New Zealand Vice Chancellors' Committee 'trading as' "Universities New Zealand"

K Roe (Account suspended) made this Official Information request to Ministry of Education

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From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Ministry of Education,

The position of Chief Executive (CE) of the New Zealand Vice Chancellors' Committee (NZVCC) 'trading as' Universities New Zealand (UNZ) is a Government job.

1) Was the job publically advertised (or was it supplied to an individual by invitation)? If it was publically advertised, where was it publically advertised?

2) What is the job description associated with the role? The job description provided to applicants and if there have been substantive changes to that one such that the present job description is substantively different.

3) What is the pay associated with the position? I am interested to know the starting salary of the present occupant of that role and how much is associated with the role now, in 2021.

Yours faithfully,

K Roe

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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education


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From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Ministry of Education,

Apologies,

When I asked about remuneration I mean to include ALL remuneration and not merely the $$$.00

- Flights / transportation.
- Accommodation
- Food (caterers, restaurants)
- 'Entertainment'

ETC

Yours faithfully,

K Roe

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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education


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Dear K Roe

 

Thank you for your request for information below. The Ministry will
consider and respond to your request in accordance with the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act).

 

The Act allows up to 20 working days for a response, making 8 June 2021
the latest date for our response to you. If more than 20 working days are
needed due to the potential workload involved in answering your request,
we will notify you accordingly.

 

Please note, the Ministry may publicly release on our website the response
to your request five days after you have received it. Any personal
information will be removed.

 

In the interim, if you have any questions about your request, please email
[1][email address].

 

Ngā mihi

Enquiries National Team | Ministry of Education | IB

33 Bowen Street, Wellington

 

[2]education.govt.nz

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outcomes
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-----Original Message-----

From: K Roe <[4][FOI #15418 email]>

Sent: Monday, 10 May 2021 10:52 AM

To: Enquiries National <[5][Ministry of Education request email]>

Subject: [BULK] Official Information request - New Zealand Vice
Chancellors' Committee 'trading as' "Universities New Zealand"

 

Dear Ministry of Education,

 

The position of Chief Executive (CE) of the New Zealand Vice Chancellors'
Committee (NZVCC) 'trading as' Universities New Zealand (UNZ) is a
Government job.

 

1)   Was the job publically advertised (or was it supplied to an
individual by invitation)?  If it was publically advertised, where was it
publically advertised?

 

2)  What is the job description associated with the role?  The job
description provided to applicants and if there have been substantive
changes to that one such that the present job description is substantively
different.

 

3)  What is the pay associated with the position?  I am interested to know
the starting salary of the present occupant of that role and how much is
associated with the role now, in 2021.

 

Yours faithfully,

 

K Roe

 

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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education


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Kia ora K Roe

 

Please note the attached transfer letter.

 

Kind regards

 

Enquiries National Team | Ministry of Education | AG

[1]education.govt.nz

We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent
outcomes
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ōna huanga
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email and attachments is prohibited. If you have received this email in
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email and attachments. The Ministry of Education accepts no
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From: Contact


Attachment Execuitve Director Position Description June 2013.pdf
159K Download View as HTML


Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act.  Your
request was transferred to Universities New Zealand by the Ministry of
Education.

 

You asked:

The position of Chief Executive (CE) of the New Zealand Vice Chancellors'
Committee (NZVCC) 'trading as' Universities New Zealand (UNZ) is a
Government job.

1)   Was the job publically advertised (or was it supplied to an
individual by invitation)?  If it was publically advertised, where was it
publically advertised?

2)  What is the job description associated with the role?  The job
description provided to applicants and if there have been substantive
changes to that one such that the present job description is substantively
different.

3)  What is the pay associated with the position?  I am interested to know
the starting salary of the present occupant of that role and how much is
associated with the role now, in 2021.

