UX Academy Policies

• You have the right to cancel your enrollment according to the policies outlined in your Student Agreement for your specific track. You must contact Designlab to cancel your enrollment.
• You can cancel the course within the first two weeks after the course launch for any reason and receive a full refund for all payments made including the enrollment deposit. After this two-week period, the enrollment deposit becomes non-refundable (except for a refund granted under the Tuition Reimbursement Policy as described below, available only for Full-time and Part-time students).
• If you cancel your enrollment at any time after the initial two-week period, Designlab will issue a prorated refund for the unearned portion of the tuition, less the non-refundable deposit fee. Please refer to the Withdrawal and Refund Policy section in your Student Agreement.
• If you have received federal student financial aid funds, you are entitled to a refund of monies not paid from federal student financial aid program funds.
• While processing times may vary, all refunds due will be submitted within 45 days of the effective cancellation or withdrawal date.
• If you complete the entire curriculum of the program (Phases 1 & 2) in less calendar time than scheduled, you will not be entitled to any refund due to earlier completion.
• If you do not utilize all mentor sessions or other resources provided by your scheduled completion date, you are not due a refund for any unused sessions or other resources.
• Career Services is an optional additional service that Designlab provides free of charge for students who have successfully earned their course certificate by their scheduled completion date, and therefore is not included in the refund calculation.
• A refund may only be requested by the student enrolled in the program, with the following exceptions: the course was invoiced to a third-party entity or cardholder, a student is unable to request a refund for themselves due to exceptional circumstances such as illness, accident, or death.
  

• Working Mac or PC with a high-speed internet connection

• Camera and microphone for video/audio access during the mentor/community video calls
• Professional design software of the student’s choice — options include Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Sketch (available on Mac OS only), Figma.
  

UX Academy is a rigorous academic program that requires students to complete all coursework, attend mentor sessions and group crits, and submit a completed portfolio for review at the end of Phase 2. To graduate from UX Academy, students must receive a passing rating from the portfolio review team.

Please note that students on the Full-time and Part-time tracks that are eligible for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy should refer to the Tuition Reimbursement Checklist section of the student agreement to keep track of eligibility. It is the sole responsibility of the student to keep track of requirements for UX Academy, Career Services, and Tuition Reimbursement Policy. The Designlab team will not conduct an audit for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy until a student has concluded their time in Career Services.

Inactivity: Full-Time and Part-Time Students Only

For Full-time and Part-time students inactivity is considered an unexcused absence from the course. To maintain an active status throughout their enrollment, students must take measurable action in the Designlab platform as detailed in this Help Center Article.  If your enrollment is flagged due to inactivity, you are no longer eligible for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy.

Students on the Self-Paced track will not receive inactivity notices, as unscheduled, unannounced, variable-length breaks from participating in the program are permitted within the 18-month enrollment period.

Pausing

Students on the Full-time and Part-Time Tracks are allotted two pauses, each one week long, to use at their discretion throughout the course. During a pause, students will have access to coursework, but won’t be able to schedule mentor sessions. 

As with inactivity, students on the Self-Paced track will not be paused due to the extended timeline of their course. As a courtesy, they should alert their mentors when taking significant time away.

Accommodations

Designlab has deliberately designed the UX Academy program to allow a large degree of flexibility and inclusivity for our students. Specifically, students are able to access course content remotely, create a work environment that meets their specific needs, and work at the time of day or work that best suits their needs. 

We will review requests for reasonable accommodations on a case-by-case basis. Students or their mentors may contact us here regarding accommodation requests. Requests for accommodation need to be made in writing as soon as the student or mentor is aware that accommodation is required.

Reasons for accommodation may include but are not limited to chronic health conditions, cognitive disabilities, physical disabilities, and psychological disabilities.

Mentorship

Students are offered 30 Mentor Sessions during UX Academy: 14 during Phase 1 and 16 during Phase 2. 

‍Mentor sessions should be scheduled in alignment with the course modules. Students falling behind should not schedule sessions weekly. For more information please see this article in our Help Center.

‍Mentorship access, which includes access to Group Crits, within UX Academy will expire according to the mentorship policies outlined in your Student Agreement for your specific track. 

‍Students must give their mentor at least 24 hours notice if they need to cancel or reschedule a 1-on-1 session. Failure to do so will result in the session being forfeited and counted towards utilized sessions.

‍Unused sessions cannot be carried over from one phase to another. 

‍If a student uses all sessions before completing the current Phase, they may purchase additional sessions on request by contacting our Customer Experience team. 

‍A request to switch mentors for any reason must be submitted in writing by contacting Designlab. Mentor switch requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and granting a mentor switch request is at the discretion of the Designlab team.   

‍Students are not guaranteed to retain the same mentor throughout their course due to circumstances including, but not limited to: mentor leave, extended student pauses, and schedule adjustments of either party. Therefore, Designlab reserves the right to switch students to a new mentor at any point during their enrollment and will notify the student via email.

