Class action launched as another unaccredited degree revealed
A leading private university has been accused of misleading and deceptive conduct in a Supreme Court class action by students who were shocked to discover their degrees were not professionally accredited.
A class action lawsuit has been launched against The International College of Management Sydney (ICMS) by former students who claim their degrees were not professionally accredited, despite promotional material stating otherwise. The lawsuit is being pursued by Tessa Coddington, who incurred a $45,000 student debt for her three-year Bachelor of Property (Management, Valuation and Development) degree, only to discover it was never accredited with the Australian Property Institute (API).
Ms Coddington, along with other students, believe the college is misleading and deceptive in its advertising, causing financial strain and hindering their career prospects. ICMS has acknowledged an administrative oversight and removed the inaccurate statement from its website, but maintains that the degree was not required to have professional accreditation to work as a property valuer in NSW.
The students are seeking compensation for their distress, HECS debts, and additional study costs. ICMS is defending the class action and believes its degree is recognised by the Australian Valuers Institute. This is not the first time a college has faced such a lawsuit; last year, ABC News revealed similar class actions against other universities due to accreditation issues.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