 

In response to your questions, our records show;

o The current Chief Executive of Universities New Zealand has held the
role since the start of 2014 following a publicly advertised
recruitment process carried out in the middle of 2013.  As this was
more than seven years ago, we do not have specific information on
where advertisements were placed, but the recruitment was done through
recruitment agency; Jo Fisher Executive Search.
o The June 2013 position description is attached.  There is no more
recent job description.
o The position has a total remuneration salary range of $219,700 to
$284,400.  Other than a mobile phone, there are no additional benefits
(car, accommodation, food, etc) on top of salary.

 

 

 

Jackie Bailey

Finance & Office Manager

Universities New Zealand - Te Pōkai Tara

Level 9, 142 Lambton Quay, PO Box 11915, Wellington 6142
T +64 4 381 8502 | M 022 629 3308 | W [1]www.universitiesnz.ac.nz

 

Universities NZ is the peak body for New Zealand’s eight universities.  It
is also known as the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors’ Committee

 

Disclaimer: This email, including any attachments, is confidential. If you
have received it in error, please notify the sender via return email and
delete the original.

 

References

Visible links
1. http://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/

Link to this

From: Jackie Bailey


Attachment Execuitve Director Position Description June 2013.pdf
159K Download View as HTML


 

Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act.  Your
request was transferred to Universities New Zealand by the Ministry of
Education.

 

You asked:

The position of Chief Executive (CE) of the New Zealand Vice Chancellors'
Committee (NZVCC) 'trading as' Universities New Zealand (UNZ) is a
Government job.

1)   Was the job publically advertised (or was it supplied to an
individual by invitation)?  If it was publically advertised, where was it
publically advertised?

2)  What is the job description associated with the role?  The job
description provided to applicants and if there have been substantive
changes to that one such that the present job description is substantively
different.

3)  What is the pay associated with the position?  I am interested to know
the starting salary of the present occupant of that role and how much is
associated with the role now, in 2021.

 

In response to your questions, our records show;

o The current Chief Executive of Universities New Zealand has held the
role since the start of 2014 following a publicly advertised
recruitment process carried out in the middle of 2013.  As this was
more than seven years ago, we do not have specific information on
where advertisements were placed, but the recruitment was done through
recruitment agency; Jo Fisher Executive Search.
o The June 2013 position description is attached.  There is no more
recent job description.
o The position has a total remuneration salary range of $219,700 to
$284,400.  Other than a mobile phone, there are no additional benefits
(car, accommodation, food, etc) on top of salary.

 

 

 

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

Thanks for a timely reply, I appreciate that.

(1) I am wondering where these jobs (CE jobs for the government) are advertised and I am wondering how to obtain application forms so as to apply for these jobs. Do I need to pay a fee to a recruitment agency or something like that for them to supply an application to enrol. I mean an application to apply?

(2) Please can the current CE inform me how many complaints of serious wrong-doing he has had for each year he has been in the job. I would like to know the number of complaints by studnets and the number of complaints by employees (or former employees).

(3) Please can the current CE inform me how many of those complaints were processed in accordance with the NZVCC policy. That is to say (more particularly) how many of the staff complaints were presented to a meeting of the Vice Chancellors and how many of the studnet complants were forwarded to police for prosecution?

Kelly Roe

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

$284,00.00

That's $100,000 for Chris Whelan and $184,000 for post-doctoral fellows.
Say, $184,000 / 3 = $61,000 (roughly) for three post-doctoral fellows or junior lecturing positions.

Or that's $100,000 for Chris Whelan and $184,000 for doctoral scholarships.
Say, $184,000 / 6 = $30,000 (roughly) for six doctoral scholarships. That's for 6 doctoral theses (up to 100,000 words).

Or that's $100,000 for Chris Whelan and $184,000 for masters scholarships.
Say, $184,000 / 30 = $6,000 (roughly) for 30 masters scholarships. Thats for 30 masters theses (up to 50,000 words).

He must be really really really really really really really really really good at his job (of withholding money from the studnets of the universities of new zealand).

