Terms & Conditions

1. Introduction and Acceptance

Research Ustad ("Research Ustad", "we", "our", or "us") is an academic and research-oriented platform that provides educational programmes, research guidance, mentorship, training, academic support, research collaboration opportunities and related services.

These Terms & Conditions apply to all individuals and entities accessing, using, representing, or participating in Research Ustad activities, whether online or offline.

If you do not agree with these terms, you should not use the relevant service, submit an application, make a payment, or participate in the applicable programme or activity.

2. Who Is Covered by These Terms?

These terms apply, as relevant to each person's role, to:

• Students, course participants, trainees and applicants.
• Research Associates (RA) and Junior Researchers.
• Advisors, academic advisors and subject-matter experts.
• Mentors, research mentors and programme instructors.
• Team Leads, coordinators, moderators and administrators.
• Employees, contractors, volunteers, interns, collaborators and authorized representatives.
• Visitors, registered users, service clients and other people interacting with Research Ustad.

Some provisions apply only to specific roles. For example, course payment rules apply to paid-course participants, while appointment and research confidentiality provisions apply to appointed personnel and collaborators.

3. Website and Service Use

Users agree to use the Research Ustad website and services only for lawful, legitimate and authorized purposes.

Users must not:

• Submit false, misleading, fabricated, or impersonated identity or academic information.
• Attempt unauthorized access to accounts, systems, databases, payment processes, or administrative interfaces.
• Distribute malware, harmful code, spam, or content intended to disrupt our services.
• Harass, threaten, discriminate against, or abuse another participant, student, staff member, advisor, or mentor.
• Copy, redistribute, resell, or commercially exploit restricted Research Ustad materials without written permission.
• Misrepresent their relationship with Research Ustad or claim authority they have not been granted.

4. Course Registration and Enrollment

Registration for a course, workshop, training programme, or mentorship activity may require personal, academic and contact information. Participants are responsible for ensuring that the information they provide is accurate and current.

• Submission of a registration form does not necessarily confirm enrollment.
• Enrollment may be confirmed after eligibility review, seat availability, payment verification, or other stated requirements.
• Course schedules, instructors, learning platforms and delivery arrangements may be updated when reasonably necessary.
• Participants must follow the instructions communicated through official Research Ustad channels.
• Access to course materials or private groups may be limited to enrolled participants.

5. Course Fees and Payment Terms

The applicable course or programme fee will be communicated through the official course announcement, registration page, invoice, or other authorized communication.

• Participants must pay the applicable fee using the payment methods officially provided or approved by Research Ustad.
• Enrollment may remain pending until the payment has been successfully verified.
• Participants must provide accurate transaction information when requested for payment verification.
• A payment screenshot or transaction claim alone does not guarantee successful payment confirmation.
• Duplicate, failed, reversed, or disputed transactions will be reviewed using available transaction records.

5.1 Payment Gateway and Transaction Charges

Any applicable payment gateway fee, transaction fee, processing fee, or payment service charge imposed in connection with a transaction shall be borne by the student or customer, where applicable, in addition to the stated course or service fee.

The applicable charge may vary depending on the payment method and payment service provider. The final payable amount should be reviewed before completing the transaction.

For further information, please see Show Charges.

Charges already imposed by an external payment provider are generally not refundable by Research Ustad, subject to applicable law and the provider's own rules.

6. Return and Refund Policy for Paid Courses

The Return & Refund Policy applies exclusively to paid courses offered by Research Ustad, unless a specific programme expressly states otherwise.

Refund requests, eligibility, deductions and processing are governed by the separate Return & Refund Policy.

This course-specific refund policy does not automatically apply to research services, consulting, publication-related services, customized projects, donations, third-party fees, or other non-course services.

7. Research Associates (RA) and Junior Researchers

Research Associates and Junior Researchers may be appointed or onboarded to participate in research, academic, administrative, training, or organizational activities.

Depending on the appointment or assignment, they may be required to:

• Complete assigned research, literature review, data collection, analysis, documentation, or administrative tasks responsibly.
• Follow research protocols, supervisor instructions, timelines, and reporting procedures.
• Maintain confidentiality of unpublished research, participant information, internal documents and organizational materials.
• Communicate progress honestly and report errors, limitations, conflicts of interest, or research-integrity concerns.
• Avoid plagiarism, fabricated data, falsification, unauthorized data sharing and other forms of academic misconduct.
• Use organizational resources only for authorized purposes.

Appointment as an RA or Junior Researcher does not by itself guarantee employment, salary, stipend, scholarship, authorship, publication, admission, or a future appointment. Any compensation, benefits, duration, duties and special conditions must be confirmed in a separate written appointment or engagement document.

Volunteers and interns must not represent themselves as employees or authorized decision-makers unless expressly appointed to such a position.

8. Advisors and Mentors

Advisors and Mentors may provide academic guidance, research supervision, subject-specific advice, training, feedback, or professional support within the scope of their appointment.

• Advisors and Mentors should provide guidance within their relevant expertise and assigned responsibilities.
• They must communicate professionally and treat students and colleagues respectfully.
• They must protect confidential student, research and organizational information.
• They must disclose relevant conflicts of interest.
• They must not make unauthorized promises regarding publication, scholarships, admissions, employment, or guaranteed academic outcomes.
• They must not misuse their role, authority, access, or relationship with students or junior researchers.

