component of the qualification; such as level of honours, majors or specialisations;
5. signatures of relevant University officers;
6. date of conferral;
7. ACU Seal;
8. ACU security features for a testamur; and
9. an annotation where parts of the course were conducted in a language other than English, except for the use of another language to develop proficiency in that language.

Testamurs for Honorary Awards

(20) The testamur for an honorary award is an official document imprinted with the Seal of the University. The format for the testamur includes:

1. Ceremonial Crest;
2. Award recipients full name;
3. award title;
4. unambiguous identification of the award as an honorary qualification;
5. signatures of relevant University officers;
6. date of conferral;
7. ACU Seal; and
8. ACU security features for an honorary testamur.

Reissue of Testamurs

(21) A new testamur will be issued by the University where:

1. an award has been rescinded or relinquished and a different award conferred; or
2. in cases of name change as a result of gender reassignment or witness protection.

Replacement of Testamur

(22) A replacement testamur with annotation can be issued by the University for a fee, in cases where the original testamur has been:

1. damaged;
2. lost, stolen or destroyed; or
3. where a recipient’s name has been changed through a verifiable legal process.

(23) The process for reissue and/or replacement of testamurs is detailed in Section 2 of the Academic Documents Procedure.

Section 8 - Academic Transcript

Content

(24) The academic transcript is the chronological record of a student’s study and results at ACU. The academic transcript includes:

1. the student’s full name and Student ID as recorded on their official student record;
2. details of all courses and units undertaken;
3. details of any credit granted through recognition of prior learning;
4. the results for each unit undertaken and, if applicable, Grade Point Average (GPA) for the course overall;
5. ACU grading scheme;
6. all award titles, including honours, specialisations and/or majors;
7. details of any parts of the course that were conducted in a language other than English, except for the use of another language to develop proficiency in that language;
8. the thesis title for a research higher degree;
9. the student’s degree status (e.g. course complete, transferred, withdrawn, inactive or terminated);
10. the date of award completion (if applicable);
11. the date of award conferral (if applicable);
12. the date of award relinquishment (if applicable);
13. the date of issue; and
14. ACU security features for an academic transcript.

Issuance

(25) The process for issuing academic transcripts is detailed in clauses (14) to (19) of the Academic Documents Procedure.

Section 9 -   Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement (AHEGS)

Content

(26) The AHEGS must comply with the Australian Government requirements and include the following:

1. Ceremonial Crest and the AHEGS logo;
2. Compulsory explanatory paragraph from the Australian Government;
3. Certification containing date and signature of designated officer on first page of AHEGS;
4. AQF logo for AQF compliant qualifications;
5. Student’s full name and Student ID as recorded on their official student record;
6. Name of the award, including any specialisations, a description of the award and pathway to further study and course accreditation;
7. Description of ACU and details of its inclusion on the TEQSA National Register of Higher Education Providers and CRICOS registration number;
8. Graduate’s academic achievements, including units of study, grades and credit points;
9. Details of Medals or Executive Deans Awards for Academic Excellence  or other awards for academic excellence;
10. Description of the Australian higher education system;
11. ACU grading scheme; and
12. ACU security features for an AHEGS.

Issuance

(27) The AHEGS is available to students who completed their course from Semester 1 2009 onwards.

(28) A digital copy of the AHEGS is provided to students via the My eQuals platform following award conferral.

(29) A hard copy AHEGS can be provided upon application for a prescribed fee.

Replacement

(30) Where an error has been made in the production of an AHEGS, a replacement will be provided free of charge.

Section 10 - Roles and Responsibilities

(31) The Academic Registrar is responsible for the development, compliance, monitoring and review of academic documents, including the style, format and the security measures incorporated in their production.

(32) It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that their personal and contact details recorded in the student management system are up to date.

Changes to Format of Academic Documents

Testamur

(33) Any changes to the testamur format must be approved by Senate on the recommendation of the Academic Board.

Academic Transcript

(34) Changes to the academic transcript format must be approved by the Academic Registrar.

AHEGS

(35) The Academic Registrar has the authority to make changes to the AHEGS format within the requirements specified by the Australian Government.

Section 11 - Treatment of academic documentation in cases of Rescission or Revocation of an Award

(36) In cases where academic documents have been issued and where it has been confirmed that an award was wrongly conferred, either through administrative error or based on provision of fraudulent or misleading information, ACU may rescind or revoke the award in accordance with the Academic Regulations and the Rescission, Revocation or Relinquishment of an Award Procedure.

(37) In such cases, all hard copy academic documents relating to the rescinded or revoked award must be returned to ACU. Digital documents will be revoked via the My eQuals platform.

Section 12 - Fees

(38) Fees and charges for replacement/hard copy academic documents will be determined on an annual basis by the Chief Operating Officer on the advice of the Academic Registrar, and will be published via the University website.

Section 13 - Recordkeeping

(39) All records are held in accordance with the Records and Archive Management Policy and the relevant Australian Government and State records acts.

(40) Requests for issue of academic transcripts are logged and held in the student management system.

(41) AHEGS records are held by Graduations and Protocol in the student management system.

(42) Records of any replacement testamurs issued are held by Graduations and Protocol.

Section 14 - Revisions Made to This Policy

(43) The revision table includes revisions up until this document was migrated into the current policy platform. Any later changes will show in the Status and Details tab.

Section 15 - Associated Information

(44) For related legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines and any supporting resources please refer to the Associated Information tab.