Please provide me with a list of the names of (and money amounts given to) the new zealand vice chancellors scholarships. each year. names and money amount. we need to see where Chris Whelan gets his money from.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

That's $100,000 for Chris Whelan and $184,000 for legal counsel for the fact that the New Zealand Vice Chancellors COmmittee (trading as New Zealand Universities) refuse to allow graduate research students to complete their research (to international standards of scholarship) in a timely fashion.

That is to say $184,000 dollars towards legal action taken for the fact that NZ Universities keep slaves.

$184,000 / 4 = $46,000 / 2 = $23,000 per side in High Court Action (legal counsel) for a hearing of the fact that Universities NZ refuses to allow students to work to standards of international scholarship by REFUSING to get their work to examiners (once it is submitted) and REFUSING to base the outcome of examination on reports of external examiners.

LSAT REASONING: There is ONLY ONE best answer to multiple choice examination. If the external examiners do not say that re-enrolment and re-examination is required then RE-ENROLMENT AND RE-EXAMINATION IS NOT REQUIRED.

It isn't rocket science.

It is corruption.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

And if we imprisoned Chris Whelan for his misappopriation of funds...

Then that would result in a net gain to the NZ government of his salary.

That is to say: $219,700 per year.

It would cost maybe $100,000 to keep him in prison.

And we would get free labor in the form of him advocating for better conditions for prisoners and human rights for prisoners and work opportunities for prisoners upon his release.

How can we afford not to?

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: Jackie Bailey

I am responding to your four emails of 14 May.  The emails contain three
questions that effectively constitute Official Information Act requests
and I am responding to them accordingly.  Your specific questions were;

 1. Please can the current CE inform me how many complaints of serious
wrong-doing he has had for each year he has been in the job.  I would
like to know the number of complaints by studnets and the number of
complaints by employees (or former employees). 
 2. Please can the current CE inform me how many of those complaints were
processed in accordance with the NZVCC policy.  That is to say (more
particularly) how many of the staff complaints were presented to a
meeting of the Vice Chancellors and how many of the studnet complants
were forwarded to police for prosecution? 
 3. Please provide me with a list of the names of (and money amounts given
to) the new zealand vice chancellors scholarships.  each year.  names
and money amount.

The answers are as follows;

o Question 1: Nil.  Universities New Zealand receives many complaints,
but yours is the only one that has actually been lodged making a claim
of serious wrong-doing (your claim that the University of Waikato
solicited a bribe from you) since the relevant UNZ Policy was
implemented in July 2017.
o Question 2: See the answer to Question 1.
o Question 3: All relevant information on the funding of Universities
New Zealand and scholarships administered by Universities NZ (the New
Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee) are contained in the most recent
published financial statements available at this
URL: [1]https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/sites/d...
See particularly pages 41-43 for information on scholarships.

You also asked: 

4. I am wondering where these jobs (CE jobs for the government) are
advertised and I am wondering how to obtain application forms so as to
apply for these jobs.  Do I need to pay a fee to a recruitment agency or
something like that for them to supply an application to enrol. 

 

o Question 4 is not technically a question that Universities New Zealand
is in a position to answer, but all Chief Executive jobs for
Government are publicly advertised via the Public Service Commission. 
You can see all available jobs at this
URL: [2]https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/  

References

Visible links
1. https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/sites/d...
2. https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

To clarify: I did not pay a bribe to the University of Waikato.

Two out of three external examiners of my MPHil thesis retained the copies of my thesis that were sent to them for examination. That means that the Univesrity of Waikato was prohibited by demanding any more labor than 10 weeks of substantive changes and the University of Waikato was prohibited by demanding any more fees (since 10 weeks of continued labor was within the previously paid for enrolment period).

I phoned Student Loans and Allowances multiple times instructing them NOT to pay the University of Waikato any more money because they were not entitlted to invoice for any more money from me for the MPhil Degree. Despite this, I was informed that the money has already been transferred to the IRD as owing by me.

