Ten clauses. Signed by the provider before the programme is listed.
The Program Backed Standard is the ruleset every participating programme accepts in writing. It converts marketing claims into contractual commitments, and gives candidates a document they can hold the provider to.
Clause 1 — The employment commitment is contractual
A participating programme must specify, in the Framework Agreement Schedule B, the employment outcome it commits to: the type of role, the placement window in days, and the geographies in scope. "Career support" and "hiring partner introductions" alone do not satisfy Clause 1. If the commitment is not written into Schedule B, it is not a commitment on the framework.
Clause 2 — Money-back terms are written and administered by us
Schedule C sets out the refund the candidate receives if the commitment in Schedule B is not met: the amount, the trigger, the timeline, and the deductions (if any) that apply. Program Backed administers the refund. It is not conditional on the candidate signing an NDA, waiving future claims, or providing testimonials.
Clause 3 — Curriculum stability
The syllabus, hours of instruction, and mode of delivery published at enrolment cannot be materially changed mid-cohort without the candidate's written consent. Providers may add material, correct errors, or accelerate. They may not remove modules, reduce instructor hours, or switch a full-time cohort to self-paced content without consent.
Clause 4 — Documented placement support
Every participating programme must document, before enrolment, the placement support the candidate is entitled to: 1:1 mentor cadence, CV and portfolio review, mock interviews, and warm employer introductions. Support obligations survive until the commitment in Schedule B has been met or Schedule C has been triggered — whichever comes first.
Clause 5 — Honest headline numbers
Every outcome number a provider publishes on its programme page — employment rate, success rate, median starting salary, median prior salary, placement days, salary uplift — must be reconcilable to the underlying cohort data. Providers may not present selective cohorts, exclude non-completers without disclosure, or count contractor and unpaid roles as "placements".
What counts as a placement
- Paid employment in the discipline the programme trains for.
- Salary at or above the floor set out in Schedule B.
- Employment retained for at least the minimum tenure in Schedule B (typically 90 days).
Clause 6 — Independent audit
Placement claims are reviewed on a rolling quarterly cycle by a team independent of the commercial function of the framework. Providers must supply, on request, the underlying records (offer letters, payroll evidence, employer confirmation) for a sample selected by the audit team. Refusal to supply records is grounds for immediate suspension.
Clause 7 — Cohort cap and honest availability
The seat count published for a cohort is a hard cap. Providers cannot oversell a cohort against undocumented placement capacity, and cannot use "limited seats" language without a corresponding contractual cohort size in Schedule B.
Clause 8 — Data honesty and candidate access
The candidate is entitled to a copy of their signed Framework Agreement, the Schedules in force at signature, and any subsequent variation they have consented to — at any time, for the life of their relationship with the programme, and for at least six years afterwards. Program Backed holds an authoritative copy in addition to the provider.
Clause 9 — Public correction of misstatements
If the audit finds that a published outcome number cannot be substantiated, the provider must correct the number publicly within ten business days. Candidates who enrolled on the strength of the misstated number are entitled to the remedies in Schedule C without prejudice to other rights.
Clause 10 — Suspension and removal
Program Backed may suspend a programme for the duration of an investigation, or remove it from the framework, for repeated or material breach of any clause. Suspension and removal do not extinguish existing candidates' rights under the Framework Agreements they have already signed — those rights are transferred to a resolution reserve administered by Program Backed.
How a programme is admitted
- The provider submits its programme, outcome numbers, and evidence of past cohorts.
- Program Backed conducts a documentation review and requests source records for a random sample of prior placements.
- The provider signs the Framework Agreement template, populated with its own Schedules B and C.
- The programme is listed. Every subsequent cohort is included in the rolling audit.