DISPUTE RESOLUTION POLICY

Student Complaints

Kings International Business School believes that it is in everyone's interests to resolve complaints as quickly as possible, as close to the source of the problem as possible. The complaints procedures described below have been drawn up with these aims in mind:

If you have cause for complaint about any aspect of your programme, including:

• The way in which a course or programme is taught or assessed;
• the learning support available;
• misleading information in prospectus or in advertising or promotional material;
• any deficiencies in the School's service or performance; or
• Complaints arising from a disability, sexual and/or racial harassment

If you are uncertain who is responsible for the matter about which you are complaining, or if you remain dissatisfied after having discussed it with them, you should take the matter up with one of the following:

• Your Head of the Department
• Your Student Welfare In-Charge

The individual whom you approach will discuss your complaint with you, assess the situation, take advice from other officers where necessary, and take one of the following courses of action:

• Resolve the problem by talking it through with you;
• Resolve the problem by speaking directly to the person responsible.

If the person approached cannot resolve the problem to your satisfaction, it will be referred to a review committee appointed the Principal/CEO. It will be treated at this point as a formal complaint, and you will be asked to complete a Complaint Form. The CEO/Principal will investigate and contact the concerned parties or person and resolve the complaint. A written record will be kept of the complaint and its outcome will be monitored. You will be told the outcome of your complaint. You have the right to be heard in person at each stage of the complaint procedure.

Please be assured that all complaints and grievances forwarded will be treated with the strictest confidence.

Upon receipt of a complaint or grievance, we will observe the following procedures:

• Respond to you within two (2) working days, including a planned resolution time frame.
• Initiate our investigation and conduct interviews for verification if necessary
• Review committee will revert with a decision within 7 working days
• You will receive a formal resolution within (3-14) working days from the date of receipt of grievance/complaint.
• For complaints that relate to external institutions/bodies, the school will try to resolve the complaint or grievance within a maximum of twenty-one (21) working days.

Students shall maintain a standard of conduct, which is not harmful to the work, good order, or good name of the School.

In the event that the Student and Kings International Business School are unable to resolve a dispute, the Student and the PEI shall refer the dispute to the Singapore Mediation Centre (SMC) or Singapore Institute of Arbitrators (SIArb) through the CPE Student Services Centre for mediation prior to instituting any legal action or proceedings. The Student and Kings International Business School hereby agree to such procedures and to pay such fees as the Singapore Mediation Centre may prescribe from time to time for the purpose of resolving their dispute. (See Figure 1 – Student Feedback / Grievance / Redress Process).

Types of disputes which can be referred to the CPE Mediation - Arbitration Scheme

Disputes which can be referred to the CPE Mediation - Arbitration Scheme include unsatisfactory services provided by PEIs, fee refunds, disciplinary issues and quality of courses and teachers.

If you are unsure if your complaint is suitable for dispute resolution, you can approach the SSC where our officers would be able to advise you.

Procedure for Dispute Resolution

If you wish to initiate the dispute resolution process, you will be required to fill up an application form at the SSC, stating the nature of your dispute. The application form will then be sent to SMC, who will contact you and the school within 7 working days for an appropriate date to hold the mediation session.

Before the day of mediation, the parties involved will exchange through the SMC a concise summary of the case, as well as copies of relevant documents referred to in the summary that the parties wish to rely on during mediation.

At the end of Day 1 of mediation, if the parties are able to arrive at an agreement, the mediator will draw up a settlement agreement and close the case. However if there is no settlement, you can decide if you wish to proceed to the arbitration stage, which is a paper-based review of the dispute. The arbitrator may call for a hearing if he deems it to be necessary.

You will be required to submit a request to SIArb to commence arbitration, and within 14 working days of receiving the request, the PEI will submit to SIArb their defence. You have another 14 working days to submit your reply to SIArb upon receiving the PEI's defence.

For a documents-only arbitration, the arbitrator will publish his arbitral award within 60 days from the commencement of the arbitration, while if a hearing was held, the arbitrator will publish his award within 90 days from the commencement of the arbitration.

Last Updated on 12 April 2011

[Top]