The University of Waikato invoiced the Government for 2x PhD examination for a thesis that was only ever a Masters Thesis. The government paid these fees.

The Government keeps paying the University of Waikato to hold me as a hostage -- continually laboring for them while refusing to sign off on work that is done and refusing to get work to external examiners and refusing to get it out with instructions it be examined for the correct Degree...

I would never pay a bribe.

The New Zealand Government pays them to indefinately detain me against my will.

WHERE IS MY DEGREE? FOR WORK COMPLETED IN 2018?

It is now half way through 2021...

I see Chris Whelan had plenty of time, then, to gather evidence I supplied to him and forward that evidence to the police.

I am getting 'page not found' when I follow both of the provided links

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: Jackie Bailey


Attachment NZVCC Financial Statements and Audit Opinion 30.6.2020.pdf
787K Download View as HTML


Please find attached the NZVCC Financial Statements dated 30.6.2020.

Regards Jackie Bailey

Universities NZ is the peak body for New Zealand's eight universities.  It is also known as the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee

Disclaimer: This email, including any attachments, is confidential. If you have received it in error, please notify the sender via return email and delete the original.

-----Original Message-----
From: K Roe <[FOI #15418 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, 26 May 2021 4:15 pm
To: Jackie Bailey <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Official Information request - New Zealand Vice Chancellors' Committee 'trading as' "Universities New Zealand"

Dear Jackie Bailey,

To clarify: I did not pay a bribe to the University of Waikato.

Two out of three external examiners of my MPHil thesis retained the copies of my thesis that were sent to them for examination. That means that the Univesrity of Waikato was prohibited by demanding any more labor than 10 weeks of substantive changes and the University of Waikato was prohibited by demanding any more fees (since 10 weeks of continued labor was within the previously paid for enrolment period).

I phoned Student Loans and Allowances multiple times instructing them NOT to pay the University of Waikato any more money because they were not entitlted to invoice for any more money from me for the MPhil Degree. Despite this, I was informed that the money has already been transferred to the IRD as owing by me.

The University of Waikato invoiced the Government for 2x PhD examination for a thesis that was only ever a Masters Thesis. The government paid these fees.

The Government keeps paying the University of Waikato to hold me as a hostage -- continually laboring for them while refusing to sign off on work that is done and refusing to get work to external examiners and refusing to get it out with instructions it be examined for the correct Degree...

I would never pay a bribe.

The New Zealand Government pays them to indefinately detain me against my will.

WHERE IS MY DEGREE? FOR WORK COMPLETED IN 2018?

It is now half way through 2021...

I see Chris Whelan had plenty of time, then, to gather evidence I supplied to him and forward that evidence to the police.

I am getting 'page not found' when I follow both of the provided links

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

-----Original Message-----

I am responding to your four emails of 14 May.  The emails contain three questions that effectively constitute Official Information Act requests and I am responding to them accordingly.  Your specific questions were;

 1. Please can the current CE inform me how many complaints of serious wrong-doing he has had for each year he has been in the job.  I would like to know the number of complaints by studnets and the number of complaints by employees (or former employees).
 2. Please can the current CE inform me how many of those complaints were processed in accordance with the NZVCC policy.  That is to say (more
particularly) how many of the staff complaints were presented to a meeting of the Vice Chancellors and how many of the studnet complants were forwarded to police for prosecution?
 3. Please provide me with a list of the names of (and money amounts given
to) the new zealand vice chancellors scholarships.  each year.  names and money amount.

The answers are as follows;

o Question 1: Nil.  Universities New Zealand receives many complaints, but yours is the only one that has actually been lodged making a claim of serious wrong-doing (your claim that the University of Waikato solicited a bribe from you) since the relevant UNZ Policy was implemented in July 2017.
o Question 2: See the answer to Question 1.
o Question 3: All relevant information on the funding of Universities New Zealand and scholarships administered by Universities NZ (the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee) are contained in the most recent published financial statements available at this
URL: [1]https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/sites/d....
See particularly pages 41-43 for information on scholarships.

