Terms & Conditions | UCD Professional Academy

ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

All courses:

Students must be 18 years or older.
Previous training, study and/or professional experience in a related field is recommended.
For non-native speakers of English, a language proficiency equivalent to IELTS 6.5 overall (or equivalent) is required.

Please note that all UCD Professional Academy courses are conducted in English. Prospective students for whom English is not a native language are welcome to undertake Professional Academy courses. It is the responsibility of the student that their proficiency in English is adequate for the course to participate and complete assignments successfully.

Disabilities

UCD Professional Academy welcomes students with disabilities and makes every effort to provide facilities and support, where possible. We ask that students who may need additional support or facilities during their course inform us at the time of application.

Code of Conduct

All staff and students of the Academy are expected to abide by its Code of Conduct https://www.ucd.ie/professionalacademy/student_handbook/ . In the case of serious breaches, students may not be permitted to attend the remainder of their course, and no refund will be given.

Springboard+

Professional Academy Diploma in UX Design (UX Design Institute in partnership with UCD Professional Academy)

To access the RPL document please click here: UXDI-UCD-RPL-Policy

PAYMENT TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Payment methods

You may pay for your course by a credit, charge or debit card. You acknowledge and agree that the UCD Professional Academy will not have any liability whatsoever for any insufficient funds or other charges incurred by you as a result of attempts to charge, and/or place holds on, your specified payment method as contemplated by these Terms.

You agree to pay us, through our payment processors, all charges at the prices then in effect for any purchase in accordance with the applicable payment terms presented to you at the time of purchase. We reserve the right to correct, or to instruct our payment processor or financing partner to correct, any errors or mistakes, even if payment has already been requested or received.

Please note we cannot accept American Express; we also do not accept cheques.

Failure to comply with payment terms will result in restricting access to course resources and could lead to withdrawal from the courses.

PAYMENT PLANS*

UCD Professional Academy offers a flexible interest-free payment plan option powered by Stripe Subscription.

Your subscription will be based on a payment plan where the total fee is divided into instalments automatically charged to the card you provide at the time of registration for your course. Each instalment will be automatically charged to the card on file according to the payment plan applicable to your course.

By submitting your payment information, you authorise UCD Professional Academy to charge the card on file for each instalment payment.

Failed Payments

You must ensure that your card balance is sufficient when the instalments are due. If a payment fails due to insufficient funds or any other issue with the payment card, we will notify you via email and attempt to charge the card again within 7 days.

Your access to the UCD Professional Academy Learning Management System (LMS) will be suspended until the outstanding amount is paid in full.

While suspended, you will not have access to any courses, materials, or progress tracking within the LMS.

Please note, that loss of access to your course content due to non-payment of fees will not be considered as sufficient grounds for an academic deadlines extension.

Once the overdue payment is settled, your access to the LMS will be reinstated within one working day after the successful payment.

Discounts

PAYMENT PLAN for Part-Time Courses - Live Online, On Campus and On-Demand Courses*

Pay in three equal interest-free instalments:

Instalment 1: 1/3 of the course fee is due at checkout (registration)
Instalment 2: 1/3 - 30 days after the registration date
Instalment 3: 1/3 - 60 days after the registration date

The scheduled instalments will be automatically deducted from your card. Please ensure that a sufficient balance is available on your card at that time.

Please note, that loss of access to your course content due to non-payment of fees will not be considered as sufficient grounds for an academic deadlines extension.

*excluding Professional Academy Diploma in Full Stack Software Development

PAYMENT PLAN for Full-time (Bootcamp) Courses

Pay in two equal interest-free instalments:

Instalment 1: Half of the course fee is due at checkout (registration)
Instalment 2: Half - on the course start date

The scheduled instalments will be automatically deducted from your card. Please ensure that a sufficient balance is available on your card at that time.

Please note, that loss of access to your course content due to non-payment of fees will not be considered as sufficient grounds for an academic deadlines extension.

PAYMENT PLAN for Professional Academy Diploma in Full Stack Software Development

Pay in four equal interest-free instalments:

Instalment 1: 25% of the course fee is due at checkout (registration)
Instalment 2: 25% - 60 days after the registration date
Instalment 3: 25% - 120 days after the registration date
Instalment 4: 25% - 180 days after the registration date

The scheduled instalments will be automatically deducted from your card. Please ensure that a sufficient balance is available on your card at that time.

Please note, that loss of access to your course content due to non-payment of fees will not be considered as sufficient grounds for an academic deadlines extension.

PAYMENT TERMS for SPONSORING EMPLOYERS

We are able to issue invoices to employers relating to individual bookings.