An Advisor or Mentor appointment does not automatically establish an employment relationship. Compensation, honorarium, workload, duration, deliverables and other conditions will be governed by the relevant written agreement or appointment letter, where applicable.

9. Team Members, Coordinators and Representatives

Team Leads, coordinators, moderators, administrators and other representatives must act within the authority assigned to them. They must follow internal procedures and maintain professional conduct when communicating on behalf of Research Ustad.

No team member may independently enter into a financial, contractual, academic, or legal commitment on behalf of Research Ustad unless authorized to do so.

Access to internal systems, official accounts, student records, research files, or communication channels must be limited to legitimate role-related purposes.

10. Research Integrity and Academic Ethics

Research Ustad expects all participants and appointed personnel to uphold academic honesty, transparency and responsible research practices.

Prohibited activities include:

• Plagiarism or unattributed use of another person's work.
• Fabrication or falsification of research data or results.
• Manipulation of images, results, references, or research records in a misleading manner.
• Unauthorized use of confidential, personal, or restricted data.
• Improper authorship practices, including gift, guest, or undisclosed ghost authorship.
• Submission of work that violates the rules of a university, journal, conference, funder, or other relevant institution.

Research guidance and editorial support do not authorize anyone to misrepresent authorship, contribution, data ownership, or academic responsibility. Each researcher remains responsible for the accuracy and integrity of their own submissions.

11. Authorship, Intellectual Property and Materials

Ownership and permitted use of course materials, presentations, recordings, research documents, software, datasets, reports, and other intellectual property will depend on the source, applicable law, third-party rights and any written agreement.

• Research Ustad's original branding, website content, course materials and proprietary resources may not be copied, resold, or redistributed without permission.
• Students and participants retain rights in their original work, subject to third-party rights and any applicable collaboration or institutional agreement.
• Authorship must reflect actual scholarly contributions and follow relevant journal, conference and institutional rules.
• Data, code and materials supplied by third parties remain subject to their applicable licenses and restrictions.

Any specific transfer, license, confidentiality obligation, or ownership arrangement must be recorded in a separate written agreement where necessary.

12. Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure

Users and appointed personnel may receive access to confidential information, including unpublished research, student records, personal data, internal discussions, business information, credentials and non-public documents.

Such information must not be disclosed, published, copied, transferred, or used outside the authorized purpose without appropriate permission, except where disclosure is legally required.

Confidentiality obligations may continue after a person's course participation, appointment, collaboration, or other relationship with Research Ustad ends.

13. Certificates and Academic Outcomes

Certificates, participation letters, experience letters, or other acknowledgements may be issued only when the relevant eligibility and verification requirements are met.

Research Ustad does not guarantee publication acceptance, journal indexing, scholarship awards, university admission, employment, examination results, or any other external academic or professional outcome.

Decisions made by universities, journals, publishers, funding agencies, examination bodies and other independent organizations remain outside Research Ustad's control.

14. Scheduling, Changes and Service Availability

Research Ustad may reasonably modify class schedules, instructors, session formats, platforms, programme content, or administrative arrangements when required.

Participants will be informed through available official communication channels when material changes affect a programme. Website access and digital services may occasionally be interrupted for maintenance, security, technical issues, or circumstances beyond our control.

15. Suspension and Termination

Research Ustad may restrict, suspend, or terminate access to a service, course, group, account, appointment, or organizational activity where reasonably necessary, including in cases of:

• Serious misconduct, harassment, or abusive behavior.
• Fraudulent registration or payment-related misconduct.
• Unauthorized access or misuse of organizational resources.
• Academic misconduct or breach of research integrity.
• Confidentiality or data-protection violations.
• Repeated failure to meet agreed responsibilities.
• Legal, security, or operational requirements.

Where appropriate, Research Ustad may review the matter and provide an opportunity for clarification. Any financial consequences will be handled under the applicable agreement and policy.

16. Third-Party Services and External Links

Research Ustad may use or link to third-party platforms for payment processing, online classes, communication, cloud storage, academic resources, or other services.

Such platforms may have their own terms, privacy policies, fees, and security practices. Research Ustad is not responsible for independent third-party decisions or services beyond its reasonable control.

17. Limitation of Responsibility

Research Ustad aims to provide accurate and useful educational and research support. However, information and guidance are provided for their stated academic or informational purpose and do not constitute a guarantee of a particular result.

To the extent permitted by applicable law, Research Ustad is not responsible for indirect losses arising from a user's independent decisions, third-party services, or external academic decisions.

Nothing in these terms excludes liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limits any non-waivable rights under applicable law.

18. Privacy and Personal Information

Personal information is handled according to our Privacy Policy. By using relevant services, users acknowledge that information may be processed for registration, communication, administration, security, payment verification and other disclosed purposes.

19. Changes to These Terms

Research Ustad may update these Terms & Conditions from time to time to reflect changes in its services, operational requirements, legal obligations, or policies.

The updated version will be published on the official website with a revised date. Continued use of the relevant services after the effective date of an update constitutes acceptance of the updated terms, to the extent permitted by law.

20. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These terms shall be interpreted in accordance with the applicable laws of Bangladesh, subject to mandatory legal requirements and the jurisdiction of competent courts.

Where appropriate, parties are encouraged to first attempt to resolve concerns through good-faith communication with Research Ustad before pursuing formal remedies.