After Otago Polytechnic was made aware its student was alleged to have sexually assaulted someone, it responded by offering him "wellbeing support" and allowing him to graduate.
Last week, Sam Thomas Foster, 20, was jailed for more than four years after raping a student in Salmond College hall of residence.
The head of Salmond College, Nick Bates, said the victim reported the incident to him within a few days of it happening.
Following this, Foster was placed in temporary alternative accommodation for the remainder of the semester and support options were discussed with both parties.
"Immediate action was taken to ensure [the victim] felt as safe as possible in the college," Mr Bates said.
University of Otago and polytechnic leadership were informed of an incident of alleged sexual misconduct, Mr Bates said.
Both institutions were given context, including Foster’s name and the nature of the alleged sexual assault, he said.
A university spokeswoman said for privacy reasons his name was never passed on to university leadership.
Otago Polytechnic struggled to find a record of the incident.
"Otago Polytechnic was not made aware of this incident in October 2022 or at any subsequent period," operations deputy executive director Max Sims initially said.
But after trawling through emails, it became clear one staff member had been informed of "an incident" at Salmond College involving an Otago Polytechnic student.
"Otago Polytechnic has not been able to find a reference to the incident in question in our student learner databases," Mr Sims said.
"Therefore, we're just relying on the memory and recollections of an individual staff member at the time."
The staff member recalled offering Foster "wellbeing support" and ensured the hall of residence followed up with "pastoral care".
"We believe it would be a breach of his privacy to share details of that support," Mr Sims said.
Charges were laid in September 2023. Foster graduated from the polytechnic that year.
In April this year, Foster admitted the charge.
Counsel Anne Stevens KC made an unsuccessful bail application for her client on the basis he had upcoming university exams and had achieved good grades.
A University of Otago spokeswoman could not confirm whether Foster was enrolled with the institution for "privacy reasons".
It explained the vice-chancellor could refuse or cancel an enrolment for a range of reasons, including on grounds of good character.
"The university requires disclosure of criminal charges and convictions where that is relevant to a course of study, for example in professional health programmes and courses which involve working with people, such as social work," the spokeswoman said.
Foster had name suppression until his sentencing last week.
At sentencing, the court heard he had aspirations to further his education, he owned an artificial intelligence marketing company and had been offered employment in that line of work.
