Policies and Legal Notices

Privacy Policy

AOSARS is committed to protecting the personal data of every learner, consultancy client and visitor who interacts with aosars.com. This Privacy Policy explains what we collect, why we collect it, how we use it and the rights you have over it.

1.1 Categories of personal data we process

• Identification data. Full name, national identity or passport number, photograph, date of birth and country of residence.
• Contact data. Email address, telephone number and postal address.
• Academic data. Prior qualifications, institutional affiliation, course enrolled in, assessment submissions, grades and certificates issued.
• Consultancy data. Engagement scopes, project deliverables, payment records and signed contracts where you are a consultancy client.
• Financial data. Fees paid, payment method, transaction confirmation codes, bank or card last-four digits and invoices issued.
• Technical data. IP address, browser type, device identifier, operating system, referring URL and pages visited.
• Behavioural data. Time spent on lessons, quiz scores, forum posts and feedback submitted.
• Special-category data. Processed only where you choose to disclose it for a defined purpose, in which case it is held under additional safeguards.

1.2 Lawful bases

We rely on the lawful bases recognised under applicable Kenyan data protection law:

• Consent for newsletter subscriptions and non-essential cookies.
• Contract for the delivery of training courses, coaching and consultancy engagements.
• Legal obligation for tax, audit and statutory reporting.
• Legitimate interests for operating, securing and improving aosars.com, preventing fraud and pursuing legitimate teaching and research purposes that do not override your fundamental rights.
• Vital interests where processing is necessary to protect your life or health.

1.3 Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or for longer where applicable law requires it. Academic records and certificates are retained indefinitely as an archival record, so that you can verify your qualifications for the rest of your professional life. Consultancy contracts and reports are retained for seven years after the engagement closes, on a contractual and statutory basis. Marketing consent and contact data are retained until you withdraw consent and then for a further ninety days. Website analytics are retained for twenty-six months on the basis of our legitimate interest in understanding how aosars.com is used. Records of unsuccessful applications are retained for twelve months so that we can manage the reapplication pipeline. At the end of the applicable period, data is securely deleted or anonymised.

1.4 Sharing

We do not sell personal data. We disclose it only to processors and partners under written contract, including our third-party payment gateway providers, email and SMS providers, cloud-storage providers, and to authorities where compelled by law. Where you make a payment on aosars.com, the relevant payment gateway may in turn share transaction and identification data with card networks, issuing banks, mobile-money operators, regulators and other financial-services partners for the purposes of completing the payment, detecting fraud, verifying identity and complying with applicable law. We may also share specified academic data with scholarship sponsors and employer partners where you have authorised us in writing.

1.5 International transfers

Where data must be transferred outside Kenya, for example to a cloud provider with regional servers in another jurisdiction, we ensure compliance with applicable data protection law through appropriate safeguards including Standard Contractual Clauses, an adequacy decision or your explicit consent.

1.6 Your rights

Under applicable Kenyan data protection law, you have the right to be informed, to access, to correct, to delete, to object, to data portability, to withdraw consent and to lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority. To exercise any of these rights, write to info@aosars.com. We will respond within 30 days. There is no charge for the first request in any twelve-month period.

Cookie Policy

A cookie is a small text file placed on your device when you visit a website. We use cookies on aosars.com to keep you logged in, to remember your preferences, to understand how our site is used and, where you consent, to measure the effectiveness of our communications.

2.1 Categories of cookies we use

2.2 Managing your consent

On your first visit, our cookie banner offers you a clear choice: Accept All, Reject All or Customise. You may change your choice at any time through the Cookie Settings link on the website. Withdrawing consent is as easy as granting it.

2.3 Browser controls

Most browsers allow you to refuse or delete cookies through their settings. Note that disabling strictly necessary cookies will prevent you from logging in or completing payment on aosars.com.

Acceptable Use Policy

This policy sets out how you may and may not use aosars.com, the AOSARS Learning Management System and any communications channel we operate. It supplements the Terms of Service.

3.1 Permitted use

You may use AOSARS systems to access training courses you are enrolled in, to engage with peers and facilitators on course-related matters, to engage AOSARS as a consultancy provider and to communicate with AOSARS staff on legitimate business.