You also asked: 

4. I am wondering where these jobs (CE jobs for the government) are advertised and I am wondering how to obtain application forms so as to apply for these jobs.  Do I need to pay a fee to a recruitment agency or something like that for them to supply an application to enrol. 

 

o Question 4 is not technically a question that Universities New Zealand is in a position to answer, but all Chief Executive jobs for Government are publicly advertised via the Public Service Commission. You can see all available jobs at this
URL: [2]https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/  

References

Visible links
1. https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/sites/d...
2. https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #15418 email]

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

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Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

I am not seeing a list of benficiaries or donors who are putting (laundering?) money into the NZVCC Scholarship system.

I am also not seeing a list of named recipients or beneficiaries of that money.

So that people can say 'there is no such person as Joe Blow of Hamilton enrolled in Psychology BA with the University of Waikato' or so that people can say 'I am Joe Blow and $5,000 was never deposited into my bank account'.

I am still not seeing any evidence that Government Jobs (CE positions) are advertised publically. Or that they are offered to anybody who refuses to lie about their qualifications / their person.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

Thanks very much for timely responses to my questions. I do appreciate that.

I hear you say that mine is the ONLY complaint that has been acknowledged as a complaint of serious-wrongdoing that has been recieved by Chris Whelan since he took up the position early 2014.

Please can I be informed of the total number of complaints that Chris Whelan has received since he took up the position early 2014? If they could be broken down by (1) student or former student and (2) employee or former employee then I would appreciate that.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

Sorry.. If it is possible for a yearly breakdown of the form:

2014: student complaints (total) employee complaints (total)
2015...

And mine, as the only one that actually made it (all sperm to the egg-like) as a complaint of 'serious wrong-doing'

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

Link to this

From: Jackie Bailey

Kia ora,  

 

I am currently on annual leave and will be back in the office on Wednesday
27.10.2021.

 

For urgent enquiries please call 04 381 8500.

 

Regards Jackie Bailey  

Finance & Office Manager

Universities New Zealand - Te Pôkai Tara

Level 9, 142 Lambton Quay, PO Box 11915, Wellington 6142 T +64 4 381 8502
| M 022 629 3308 | W [1]www.universitiesnz.ac.nz   Universities NZ is the
peak body for New Zealand’s eight universities.  It is also known as the
New Zealand Vice-Chancellors’ Committee   Disclaimer: This email,
including any attachments, is confidential. If you have received it in
error, please notify the sender via return email and delete the original.

References

Visible links
1. http://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/

Link to this

From: Jackie Bailey

Dear Ms Roe

I write in response to your Official Information Request.

Universities New Zealand (UNZ) is able to investigate and act upon claims that relate to our statutory responsibility for ensuring the quality and integrity of qualifications offered at New Zealand universities. In 2017 UNZ developed and published policies and processes for responding to claims that, on the face of it, might suggest there is a serious or significant issue with the quality or integrity of a qualification warranting further investigation/review.

UNZ’s policies and processes were first developed in 2017 when the Tertiary Education Union (TEU) published the summary of a survey of tertiary education sector staff (universities, polytechnics, and wânanga). The published summary document claimed that staff had reported numerous instances with academic quality and integrity. The source data was not provided with the published document and the published document attracted considerable media interest.

UNZ subsequently requested and received the source data. In analysing it, there was not a single response from any university sector employee that implied or claimed issues with academic quality or integrity.

Nevertheless, UNZ developed and published the policies and processes for issues or complaints with academic quality and integrity. UNZ also created the [email address] email address and put it on the UNZ website.

