University of Newcastle settles $7.55m unaccredited degree case
The University of Newcastle paid $7.55 million to settle a lawsuit. More than 160 students sued over an unaccredited engineering degree.
The University of Newcastle settled a lawsuit with more than 160 former students over a Bachelor of Medical Engineering degree. The degree lacked professional accreditation.
Students who enrolled in 2018 and 2019 were told the degree was accredited with Engineers Australia. After more than a year, they discovered it was not.
To graduate with a recognised qualification, they had to do more study or switch courses entirely. This delayed their entry to the workforce.
Lead plaintiff Andreas Sklavos said the settlement ended years of stress and gave him back his life. The university has since obtained accreditation for the degree.
It applies retroactively to students who started from 2020 onwards.
- $7.55 million
- Settlement amount
- More than 160
- Students affected
- 2018 and 2019
- Years of false claims
- July 2019
- Discovery date
Why it mattersStudents recover costs for wasted study. The settlement shows universities can be held accountable for accreditation claims.
AustraliaAustralian university students gain proof that false accreditation claims lead to payouts; always check a degree's accreditation before enrolling.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
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