Terms and conditions

Registration and payment

• Students must register online through the GetSmarter website.
• The course fees can be paid by credit card, EFT or direct deposit.
• GetSmarter reserves the right to remove students from the course if they have not made their payments by the dates specified.
• Please note that unsettled fees or accounts of any nature owed to the University of Cape Town will result in a student being formally removed from the GetSmarter course they are attending. Any payments made to GetSmarter towards the course will be refunded upon your removal.
  
• Students will be notified by SMS and email when payments are due to GetSmarter.
• University of Cape Town courses run in conjunction with GetSmarter do not attract VAT on course fees. Course fees are collected on behalf of the University of Cape Town, which as a higher education institution is VAT exempt. Courses presented in conjunction with Random House Struik and @home will still include VAT due to the fact that course fees are not collected on behalf of Random House Struik and @home and that GetSmarter as a company is still a VAT vendor. 

Cancellations

• Registrations cancelled in writing before the closing date of registrations will qualify for a refund of the payment made, but will be liable for a 10% cancellation fee (incl. VAT) if applicable.
• Registrations may not be cancelled after the closing date of registrations and students will be liable for the full course fee.
• GetSmarter reserves the right to cancel the course if there is insufficient demand. In this case, students will receive a full refund.

Deferred registration

• A student may request in writing that their participation be deferred to the next scheduled presentation of the course. This request may be made before module 3 is made available to the students in the third week of the course.
• Students who want to defer will need to pay a rollover fee of 50% (incl. VAT) of the course fee if applicable.
• Please note that no credits will be awarded for assignments completed up until the time of deferral.
• GetSmarter does not guarantee that future presentations will be held. Any student who chooses to delay their participation in the course does so at their own risk.

Course participation

• The course is presented in English and all courseware that is required for assessment purposes should be written by students in English. This includes posts made on the discussion forum.
• GetSmarter is not responsible for technical support for any external websites. Courses that require students to use external websites do so to achieve the best learning outcomes for the students. Students are required to contact the support services of the relevant external websites themselves.
• For most GetSmarter courses, interactive videos are provided in each module. These videos act as tutorials for the topics covered in that module and are not compulsory. Students will need Adobe Flash Player installed to view the video lectures available in each module. Please note that if students are using a slower internet connection, attempting to view these videos may be troublesome. Students will not be penalised if they cannot watch the videos.
• Students will only have access to the Course Instructor on the discussion forums. Course Instructors will not be available for queries by telephone or email.
• Your Course Coordinator will guide you through the course. He or she will send you SMS and email notifications every week to encourage you to stay on track with your learning, and also to provide important course reminders and information.
• The GetSmarter Learning website is not fully compatible with mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets. In order to access and participate effectively on the Learning website, students must have access to a computer.
  

Course assessment

The following assessment criteria apply to the majority of GetSmarter courses.

• A certificate of competence is awarded to students who achieve a mark of 50% or higher.
• Every module includes an assignment that counts a percentage towards the final course mark. The Course Instructor is required to mark students assignments and an allocated time period is given within which this marking needs to be completed. During this time, students will be required to submit further assignments. Any queries related to a student’s previous assignment that will affect the submission of the student’s next assignment should be asked on the module discussion forum.
• 5% of the final course mark is allocated to student activity in the discussion forums. Each module has its own discussion forum and you are expected to participate in as many of these forums as possible. The mark students receive will be dependant on how many posts they have made as well as how many other posts they have read through.

Capitec Bank

• If a student would like to register for a course by choosing the Capitec Loan payment option, it is the responsibility of the student to submit the application to Capitec Bank and get the relevant approval documents before registering for the course.
• Once the Capitec loan is approved, students are not automatically registered for the course. They still need to complete the GetSmarter online registration form.
• Should a student select the Capitec Loan payment option without having applied or received loan approval from Capitec Bank, GetSmarter is under no obligation to allow the student to start the course and suspension procedures may occur.
• If the Capitec Loan payment option is chosen, the full course fee will apply. No discounts can be used for the Capitec Loan payment option.
• Once GetSmarter has received payment for the course fees from Capitec Bank on behalf of a student, no cancellations will be allowed.
• A student who is unable to complete the course may request in writing that their participation be deferred to the next scheduled presentation of the course. This request may be made before module 3 is made available to the students in the third week of the course. A 10% administration fee and any increase in course fees will be payable before the closing date of registrations for the next presentation.
• Deferral does not affect the repayment of your Capitec loan.
• Please note that no credits will be awarded for assignments completed up until the time of deferral.
• GetSmarter does not guarantee that future presentations will be held. Any student who chooses to delay their participation in the course does so at their own risk.