Since 2017, UNZ has received hundreds of emails via the [email address] email address. Only one, yours, has actually claimed issues with the quality or integrity of a qualification. The other complaints have been around issues such as (a) a student’s relationship breaking down with a teacher or supervisor, (b) a student failing a course or qualification and believing the university should have done more to help them, etc. A fuller list of the sorts of complaints and matters referred to us is implied by the list with nine bullet points on this webpage: https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/quality.... UNZ also receives a lot of inquiries from students who don’t know how to complain or appeal matters to their university and UNZ also assists with those. Finally, a proportion of inquiries/complaints are from students of polytechnics, wânanga, or private training providers – which UNZ refers onto the New Zealand Qualifications Authority.

UNZ does not track complaints or referrals unless they are actually matters that fall within UNZ’s statutory authority.

As such, the answer to your question is; UNZ has had two ‘complaints/referrals’ since 2014 – the TEU’s in 2017 and yours in 2019/20.

Regards Jackie

Jackie Bailey
Finance & Office Manager
Universities New Zealand - Te Pôkai Tara
Level 9, 142 Lambton Quay, PO Box 11915, Wellington 6142
T +64 4 381 8502 | M 022 629 3308 | W www.universitiesnz.ac.nz

Universities NZ is the peak body for New Zealand’s eight universities.  It is also known as the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors’ Committee

Disclaimer: This email, including any attachments, is confidential. If you have received it in error, please notify the sender via return email and delete the original.

-----Original Message-----
From: K Roe <[FOI #15418 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 23 October 2021 10:35 pm
To: Jackie Bailey <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Official Information request - New Zealand Vice Chancellors' Committee 'trading as' "Universities New Zealand"

Dear Jackie Bailey,

Thanks very much for timely responses to my questions. I do appreciate that.

I hear you say that mine is the ONLY complaint that has been acknowledged as a complaint of serious-wrongdoing that has been recieved by Chris Whelan since he took up the position early 2014.

Please can I be informed of the total number of complaints that Chris Whelan has received since he took up the position early 2014? If they could be broken down by (1) student or former student and (2) employee or former employee then I would appreciate that.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

-----Original Message-----

Please find attached the NZVCC Financial Statements dated 30.6.2020.

Regards Jackie Bailey

Universities NZ is the peak body for New Zealand's eight universities.  It is also known as the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee

Disclaimer: This email, including any attachments, is confidential. If you have received it in error, please notify the sender via return email and delete the original.

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From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

I hear you say there have been a lot of complaints that teachers or supervisors are either allowing or forcing personal “relationship issues” to get in the way of the academics.

Perhaps to the point where the student is failed out of the qualification on personal, rather than academic grounds.

There have been a lot of complaints that the University’s seem to think their job is to fail students or prevent them from completing their qualifications.

Perhaps this is because it is ‘so competitive’ that the present employees feel they are competing against students and their job is to actually fail them out of the University in order to preserve their own position, somehow.

If it is the case that students are being failed because of personal reasons – then it seems likely that, insofar as students are passing, they might similarly being passed for personal reasons.

I find it genuinely hard to believe that nobody has complained to University’s New Zealand about:

1) Cheating iin MBChB, Auckland (tutoring services selling questions / answers supplied by former students and / or supplied by the University itself to the "third party" tutoring services.

2) Cheating in MBChB, Otago (only some students knowing the examination questions prior to undertaking the examination)

3) Cheating in MBChB, Otago (not completing internship requirements).

4) Selection for certain courses being based on irrelevant factors / personal factors (e.g., whose your daddy?)