To avail of specific payment terms applicable to learners sponsored by their employer, prospective students must obtain internal approval from their employer prior to application to the course of choice. Approver’s contact details such as full name, work email and position will be requested by our sales consultant during the booking process to enable authorisation and invoicing process.

Authorisation form must be completed and signed by the approver and participating student 5 days prior course commencement date to ensure timely acceptance to the course. Failure to complete the authorisation process will result in the student being withdrawn from the course.

Course fees must be paid in full within 30 days of invoice date.

If the payments are not made within the above timeframe, access to the course content may be suspended and a student may not be able to complete the course, submit assignments, or receive a grade.

Please note, that loss of access to your course content due to non-payment of fees will not be considered as sufficient grounds for an academic deadlines extension.

Validity of Invoices/Quotes

An invoice issued by the UCD Professional Academy is valid for a 30-day period from the date of issue, the UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to withdraw an invoice within this period by notifying learners in writing.

DISCOUNTS

Discount codes must be used at the time of initial booking, they cannot be retroactively applied to your account.

By using any discount code provided by UCD Professional Academy, you agree to the following terms and conditions:

Eligibility - Discount codes are offered at the sole discretion of UCD Professional Academy and may be subject to specific eligibility criteria. Only individuals who meet these criteria, as stated in the promotion, are permitted to use the discount codes.
Non-Transferable - Discount codes are non-transferable and may not be shared, sold, or distributed to any third party unless explicitly stated by UCD Professional Academy. Only the individual or entity for whom the discount code is issued has the right to redeem it.
Validity and Expiration - Discount codes may only be used within the validity period specified in the offer or promotion. Any attempt to use an expired discount code will result in the code being rejected.
Discount Code Abuse - UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to monitor the use of discount codes. Any abuse or fraudulent use of discount codes, including but not limited to:a. Using a discount code multiple times without authorisation. Attempting to redeem a discount code by someone who is not eligible or not the intended recipient.c. Using discount codes in conjunction with other offers, promotions, or discounts where prohibited.

Any such misuse may result in the cancellation of the booking or transaction and may lead to the refusal of future services.

Right to Cancel - UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to cancel any booking or order where it is determined, in UCD Professional Academy's sole discretion, that a discount code has been used inappropriately, fraudulently, or by a person who had no right to use it. In such cases, the customer will be notified, and any payments made may be refunded in accordance with the company’s refund policy.
Limitation of Liability - UCD Professional Academy will not be liable for any loss, damage, or inconvenience caused by the cancellation of a booking or order due to the misuse or unauthorised use of a discount code.

CANCELLATIONS

A learner may express their right to cancel their purchase via email or online cancellation request form.

Cooling off period

A full refund will be issued when a cancellation is requested within a cooling off period of 14 days from the date of purchase and the course materials have not been accessed.

Once a learner has accessed the course materials, this indicates the use of service and express acceptance of the above terms and conditions and, no refunds will be issued as it negates the cooling off period.

Refunds will not be issued once the cooling-off period has ended or the course materials have been accessed.

Cancellation after deferral

If the cancellation is requested after deferral, the original purchase date will be considered as a cooling off period start date.

Refunds

Refunds can only be issued to the original payment method used for the charge.

The UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to cancel, postpone or modify the course delivery dates. This will only occur to such an extent as is necessary.

Where this occurs, you may elect to attend a later scheduled intake free of charge or receive a full refund of any fee paid.

TERMINATION

If you fail to pay the course fees by the specified dates, we will proceed to cancel your access to the resources together with your booking and you will no longer have access to our services.

DEFERRALS

Learners who wish to defer their commencement date may do so only in extenuating circumstances. Each learner is only able to defer twice.

Deferral prior commencement date:

A deferral request does not imply a change to your original payment plan. Your course fees are due as per the original booking dates.
Second deferral may only be applied to learners who have paid the course fees in full.

Deferral post-commencement date:

Deferral may only be applied no later than two weeks after the course commencement for part-time courses and one day for full-time courses.

All deferrals are at the discretion of the UCD Professional Academy.

COURSE CHANGES

Learners who wish to change their course of study may request a change in writing to the UCD Professional Academy. Course changes will not be facilitated after the course commencement.

A student requesting a course change will be issued a credit equal to the amount paid, which can be applied towards the new booking.

Any remaining balances due must be paid in full at checkout.

If there is a cost difference associated with the course the additional fees (where necessary) must be paid by the learner.

REFUSAL

UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to refuse tuition fees and reserves the right to deny any applications.