3.2 Prohibited use

• Sharing login credentials or accessing AOSARS systems using another person's credentials.
• Attempting unauthorised access to any account, system, network or data.
• Downloading, copying, recording, screen-capturing, scraping, crawling or otherwise extracting AOSARS course materials, lectures or content by any means, manual or automated. AOSARS materials are made available for in-platform consumption only.
• Re-distributing, re-uploading, mirroring or sharing AOSARS materials on any other platform, including private channels.
• Uploading or transmitting malware, viruses or any code designed to disrupt or damage.
• Uploading content that is unlawful, defamatory, obscene, threatening or that infringes the rights of others.
• Using AOSARS systems to send unsolicited commercial communications or chain mail.
• Reverse-engineering or decompiling AOSARS software.

3.3 Consequences of breach

Breach may result in immediate suspension or termination of your account, forfeiture of all fees paid, civil action for recovery of damages and, where the conduct amounts to a criminal offence under applicable Kenyan law, referral to the relevant authorities.

Accessibility Statement

AOSARS is committed to making aosars.com and our learning content as widely usable as we reasonably can. This statement explains what we currently provide and how to give us feedback so we can improve over time.

4.1 What we currently provide

• Text that can be resized through standard browser controls.
• Readable contrast between text and background across our pages.
• Captions on the majority of our video lessons.
• Clear, structured page layouts that work on desktop, tablet and mobile devices.

4.2 Where we fall short

AOSARS is not currently certified to any formal accessibility conformance standard. Some older content, embedded media and third-party integrations may not yet meet the level of accessibility we aim for. We continue to improve in this area.

4.3 Feedback

If you encounter a barrier to using aosars.com, please tell us. Email info@aosars.com describing the page, the difficulty and your assistive technology if relevant. We aim to respond within five working days.

Age Eligibility

AOSARS is designed for adult researchers, postgraduate students, academics, professionals and institutions. Our courses sit at Masters, doctoral and continuing-professional-development levels. Our consultancy serves institutional and donor-funded clients. The platform is not intended for, marketed to or appropriate for persons under 18 years of age.

5.1 Minimum age

You must be at least 18 years old to register an account, enrol in a course or engage AOSARS as a consultancy provider. By registering you confirm that you meet this requirement.

5.2 No processing of children's data

We do not knowingly collect or process personal data of any person under 18 years of age. If we become aware that we have collected such data without verifiable parental consent, we will delete it without delay. If you believe we hold the data of a person under 18, please notify info@aosars.com.

Terms of Service

These Terms of Service form a legally binding contract between you and AOSARS. By creating an account, enrolling in a course, or commissioning consultancy services, you agree to be bound by them. If you do not agree, you must not use the platform.

6.1 Eligibility

You may register if you are at least 18 years old and legally able to enter into a contract under Kenyan law. Where a course requires a specific prior qualification, you confirm on registration that you hold it.

6.2 Your account

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials. You must not share your account. Notify us immediately at info@aosars.com if you suspect unauthorised access. We may suspend or terminate accounts that are shared, that show signs of automation or that breach these Terms.

6.3 The services we provide

AOSARS provides applied research training and support services to learners and institutions across Africa and beyond. Our offerings include:

• Online courses in Research Software (including SPSS, Mendeley, MS Word and Turnitin), Proposal Writing and Data Analysis, at entry, Masters and PhD levels.
• Future Ready Short Courses and NGO Professional E-Courses for working professionals.
• Coaching for postgraduate researchers, including thesis coaching, proposal coaching and defence preparation.
• Research support services, including thesis writing support, data analysis support and reference materials sourcing.
• Applied research consultancy for institutional, donor-funded and corporate clients.
• E-books and book publishing for scholarly works in research methodology and applied analysis.
• An e-repository of research-related resources.

All training courses include a self-paced component. We use reasonable endeavours to maintain availability of aosars.com but we do not warrant uninterrupted access. Scheduled maintenance will normally be announced 48 hours in advance.

6.4 Fees, currency and pricing display

All AOSARS fees are quoted in United States Dollars (USD), which is the contractual currency of every transaction on aosars.com.

For learners visiting from selected African countries (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria and Rwanda), the website may automatically display an approximate equivalent price in the local currency. This local-currency figure is generated by a third-party multi-currency display tool that detects the visitor's location by IP geolocation and converts the USD price using exchange rates obtained periodically from third-party rate providers. The rates shown refresh on a schedule, so they may differ from the rate available at the moment you complete payment. The USD figure stated on the course page remains the contractual amount.

The amount finally debited from your payment instrument may differ from the indicative local-currency price shown on the site because of (i) the exchange rate applied by your card issuer, mobile-money operator or bank at the point of authorisation, and (ii) any foreign-exchange margin, cross-border or transaction fee imposed by your issuer. AOSARS has no control over and accepts no responsibility for those issuer-side adjustments.