5) Students being bullied out of submitting higher research Degrees until the end of the enrollment period (such that re-enrollment is forced if they are to submit a thesis in fulfillment of regulations for the Degree after a period of external examination). So that, for example, 1 year Degrees take 12 months + 3 months examination for minimum of 15 months enrollment. But the student applied to enroll in a 120 point 1 EFT 1 year programme of study. But the University refused to accept a thesis for examination until or unless things had been forced to run over-time forcing re-enrolment. If you contract for a house to be built in a time-period and then everyone stops work on the last day demanding extra fees to be paid for a few more months of labor at the end -- otherwise the project will be abandoned or never signed off on -- that would be a clear instance of corruption anywhere else in the world. When it happens systemically to all students enrolled in the qualification (or all people signing up for that contract) then that is corruption. That is what corruption *means*. When time-budgeting you need to time-budget for things to run over-time. Because the University forces things to run over-time. Every-time. Reliably. Repeatedly. We refuse to allow graduate research students timely qualification completions. To the point of screaming tantrums and kicking them out of the University if they don't agree to slavery with a happy face. Kinds of relationship problems.

I find it incomprehensible to think that these above things don’t get to the very heart of academic quality or integrity.

That is to say personal issues or factors are getting in the way of (preventing and prohibiting) academics.

If the qualifications are given or withheld due to “personal reasons” and a Degree is nothing more than “we like you” or “we think you are suitably benign to our interests” or “your daddy is on pay-roll of this University or another University in Australasia or possibly further abroad) then...

Well, I never would have returned to New Zealand and re-enrolled in New Zealand Universities if I had have known in advance that that is how things are, here. Because the qualifications don’t meaning anything about the intelligence or hard work or dedication or curiosity or merit or talent or knowledge or skills of the person who is acknowledged as having the qualification. And because people who speak up about these practices as corrupt are often booted out or bullied away.

There is a pretty fine line (insofar as there even is one) between a very very very very very shitty University system – and no University system, at all.

I am not sure that that is a question.

Can I just confirm that the complaints about 1-5 have been dismissed by NZVCC rather than being investigated by NZVCC?

I am genuinely trying to understand.

Does the “logic” go like this: One complaint by one complainant cannot (by definition) be about something systemic.

But the issues NZVCC is charged with investigating are systemic.

Therefore NZVCC will never need to investigate any of the complaints it has received.

But we will be seen to be compliant with international requirements to have complaints procedures for dealing with corruption.

See no evil, hear no evil...

There are none so blind as those who will not see.

Yours sincerely,

K Roe

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From: Jackie Bailey


Attachment FW Official Information request NZVCC legal fees.txt
1K Download View as HTML

Attachment 1276778 Roe Transfer Letter to UNZ.pdf
162K Download View as HTML


Dear Ms Roe

 

Per your official information request, I can advise that $100,111.75
(including GST) has been spent by Universities New Zealand to date on
external legal counsel to defend against your judicial review in the High
Court and subsequent appeals to the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. 
All costs associated with engaging external legal counsel have been met by
Universities New Zealand and not by any insurance or a contribution by any
individual.  

 

Regards  Jackie

 

Jackie Bailey

Finance & Office Manager

Universities New Zealand - Te Pôkai Tara

Level 9, 142 Lambton Quay, PO Box 11915, Wellington 6142
T +64 4 381 8502 | M 022 629 3308 | W [1]www.universitiesnz.ac.nz

 

Universities NZ is the peak body for New Zealand’s eight universities.  It
is also known as the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors’ Committee

 

Disclaimer: This email, including any attachments, is confidential. If you
have received it in error, please notify the sender via return email and
delete the original.

 

References

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From: K Roe (Account suspended)

Dear Jackie Bailey,

Thank you for answering the question.

The High Court Judgment (as I understand it) found that Ms Roe had lodged a complaint in accordance with the NZVCC procedural documents as to how complaints should be lodged and that Chris Whelan (in his capacity as CE of the NZVCC) had not followed the procedural documents as to how complaints should be handled by the NZVCC, at the very least, because he did not show the complaint to another party within the NZVCC.

Since he was found to be in violation or breech of the procedure -- I am confused, then, why it is that the NZVCC is footing the bill for him? Why doesn't it come out of his salary (at the very least) and why isn't he in trouble with some conduct committee?

K Roe

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