DISPUTES

The European Commission has provided an ODR website to help traders and consumers resolve disputes out of court:

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/odr/main/index.cfm?event=main.home.chooseLanguage

FORCE MAJEURE

Events Outside the UCD Professional Academy's Control:

UCD Professional Academy will not be liable or responsible for any failure to perform or delay in performance of any of its obligations under the Conditions that is caused by events outside reasonable control (a “Force Majeure Event”).

A Force Majeure Event includes any acts, events, non-occurrence, omission or accident beyond reasonable control and includes, in particular (without limitation) the following:

strikes, lockouts or other industrial action; or
civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack or (whether declared or not) threat or preparation for a war; or
fire, explosion, storm, flood, earthquake, subsidence, epidemic, other natural disaster; or
impossibility of the use of railways, shipping, aircraft, motor transport or other means of public or private transport; or
impossibility of the use of public or private telecommunication networks.

UCD Professional Academy's obligations under the Agreement will be suspended for the period of the Force Majeure Event. We will take reasonable steps (if within its reasonable control) to bring the Force Majeure Event to a close or to find a solution by which the UCD Professional Academy's obligations under the Agreement can be performed despite the Force Majeure Event.

AUDIO & VIDEO RECORDING

All UCD Professional Academy online lectures are recorded. You are not obliged to appear on camera, however if you do have your camera and your microphone on you may feature in the recording. Recordings are shared with the participants of that class via private and unlisted links. Any unauthorised sharing of the recordings is prohibited.

PRIVACY AND SECURITY

We are committed to protecting your privacy and security. All personal data that we collect from you will be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy. You should review our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by this reference.

GENERAL DISCLAIMER

This Site is intended to provide general information only, and should not be considered as a substitute for advice covering any specific situation. Users should seek appropriate advice before taking or refraining from taking any action in reliance on any information contained in any part of this Site.

While UCD has taken every precaution in compiling this Site, neither it, nor its contributors, make any warranties, representations or undertakings relating to any of the content of the materials on the Site (including, without limitation, as to the quality, accuracy, completeness or fitness for any particular purpose of such content).

Neither UCD, any of our affiliates, nor any of our or their respective licensors, licensees, service providers or suppliers warrant that the Site will be continuously available, or that your use of the Site or any function of the Site will be uninterrupted or error free, or that the Site and server will be free from infection, viruses and/or other components that have contaminating or destructive properties.

The Site is provided by UCD on an “as is” and “as available” basis. To the fullest extent permissible by law, UCD disclaims all warranties, conditions and undertakings, express or implied. UCD does not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of the use of the materials incorporated in the Site or any third-party website accessed through the Site in terms of their correctness, accuracy, timeliness, reliability, or otherwise and you will be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or loss of data that results from the download of such material.

Further, please note that no advice or information, obtained by you from our personnel or through this Site shall create any warranty not expressly provided for in these Terms. Where you rely on any information, material or services on the Site, you do so entirely at your own risk.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

You expressly understand and agree that (to the fullest extent permitted by law), UCD shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive damages, or any other damages whatsoever, including but not limited to, damages for loss of profits or contracts, income or revenue, goodwill, anticipated savings, data or other intangible losses (even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages), arising out of, or resulting from:

the use or the inability to use the Site;
the use of any content or other material on the Site or any website or websites linked to the Site;
unauthorised access to or alteration of your transmissions or data;
statements or conduct of any third party on the Site; or
any other matter relating to the Site.

If you are dissatisfied with these Terms, your sole and exclusive remedy is the discontinuation of the use of the Site.

YOUR OBLIGATIONS

In accessing any part of our Site, you agree not to use the Site or cause or permit the Site to be used:

to jeopardise or prejudice the operation, quality or integrity of the Site, or the operation, quality or integrity of any telecommunications network;
to harvest or otherwise collect information about others, including e-mail addresses, without their consent;
for any commercial purpose including any direct marketing, surveys, contests or pyramid schemes, nor to use the Site to participate in sending chain letters, junk e-mail, spam, duplicative or unsolicited messages, advertising or promotional material;
to distribute, download, upload, or transmit any material which contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, or other harmful or disruptive components to attack the Site via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack;
or contrary to the terms and conditions of any Internet Service Provider you may use.

You further agree to defend, hold harmless and indemnify UCD for any loss, expenses or damage we suffer or incur if you breach any of these obligations or any other Terms.

The Site is controlled and offered by UCD from Ireland. Those who access or use the Site from other jurisdictions do so at their own volition and are responsible for compliance with local law.

LINKS

The Site contains links to third party websites. These links are provided for your convenience only and you are solely responsible for evaluating the content and accuracy of materials on such third-party websites. If you choose to access linked third-party websites, you do so at your own risk.

