Policies & Regulations

Students and teachers constitute a thumbnail sketch of human society that has rights and obligations. Diachronically, a society needs order, organisation, control, and definition of rights and obligations of its members, in order to move forward. The same applies at college. As a small society, it needs to control its operation by determining the rights and obligations of its members. Each college unit, driven by its members’ benefit, prepares its own internal operational regulations that define students’ relationships, as well as their rights and obligations towards their college.

General Information & Regulations

Criteria for the Admission of Students in the College: Casa College follows a non-discrimination admissions policy and actively seeks to recruit and enroll students of different backgrounds, interests, talents and cultures, in order to create and sustain a multicultural environment. Therefore, the student population of our College is diverse and multicultural, blending their different backgrounds, interests and heritage to create a truly global learning environment. The admissions policy of the College relies on each applicant’s past records (primarily high school grades), and it grants admission depending on each applicant’s qualifications and educational objectives. All candidates should hold a six-year School Leaving Certificate or an equivalent qualification.
Re-registration: Students who wish to re-register must:

  • read the Re-Registration Process and fill and sign the Re-Registration Form
  • contact the Head Registrar to check the student’s attendance, marks and disciplinary behaviour,
  • pay tuition and other fees at the Office of Finances & Economics,
  • apply for a Pink Card to the Migration Officer by completing the Pink Card Request Form and,
  • apply for a European Youth Card by completing the Youth Card Request Form

Periods of Registration: For purposes of registration, examination, assessment and promotion, the academic year is divided into three semesters. The first academic semester (Fall Semester) begins on the second week of October and finishes by the end of January. The second academic semester (Spring Semester) begins on the second week of February and finishes by the end of May. The third academic semester (Summer Semester), which runs only for new students, begins on the second week of June and finishes by the end of September. The exact dates are found in the Academic Calendar.
Registration takes place for all courses as follows:

  • for the Fall Semester, in September before the beginning of classes,
  • for the Spring Semester, in January before the beginning of classes, and
  • for the Summer Semester, in May and June before the beginning of classes.

The re-registration period for the Spring Semester is until the 31st of January and for the Fall Semester is until the 31st of August.
Casa College reserves the right to refuse changes in courses and subjects both for educational and administrative reasons at any time.

Late Registration: Students who do not register for their course during the designated registration period cannot be assured a place in the classes they wish to take and they will be charged with a late registration fee. The lecturers are not obliged to give make-up tests or homework to a student who registered after the late registration period. Students should decide on the subjects to select on the day of the registration. After that, they are not allowed to make any changes regarding subjects or courses.

Transfer Students / Transfer Credit Evaluation Process

  • Transfer from one course to another: Students can transfer from one course to another without exams before the commencement of the new semester or academic year. To do this, the student must complete and submit the forms Change of Course Form and Transfer Credit Evaluation Form to the Director of Academic Studies in time. The application is examined by the Academic Director and the Course Coordinator. The confirmation of a transfer is given after the approval of the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Migration Officer (only for third-country nationals).
  • Transfer of Credits from other educational institutions to Casa College: Students interested in transferring their credits (ECTS) to our College must apply to the Director of Academic Studies by completing the Transfer to Casa College Form. His/her application must be accompanied by an official transcript or progress report with the marks and ECTS/credits of each module and its syllabi. After the evaluation of the academic qualifications of the students wishing to transfer their credits to our College, the students who have the required number of ECTS/credits will be registered for the corresponding semester. All transfers are examined by the Director of Academic Studies and the Course Coordinator. The number of evaluated transfer credits should not exceed 50% of the total credits of the programme offered by CASA College.

Withdrawal of Subjects: A student may withdraw from all subjects of the current semester after the add/drop period has ended with no grade penalty. However, he/she will not be eligible for a tuition fee refund and must still pay any outstanding balance owed to the College. Withdrawal from subjects can be done by completing the Withdrawal Form and submitting it to the Director of Academic Studies, Mrs. Ellie Petrou, Office 004.

Conditions for Promotion & Graduation from the College: The student is promoted if (s)he obtains 50/100 in each subject. If a student fails the Fall Semester, (s)he is referred for re-examination in February. If a student fails the Spring Semester, (s)he is referred for re-examination in September.The re-examination is written and concerns the whole content of a subject taught in the current semester. The passing mark for this re-examination is 50/100. Students who fail in the re-take exams are allowed to repeat the subject(s) they have failed in the following semester.

Internal Rules & Procedures: There is a set of Internal Rules and Procedures at the College which can be obtained from the Director of Academic Studies. These include:

  • The tuition fees are paid before the commencement of classes. The non-European students need to pay the full amount of tuition fees of their first year of study before they arrive in Cyprus.
  • Students wishing to cease their studies or are obliged to do so are refunded part of their paid fees. In such a case, students need to apply in writing to the Director of Academic Studies.
  • The date of application is considered to be the date the student decides to discontinue his/her studies and apply for a refund.