Group Crits

Students should attend the minimum number of Group Crits specified for their track in their Student Agreement.

‍Some Group Crit session requirements may be excused by Designlab, for example in the case of certain holidays. In the case that Group Crits are specified as optional for a certain time period, students would not be required to make up those sessions.

Grounds for Course Withdrawal

Designlab reserves the right to withdraw students from UX Academy at any point throughout the program. Reasons for withdrawal include but are not limited to, failing to meet any of the requirements outlined above, as well as the following criteria. If you are eligible for a prorated refund, this will be processed upon withdrawal. 

• Students must adhere to the Designlab Code of Conduct. Any breach is grounds for immediate withdrawal. Review the Designlab Code of Conduct here.
• Inappropriate or abusive behavior towards mentors, fellow students, or Designlab staff is unacceptable.
• We do not tolerate any plagiarism or academic misconduct.

Enrollments in Career Services begin the week following graduation and last for up to 26 weeks post-graduation, excluding any community-wide breaks. 

Unused sessions expire at the end of Career Services or on your formal acceptance of a job offer. 

Students must report any offers for part-time, freelance, contract, or full-time roles.

Pausing in Career Services

Students are eligible to take 1 week of pause during Career Services. This pause time will not affect Tuition Reimbursement Policy eligibility or impact the duration of the Career Services enrollment.

Additional Time Away

We allow for a total of 60 days away from Career Services for various exceptional circumstances. This time away is separate from the 1-week pause provided and will not extend your enrollment time in Career Services. In all cases, stepping away from Career Services for more than one week will forfeit eligibility for Tuition Reimbursement for Full-time and Part-time students.

For time away lasting longer than 30 days, students may need to be matched to a new Coach upon their return.

If you wish to take more than 60 days of time away from your job search during Career Services, you may do so, but you will immediately forfeit further mentorship.

Reporting Hires

If you accept an offer for a UX/UI Design job at any point during UX Academy or Career Services, you must let us know in a timely manner by completing the "I'm Hired" form in your student dashboard. 

Students who are hired prior to completion of UX Academy may discuss options contacting our Customer Experience team. Students who have signed a full-time offer prior to the completion of their enrollment will have access to up to 2 more Career Services sessions with a Career Coach.

This policy is only available for students on the Part-time and Full-Time track. Self-Paced students are not eligible for Tuition Reimbursement.

This policy is designed to support your entry into the design field with rigorous requirements that have led to candidate success. You may be eligible for a tuition reimbursement if you are unable to receive a qualifying job offer within 6 months of graduating from UX Academy, provided you satisfy all requirements below. No exceptions to this policy are granted for any purpose. You will be held accountable to the version of the requirements you agree to in this student agreement as well as any additional agreements you might sign as you progress through the course.  

Students eligible for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy should refer to the Tuition Reimbursement Checklist section below to keep track of eligibility. It is the sole responsibility of the student to keep track of requirements for UX Academy, Career Services, and Tuition Reimbursement Policy. The Designlab team will not conduct an audit for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy until a student has concluded their time in Career Services.

If you receive an offer of any type, paid or unpaid, you must let us know by completing the “I’ve Been Hired” form which you will find on your student dashboard. Any paid design role with >20 hours/week for 4 or more weeks of work will count as a qualifying offer, rendering the reimbursement null and void. Failure to report a qualifying offer is a breach of the Career Services Requirements.

Eligibility for the Tuition Reimbursement Policy does not determine your access to the course as outlined in the above sections. That said, we recommend that regardless of eligibility, students do their best to keep up with the Reimbursement requirements, as we've found those who do are more likely to land a job in the field earlier in Career Services. 

To request your reimbursement

You must submit your tuition reimbursement request in writing to hello@designlab.com not more than 9 months after your Career Services launch date. You must provide evidence that you fulfill all the eligibility requirements listed by completing and attaching a copy of the tuition reimbursement checklist below.

Please note, to remain eligible for tuition reimbursement you must meet all graduation and Career Services requirements, which are included in the comprehensive checklist below. All of the below requirements must be completed before requesting the reimbursement; any proof/evidence submitted after the fact is inadmissible.

It is the sole responsibility of the student to keep track of the eligibility requirements and their fulfillment of the requirements. .

Tuition Reimbursement Checklist

GENERAL

• You are over 21 years of age
• You are legally able to work in your primary job search location
• You may not miss 2 or more payments while on a Designlab payment plan
• Your enrollment must not be flagged inactive due to declined payments
• You live within commuting distance (90 minutes) of your primary job search location
• Your primary job search location is on our list of eligible cities (see list below)

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UX ACADEMY

You must complete 100% of required weekly readings and have projects completed and mentor approved:

• This includes a formal review at the end of Phase 1 of UX Academy where your mentor will ascertain your overall development and ability to proceed to Phase 2. If your work does not meet the required quality by the end of Phase 1, you will be asked to repeat work and develop your skills before moving on to Phase 2.