Course fees and prerequisites are stated on the relevant course page. Consultancy fees, scope and method of engagement are stated on the page of each consultancy service. Receipts are issued by email within 48 hours of cleared funds.

6.5 Payment processing through third-party gateways

AOSARS uses one or more third-party payment gateways to process payments on aosars.com. By submitting payment, you accept the terms of use and privacy notice of the relevant gateway in respect of the payment transaction itself, in addition to these Terms. Where required, links to the active gateways' terms are made available at checkout.

The following terms apply to every payment processed through a third-party gateway on aosars.com:

• Payment authorisation. By entering your payment details and confirming a purchase, you authorise AOSARS, through the relevant gateway, to charge the payment instrument you provide for the full amount of the service you have selected, together with any applicable taxes and bank charges, in the contractual currency of the transaction.
• Cardholder and wallet data. Card numbers, mobile-money credentials, bank account numbers and similar payment-instrument details are collected and processed by the gateway on its own secure infrastructure. AOSARS does not see, store or otherwise have access to your full payment-instrument details. AOSARS works only with gateways that are certified to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) at an appropriate level for the volume processed.
• Supported payment instruments. Subject to availability in your country, the active gateways support international and local debit and credit cards, mobile money, bank transfers, USSD payments and gateway wallet balances. The instruments actually presented to you at checkout depend on the gateway active for your region.
• Currency at the gateway. The gateway processes the charge in the contractual currency stated at checkout. Where your payment instrument is denominated in a different currency, your card issuer, mobile-money operator or bank will apply its own foreign-exchange conversion and may add a fee. AOSARS has no visibility of, and no control over, that conversion or fee.
• Failed and pending transactions. Where a transaction fails, is declined or is held pending by the gateway or your issuer, no service is delivered until the transaction completes successfully. AOSARS is not liable for service unavailability arising from a failed, declined or pending payment.
• Chargebacks raised in bad faith. A chargeback raised by a learner in bad faith, where the service was in fact delivered or is being delivered, is treated as a material breach of these Terms. AOSARS reserves the right to recover the disputed amount in full, together with any chargeback fee or penalty imposed by the gateway or the card networks, by any lawful means, and to suspend the learner's account pending resolution.
• Settlement-specific disputes. Where a dispute relates specifically to the gateway's settlement of a transaction (for example, an amount debited from you but not credited to AOSARS), the gateway's own dispute-resolution channel applies. For every other dispute (dissatisfaction with a service, refund queries, suspected unauthorised use of your payment instrument), AOSARS's Complaints procedure in section 11 is the primary route.
• Fraud prevention. The active gateways operate independent anti-fraud monitoring and may, in their sole discretion, decline, hold or reverse transactions they consider suspicious. The gateway may share transaction and identification data with card networks, issuing banks, regulators, law-enforcement agencies and other financial-services partners for the purposes of fraud detection, identity verification and compliance with applicable law.
• Our cardholder undertaking. AOSARS undertakes to safeguard the limited transaction information returned to us by the gateway (such as masked card details, payment reference, authorisation status and payer name), to use that information solely for the purposes of fulfilling your order, providing customer service and meeting our legal obligations, and not to violate the privacy of any cardholder who transacts on aosars.com.

6.6 Course access period

Each course is sold with a defined access period, stated at the point of purchase. You must complete the course (including any self-paced component) within that period. Once the access period expires, your access ends and any incomplete portion of the course is forfeited. AOSARS does not extend, refund or transfer access on expiry.

6.7 Suspension and termination

We may suspend or terminate your access where you breach these Terms, the Acceptable Use Policy, the Code of Conduct or any applicable law. Suspension is normally for a defined period and notified in writing. Termination is reserved for serious or repeated breach. On termination, the licence granted to you to use AOSARS content ends immediately and no refund is due.

6.8 Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Kenyan law, our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising from these Terms or your use of aosars.com is limited to the fees you have paid to us in the twelve months preceding the event giving rise to the claim. We are not liable for indirect, consequential or special damages, loss of profit, loss of opportunity or reputational loss.

6.9 Force majeure

Neither party is liable for failure to perform an obligation caused by events beyond reasonable control, including internet outages, power failures, acts of government, civil unrest, pandemic or natural disaster.

6.10 Changes

Material changes to these Terms will be notified to registered users by email at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use of aosars.com after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

6.11 Governing law and dispute resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of Kenya. Disputes will first be referred to good-faith negotiation. If unresolved within 30 days, they will be referred to mediation. If mediation fails, the courts of Kenya have exclusive jurisdiction.