Refund Policy: Refund of Tuition Fees for students who decide to withdraw or suspend their application and/or studies are returned according to the following criteria:

  • If the students’ documents have not been submitted to the Ministry of Education and the Migration Department in Cyprus for approval, then the Educational Organisation shall return 80% of the tuition fees that have already been paid.
  • If the students’ documents have been submitted to the Ministry of Education and the Migration Department in Cyprus for approval, then the Educational Organisation shall return 50% of the tuition fees that have already been paid.
  • If a student has received his/her visa but has not traveled to Cyprus then the Educational Organisation shall return 30% of the tuition fees that have already been paid.
  • If a student has received his/her visa and has already traveled to Cyprus then the Educational Organisation shall not return any tuition fee amount.
  • If the Migration department declines to issue a visa for a student on the grounds that his/her documents are not authentic (fake) then the Educational Organisation shall not return any tuition fee amount.
  • For students who register for years 2-4, tuition fees are not refundable or transferable under any circumstances.

Please note that Application Fees and any Bank Charges that may have occurred are not refundable.

Attendance Policy: Class attendance is considered an important part of the educational process at the College; thus, it is recorded by the lecturers, and the administration keeps these records. By law, students are required to maintain a minimum of 70% attendance. Therefore, students are obliged to attend classes regularly. Failure to attend classes may result in administrative withdrawal from the classes or failure in the subject. Absences are divided into excused and unexcused. Excused absences are those that are accompanied by evidence that is regarded as sufficient by the College (in cases of force majeure, due to illness, etc). On the other hand, unexcused absences are those that are not accompanied by evidence. Absence due to illness requires relevant sick notes. Students who are absent for more than 20% of the overall teaching periods of a subject without a valid excuse are not allowed to take the final exam. However, they can sit the re-take exam.

Explanation of Absence: When a student is absent, (s)he has the right and obligation to explain his/her absence with a sick note or by completing the Absence Application Form. (S)he must present the note or declaration to the Head Registrar, when (s)he returns to school and surely no later than five days after the day of absence.

Submission of complaints: According to the College operational regulations, the student has the right, either individually or with other students, to submit requests or complaints to the educational authorities. Written requests or complaints that concern a lecturer must be submitted through their Director of Academic Studies who, after informing the lecturer and listens to his/her point of view, passes them to the relevant authority along with his/her comments.

Assistance and support:  If the student faces any problems and needs to talk to somebody, (s)he can turn to his/her Academic Mentor, to the Counsellor or the Director of Student Affairs. If (s)he trusts more one of his/her lecturers, (s)he can even turn to him/her.

Cheating/Plagiarism: If a student is caught cheating during a test/examination, (s)he commits a serious offence and (s)he is punished according to the existing regulations, as follows:

  • immediate termination of the test, and
  • marking the test or the examination during which (s)he cheated with 1.

Similar measures are also taken for students who communicate orally, or any other way, during an examination. If such kinds of offences are repeated, they may lead to other disciplinary measure to be taken that will be determined by the Disciplinary Committee.

Rights & Obligations

Freedom of expression: The right to express one’s opinion or views freely, in a way that does not harm other people’s reputation and personality. (S)he can also look for, receive and share any kind of information and ideas, orally, in writing, in print, in artistic form or in any other way. These must be carried out with freedom of expression not intending to impose or promote political ideologies, that target to bigotry or conversion, and without promoting hatred because of racial, gender, religious, political or national differences.

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion: This means that the College must respect the parents’ or legal guardians’ right to guide the student regarding the above, in a way that aims to target the development of his/her skills. The freedom of expression of his/her religion or beliefs is subject only to the restrictions that are defined by law and they are necessary to maintain public security, public order, public health and public morals or freedoms, as well as the fundamental rights of others.

The student as a European citizen: The European Union has compiled all European citizens’ rights into a single document, the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The charter includes a special article for young people’s rights which, among everything else, contains the following:

  • the right for personal development,
  • the right for respecting their views and the right for their interests to be always taken into consideration,
  • the right to have a name and nationality, freedom of expression and access to information that concerns them,
  • the right to live in a family environment or an environment of alternative welfare and come in contact with both their parents, if possible,
  • the right for health and prosperity that includes the rights for students with disabilities,
  • the right for medical treatment and social insurance,
  • the right for education, free time and access to arts and culture, and
  • the right to special protection for refugee students, students at juvenile correctional homes, students who have been denied their freedom, and students who suffer from financial, sexual or any other kind of abuse.

The right to private life: According to the Operational Regulations of Casa College, students have the right to live and enjoy their own private life. Nobody has the right to intervene arbitrarily or illegally in their private life, family or correspondence, or to offend their honour, personality and reputation.

Protection from violence, exploitation and abuse: The College must take all the appropriate measures-administrative and pedagogical – to protect students from every type of violence, abuse, exploitation or lack of care.

Participation in the Student Council: The regulations offer the student the right to vote and be a candidate for the Student Council.

* The College reserves the right not to open a course or a subject due to a low enrolment.