Jones and Secretary, Department of Education

This matter concerned an application by Mr Evan Jones for a review of the University of Queensland's decision to refuse his application for a re-crediting of his FEE-HELP balance for a unit of study. Mr Jones had enrolled in 'Strategic Human Resources Management' and subsequently withdrew after the census date, having commenced an overseas secondment that was extended. The University had declined his application for remission of the unit fee, a decision that was affirmed on internal review.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether "special circumstances" applied to Mr Jones's situation, as defined by section 104-30(1) of the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (Cth), which is a prerequisite for the re-crediting of a FEE-HELP balance under section 104-25(1). Specifically, the core issue was whether the circumstances preventing Mr Jones from completing the unit, namely his overseas secondment and its extension, were beyond his control.

The Tribunal considered the definition of "beyond control" as outlined in the Administration Guidelines, which requires a situation not to be due to the person's action or inaction and for which they are not responsible. While acknowledging that the overseas secondment was an uncommon situation and that it made completion of the unit impracticable, the Tribunal found that the applicant had not discharged the onus of proving that the secondment and its extension were beyond his control. The documentary evidence, including a letter from his employer highlighting the professional development opportunity, did not support his assertion that he would have lost his employment had he declined the secondment or its extension.

Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the applicant's secondment or its extension were beyond his personal control. As such, the Tribunal could not find that special circumstances applied, and therefore affirmed the University's decision.