Rules of Engagement
Effective: September 24, 2025
Congratulations on beginning your BlendED journey!
We are excited for you to build your fundamental knowledge and skill set, and apply yourself to projects. In order to have a successful learning plan and to ensure that you get the most out of the program, we have provided some necessary guidelines. Please take your time to review the following terms. By enrolling in any program, you agree to follow all BlendED rules of engagement.
The Roles of BlendED
During your time in the BlendED programs, you will interact with the following key roles throughout the process:
- Program Advisor: Introduces you to the BlendED Program and helps you choose the plan that’s best for you.
- Mentor: Meets with you virtually throughout your BlendED experience to help you create your program schedule, as well as offer advice and support.
- Academic Advisor: Manages your selected SPOC or PBL program and is your primary contact throughout the specific program.
Rules of Engagement
Program Rescheduling and Cancellation
Learners can reschedule their SPOC(s) at least 15 business days prior to the course start date by submitting a cancellation request form. Learners are allowed to reschedule or cancel their hands-on or research projects within 2 weeks after the project begins by submitting a cancellation request form. No extra fees or tuition applied and no refund will be considered for any rescheduling or cancellations within the learning plan period.
Attendance and Camera Policy
Attendance is taken at all SPOC and PBL live sessions. Students anticipating an absence from a live session are required to contact their Project’s Academic Advisor at least 24 hours before the live session starts. They are also responsible for any makeup work needed to catch up with their teammates. Valid reasons to miss a live session include: illness, conflicting academic work or personal emergencies.
In PBLs, learners who don't attend the Live Sessions and are approaching the 3-absence threshold without submitting an Approval request will be disqualified from any PBL outcomes including PBL Evaluation Report and Letter of Recommendation Submit.
In order to create a participatory environment in PBL live sessions, all participants are required to have their camera on during meetings. Any learners that have their cameras off during the Live Sessions will be marked absent for that session.
Missed and Rescheduled Sessions
The Projects are expected to be completed within their scheduled timelines. If an individual or team collectively cannot make a session in a given week, the session may or may not be rescheduled for a later time, but any rescheduled session will not elongate the overall length of the projects. Learners are encouraged to attend all sessions at their scheduled times to avoid rescheduling and cleanly divide sessions across the allotted time.
PBL Evaluation Report
At the conclusion of a PBL program, successful participants will be given a written PBL Evaluation Report which can be used as a recommendation letter. Project participants understand that the quality of their summary report is contingent upon their own performance, and to assert an honest effort in the Projects.
Learners who do not perform to the satisfaction of the Project Lead may receive an evaluation report which summarizes their work in the Projects, but is not recommending in tone. Participants may also be denied a report for any reason, including but not limited to the following:
- Three or more unexcused absences
- Failure to submit a final project and/or paper
- Rude or hostile learner communication
- Non-contributive or low-contributive participation across the Projects
- Plagiarized work
Learners may not directly approach Project Leads for recommendation submissions. Learners who wish to have the Project Lead view their PBL Evaluation Report or have it submitted to an institution by the project lead should fill out the appropriate form on MyDashboard.
Learner Conduct
All learners are expected to demonstrate respect and courtesy for others and behave in a responsible manner. There is no tolerance for abusive language or intimidation to any participants in any program. Any learners found to be harassing, bullying, or threatening others will be removed from the program with no refund.
Responses and Enrollment Confirmation
Learners are required to maintain the email address they registered for BlendED with, and check it on a regular basis prior to a Project start date for enrollment links into the Project group. Failure or delay to onboard into PBL groups in a timely manner may result in termination of the program enrollment.
All learners should also check their messages on the learning system on a regular basis for crucial Project updates.
Academic Probation
Learners who enroll into a project but do not complete the requirements to satisfaction (i.e. dropping out of the project, not submitting a final project, being a generally unreliable member of a team even if a final project is submitted) may be placed on Academic Probation. Learners on Academic Probation will not be assigned to a team in their upcoming projects until they complete a call with BlendED’s Academic Manager to discuss their plan for successfully completing future projects. Upon successful completion of a PBL following the call, the Academic Probation will be formally lifted.
Learners who do not complete the call may still participate in their upcoming PBLs, but only as a solo project. Continued unsatisfactory completion and falling into Academic Probation a second time after holding the call with the Academic Manager may result in students permanently losing the ability to be assigned to a team for all future PBLs. Falling into Academic Probation may also affect learner’s ability to participate in PBL Research Extension.
Non-Disclosure Agreement
Any private data records shared in the programs must not be used for any purpose other than project development. Should learners seek publication of research which utilizes the private data, they must first get written consent from the Project Lead.
Academic Integrity & Plagiarism
Learners agree to complete all aspects of the project on their own or with teammates, unless collaborating with other teams as explicitly permitted. They also agree to maintain only one account that is operated only by themselves. They also agree to refrain from activity that would dishonestly improve their results, or improve or hurt the results of others.
By submitting their final work, learners guarantee that their writing is free of any plagiarism, and must also include a bibliographic reference of any cited work. Learners who are unsure if their use of prior work constitutes plagiarism should consult Project’s Academic Advisor, as well as plagiarism policies of their home university.
Learning Platform Usage
When accessing BlendED’s learning platform for any reason, participants must only use the account given to them by BlendED and no other account. They also must refrain from giving their login information to any other person within or outside of BlendED.
Screenshots and Recordings
Recording and screenshotting of any Project sessions is strictly prohibited. All sessions are recorded and posted in the Projects’s group shortly after the meeting. These recordings are intended only for the purpose of reviewing discussed content, and are not allowed to be shared with anyone outside of the Projects.
Courses and Projects Adjustment
BlendED is constantly changing and improving our educational content and service. The delivery format of Projects is subject to improvements and updates in order to enhance the learning journey. Learners are encouraged to embrace the updates and adjustment of the learning goods and services.
Continued Work
At the conclusion of the Projects, learners who wish for more assistance from the Project Lead in developing their project research further may opt for PBL Research Extension Sessions, which offer additional advising time. Learners who wish to continue working on their Projects must contact the Project’s Academic Advisor to set up the sessions, and must communicate their project progress.
Other than the PBL Research Extension, any communication between Project Leads and Project participants is not considered BlendED programming. Responses to direct messages from a Project participant to a Project Lead following the conclusion of the Projects are at the discretion of the Project Lead, and Project participants may not receive a response.