UCD generally welcomes the hyper-linking to the Site from other appropriate websites. Any links to the Site from another website must be presented in such a manner that the viewing of the Site is not impaired by framing or similar techniques that may impact the visitor’s perception of the Site or their user experience.

NOTICE AND TAKE DOWN PROCEDURE

If you identify material on the Site which you believe infringes any of your own intellectual property rights, you should contact us by writing to the Corporate and Legal Affairs Secretary, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4. Your letter must include the following:

A signature confirming that you are the owner of an exclusive right, or that you are a person authorised to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right, that is allegedly being infringed on the Site;
You must identify the copyrighted work(s) claimed to have been infringed on the Site;
You must identify the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit UCD to locate the material;
You must provide information reasonably sufficient to permit UCD to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an email address at which you may be contacted;
You must confirm in writing that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
You must confirm in writing that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Where UCD receives a valid notice containing the above information, we will take steps to investigate the matter and, where we are satisfied that the allegation is merited, we will remove the offending content. Any removal will be on a “without prejudice” basis and shall not constitute any admission of responsibility on the part of UCD or any other party. If you have any other concerns regarding the Site, please see the Contact details at the end of these Terms.

GOVERNING LAW

The Site has been designed and these Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Ireland (excluding Northern Ireland). Any dispute arising out of the access or use of the Site will be subject to the jurisdiction of the Irish courts (excluding Northern Ireland).

ADDITIONAL TERMS

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and UCD with respect to your access and use of the Site and any third-party website accessed through the Site. If any of these Terms shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable form these Terms and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. Our failure to exercise or delay in exercising a right or remedy provided by these Terms or by law does not constitute a waiver of those or any other rights or remedies.

Please note that not all University Facilities promoted on this website will be available to all of the students of Professional Academy and English Language Academy. Access to University Facilities will be dependent on the specific educational course and/or service package you have registered for.

Certain pages on the Site may contain additional terms and conditions or data protection notices. Such additional terms shall apply in the manner set out but shall be in addition to, and not in substitution for, these Terms.

CONTACT

Customers can contact Professional.Academy@ucd.ie

Complaint Resolution Process

If there is a dispute or complaint our Student Success Team will be happy to assist you. Please use the Contact Us button on your LMS or email professional.academy@ucd.ie with your concerns (please try and include as much information as possible when emailing us) and a member of our team will be in touch. Please note all correspondences are dealt with in strict confidence.

We believe that all complainants have the right to be heard, understood and respected.

However, we also consider that our staff have the same rights. We therefore expect all interactions with our team to be polite and respectful. We will not tolerate aggressive or abusive behaviour, unreasonable demands or unreasonable persistence.

Step 1: We Acknowledge your Complaint

Our Student Success Team will first acknowledge receipt of your complaint and let you know a timeline of when to expect to hear back

Step 2: We Investigate your Complaint

Our Student Success Team will investigate your complaint and gather all the necessary facts

Step 3: We Try and Resolve your Complaint

Our Student Success Team will try and resolve your complaint in a timely manner and with a positive outcome

Step 4: Escalation:

If a student is dissatisfied with the initial outcome, the complaint is escalated to our Customer Operations Manager for review. If the student is still dissatisfied with the outcome the complaint is escalated to the Director of Customer Operations.

The Director of Customer Operations has the final decision in the complaints process. The decision they communicate to you will close any complaint you have made with our team.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS – CORPORATE ENTITIES

PAYMENT TERMS

Corporate training packages must be paid for in full within 30 days of invoice date. If the Company does not pay the invoice to the UCD Professional Academy by the date specified, UCD Professional Academy may charge interest to the corporate client on the overdue amount at the rate of 8% a year above the European Central Bank rate. This interest will accrue on a daily basis from the due date until the date of actual payment of the overdue amount.

Failure to make payments in the above time frame will result in the student being withdrawn from the course and/or not receiving their completion certificate. All fees paid up to this point are non-refundable and non-transferable.

Validity of Quotes

A quote issued by the UCD Professional Academy is valid for a 30-day period from the date of issue, the UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to withdraw a quote within this period by notifying purchasers in writing.

Billing

The corporate partner agrees to pay, within 30 days of invoice, all charges at the prices then in effect for any purchase in accordance with the applicable payment terms presented to the company at the time of purchase. We reserve the right to correct, or to instruct our payment processor or financing partner to correct, any errors or mistakes, even if payment has already been requested or received.