You need to make sure that all mentor suggested iterations are re-submitted and approved

You must not fall behind more than 40 hours at any point during the course or become inactive at any point

You cannot take more than 2 pauses and each pause may not exceed 1 week

• Special exceptions are allowed for parental leave.

You must attend all mentor sessions in Phase 1 and Phase 2

• Out of respect for your mentor’s time, if you need to cancel or reschedule a session, you must give your mentor at least 24 hours notice. Failure to do so will result in the session being forfeited and counted towards your session limit with that mentor (for this tuition reimbursement requirement, a forfeited session does not count as an attended session).

You must attend the minimum number of Group Crit sessions specified in your Student Agreement

GRADUATING UX ACADEMY

You must submit your final portfolio for panel review no later than 4 weeks after the Scheduled Completion Date listed at the top of your UX Academy Student Agreement.

• If there are any Designlab-sponsored break periods (e.g. Winter Holiday break), then for this requirement the Scheduled Completion Date will be adjusted by the official duration of the break(s).
• You must pass this review to graduate from the program and enter Career Services. If you do not wish to enter Career Services, you must still pass the review to graduate.

You must pass portfolio review within 4 weeks of your first submission

• If there are any Designlab-sponsored break periods (e.g. Winter Holiday break), then for this requirement, the 4 week period will be increased by the official duration of the break(s).
• In the case that your portfolio does not pass the review, you will be allotted additional time and mentor sessions to prep and polish your portfolio. You will remain in this prep phase until you and your mentor determine you are ready to submit for another review. If this process takes longer than 4 weeks, you will no longer be eligible for tuition reimbursement.

CAREER SERVICES

Career Services is an optional, additional program that Designlab provides free of charge for students who have successfully earned their course certificate by their scheduled completion date. It is designed to support students in landing their first UX/UI job.

All students must meet minimum activity requirements to stay enrolled in Career Services. If you do not meet these minimum requirements, your enrollment status will be flagged as Inactive and you may be removed from the program.

As long as you have sessions remaining and have been meeting all other requirements (including activity requirements), you can meet with your Coach throughout Career Services during your job search (26 weeks post-graduation). Unused sessions expire at the end of Career Services or on your formal acceptance of a job offer.

You must maintain an active status in Career Services by doing the following:

• Start Career Services immediately after graduation.
• Work through Career Services without taking more than one week-long pause.
• Attend all weekly Career Services sessions with no forfeited sessions.
• Respond to all Career Coach and Designlab staff communications within 2 business days.
• Complete 100% of required readings and required projects in the CS curriculum and have projects mentor approved.

You must adequately track your job search:

• Set up your Huntr account. When you start Career Services, you’ll receive an invitation to set up your job hunting board. Accept the invite, set up your account, and share your board with your Career Coach.
• Keep your Huntr Board updated weekly and apply to at least 10 jobs per week (at least 5 in your primary job search location, up to 5 additional hybrid or in-office roles), starting in Week 3 of Career Services at the latest. All job applications must be logged in Huntr within one week of applying to be counted. Any applications tracked outside of Huntr will not be considered.
• At least 10 jobs per week must be for generalist positions (e.g. job titles such as UX Designer, UX/UI Designer, or Product Designer). Any jobs tracked for specialized roles (e.g. job titles such as UX Researcher, UX Strategist, UX Analyst, etc…) do not count toward the weekly 10-job minimum.
• If you receive an offer of any type, paid or unpaid, you must let us know by completing the “I’m Hired” form which you will find on your student dashboard. Any paid design role with >20 hours/week for 4 or more weeks of work will count as a qualifying offer, rendering the reimbursement null and void. Failure to report a qualifying offer is a breach of the Career Services Code of Conduct.

You must develop your skills during the job search:

• Complete all assigned work in Career Services, each week. There are 2 types of projects in Career Services: regular projects, and bonus projects (Design Challenges). Design Challenges are not required. They are meant to help you keep practicing, and you should speak with your Coach about which ones you and they find useful for your development. Regular design projects and any relevant design challenges should be submitted each week.
• If you get a freelance project, internship, placement through the Designlab Partnerships program, or part-time UX/UI or Product design role, this will take the place of all design curriculum for the duration of the role. Tracking work to meet the weekly requirement is up to the student and, if requested, you must successfully prove that the work was completed during the weeks you do not complete the design curriculum.
• Attend a minimum of 1 relevant networking event per month AND conduct 1 unique informational interview each month. These can be completed either in person (in your primary job search location) or virtually. For additional details on what qualifies as a valid networking event please see our Help Center.

Additional notes

The Tuition Reimbursement Policy does not apply to students who have been convicted of a felony in the last seven years. Students on the Self-Paced Track are not eligible for this policy.

Eligible Cities Checklist:

Last Updated: September 24th, 2024