Deferrals/Course Changes

Corporate partners reserve the right for students to defer their start date, subject to UCD Professional Academy course availability. Learners who wish to defer their commencement date may do so in extenuating circumstances. Deferrals may be applied no more than two times from the original start date, and no more than two weeks after the courses commencement for part-time courses and one day for full time courses per student, providing these deferrals fall within one year of purchase date. All deferrals are at the discretion of the UCD Professional Academy. Learners who wish to change their course of study may request a change in writing to the UCD Professional Academy. Course changes will not be facilitated after the course commencement.

Disputes for Corporate Entities

The European Commission has provided an ODR website to help traders and consumers resolve disputes out of court https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/odr/main/index.cfm?event=main.home.chooseLanguage

CORPORATE SEATS

UCD Professional Academy requires corporate students to be enrolled in their course within 12 months of the purchase date, including deferrals. It is up to the company to ensure these seats are filled within this time frame. Any remaining seats not used within the 12-month period cannot be transferred to a later date in time.

As a corporate student being sponsored by your company/ organisation, you agree to your progress and completion data to be sent to the designated company contact.

CORPORATE COURSES

Please note that corporate student bookings within the UCD Professional Academy are placed in courses with other students. Should a corporate partner wish for a specific private course, this must be arranged with the UCD Professional Academy sales & academic teams. Unless otherwise stated, no curriculum changes will be accommodated for corporate bookings outside of a private course context.

Companies may add a student who is already directly registered on a course with UCD Professional Academy to their student list. If that student has not commenced their course, UCD Professional Academy will issue a refund of balance paid to-date to the student. If the student has started the course, or should a student have already completed the course, a refund cannot be issued by UCD Professional Academy.

CORPORATE DISCOUNTS

Any discounts applied to corporate bookings are subject to the discretion of the UCD Professional Academy Sales Team. Only one discount can be applied per corporate deal. Deals or discounts are not guaranteed for new purchases made thereafter.

REFUNDS & CANCELLATIONS

Corporate partners may express their right to cancel their purchase via email up to 10 days prior to their students first course commencement. On this expression a credit note will be issued without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days.

If a refund is requested in writing less than 10 days prior to the commencement of the first corporate student booking, a Service and Administrative charge of 10% of the total booking cost will be deducted from the refund due. Refunds are issued in the form of a credit note to the company. In the cases of deferral a company's initial purchase will be considered the first students commencement and as such a 10% charge may be deducted from their fees upon cancellation of their new intake.

Once the Course has been commenced by a student, this is an indication of use of service and express acceptance of the above terms and conditions, and as a result no refunds will be issued at that point as it negates the cooling off period.

The UCD Professional Academy reserves the right to cancel, postpone or modify the course delivery dates. This will only occur to such an extent as is necessary.

ENROLMENT REQUIREMENTS FOR CORPORATE STUDENTS

Corporate partners must be aware of the following requirements when enrolling students into corporate bookings & seats:

Students must be 18 years or older.
Previous training, study and/or professional experience in a related field is recommended.
For non-native speakers of English, a language proficiency equivalent to IELTS 6.5 overall (or equivalent) is required.

Progression and Completion Information

UCD Professional Academy acts as a sub-processor of the data provided by the Corporate client. As per the statement of work, signed before training commencement, enrolment of the corporate students provides UCD Professional Academy with permission to process this data and report key statistics back to the contracted party (the controller). The controller is obliged to make the students (data subjects) aware of this prior to enrolment. We will share certain personal information including students’ names, emails, progression information and assessment results with a named representative of the contracted organisation via secure file transfer upon conclusion of the agreed training. By enrolling in the course you agree to the above.

Disabilities

Code of Conduct

All staff, students and corporate partners of the Academy are expected to abide by its Code of Conduct. In the case of serious breaches, students may not be permitted to attend the remainder of their course, and no refund will be given.

FORCE MAJEURE FOR CORPORATE LEARNERS

Events Outside the UCD Professional Academy's Control:

A Force Majeure Event includes any acts, events, non-occurrence, omission or accident beyond reasonable control and includes, in particular (without limitation) the following:

strikes, lock outs or other industrial action; or
civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack or (whether declared or not) threat or preparation for a war; or
fire, explosion, storm, flood, earthquake, subsidence, epidemic, other natural disaster; or
impossibility of the use of railways, shipping, aircraft, motor transport or other means of public or private transport; or
impossibility of the use of public or private telecommunication networks.

PRIVACY AND SECURITY FOR CORPORATE ENTITIES

We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of our corporate partners. All personal data that we collect from the company in relation to its purchase or student enrolments will be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy. The company should review our Privacy Policy. which is incorporated into these Terms by this reference.

CONTACT FOR CORPORATE PARTNERS

Corporate partners can contact Professional.Academy@ucd.ie with any questions.