No-Refund Policy

This policy sets out AOSARS's position on refunds, deferment and course completion. Please read it carefully before making any payment. By submitting payment for any AOSARS service, you confirm that you have read and accepted this policy.

7.1 No refunds

All fees paid to AOSARS are strictly non-refundable. This applies to all AOSARS services without exception, including online courses, short courses, coaching, research support, consultancy retainers, book publishing services and e-book purchases. The non-refundable rule applies regardless of the reason for the refund request, including (without limitation):

• Change of mind, change of circumstance or change of priorities.
• Inability to start, attend or complete a course within the access period.
• Dissatisfaction with the content, format, pace or delivery of a service.
• Voluntary withdrawal from a course or programme.
• Failure to meet a course's prerequisites or assessment requirements.
• Technical limitations on the learner's own device or internet connection.

7.2 No deferment

AOSARS does not defer, postpone or transfer enrolments. Your enrolment is for the specific course, cohort or access period stated at the point of purchase, and cannot be moved to a later cohort, a different course or another learner.

7.3 Course completion timeline

All courses must be completed within the access period stated for that course at the point of purchase. Self-paced components must be completed within the same access window. Once the access period expires, access ends and any incomplete portion of the course is forfeited.

7.4 Cancellation by AOSARS

If, in exceptional circumstances, AOSARS cancels a course before it begins, affected learners will be offered transfer to the next available cohort of the same or an equivalent course at no additional charge. Where no transfer is reasonably available, AOSARS will issue a service credit equal in value to the original payment, redeemable against any AOSARS service within 24 months. No cash refund is given.

7.5 Consultancy engagements

Cancellation, suspension and termination of consultancy engagements are governed by the terms published on each consultancy's own page on aosars.com, which take precedence over this section in respect of consultancy work.

7.6 Suspected payment errors

Where you believe a payment was processed incorrectly (for example, a duplicate charge or wrong amount), contact info@aosars.com within seven days of payment. Such queries are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Any approved correction is made to the original payment instrument.

Consultancy Engagement Terms

AOSARS undertakes applied research consultancy for institutional, donor-funded and corporate clients. Because consultancy engagements vary in scope, deliverables, timeline and price, the substantive terms of each engagement are published on that engagement's own page on aosars.com.

8.1 Where to find the terms

Each consultancy service listed on aosars.com has a dedicated page that sets out the scope of work, the deliverables, the timeline, the price (in USD), the method of engagement, and the cancellation terms specific to that service. The terms on that page form the contract between you and AOSARS in respect of that engagement, and prevail over any conflicting provision in these general policies.

8.2 Default rules

In the absence of a contrary provision on a specific consultancy page, the following default rules apply:

• AOSARS engages as an independent contractor. Nothing in any engagement creates an employment, partnership, joint venture or agency relationship between AOSARS and the client.
• Each party keeps confidential all information disclosed by the other in the course of the engagement, for a period of five years after engagement close.
• On full payment, the client owns the final deliverables produced specifically for the engagement. AOSARS retains ownership of its underlying methodologies, tools, frameworks and pre-existing intellectual property, and grants the client a non-exclusive licence to use these to the extent necessary to derive value from the deliverables.
• AOSARS may list the client and the broad scope of the engagement publicly, unless the engagement page expressly prohibits it.
• Default payment is 40 percent on signature, 40 percent on submission of the draft deliverable and 20 percent on acceptance of the final deliverable. Invoices are due within 30 days of receipt.

8.3 Enquiries

Send consultancy enquiries to info@aosars.com.

Learner Code of Conduct

AOSARS is a community of researchers, scholars and practitioners from across Africa and beyond. This Code sets out the standards of behaviour we expect from every learner in every learning space, whether a live class, a discussion forum, a group project or a one-to-one meeting with a facilitator.

9.1 Core expectations

• Treat every member of the AOSARS community with courtesy, respect and good faith.
• Engage with course materials, peers and facilitators in a manner that supports learning for all.
• Attend scheduled live sessions on time and prepared, or notify the facilitator of an unavoidable absence.
• Respect the confidentiality of fellow learners' personal disclosures and project data.
• Use AOSARS resources solely for legitimate learning and research purposes.

9.2 Prohibited conduct

• Harassment, bullying, intimidation or discriminatory conduct of any kind.
• Hate speech demeaning any person on grounds of ethnicity, religion, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, disability or age.
• Recording, screenshotting, downloading or redistributing live sessions, AOSARS course materials or fellow learners' submissions.
• Impersonating another learner, a facilitator or an AOSARS officer.
• Disrupting live sessions, including persistent off-topic interruption, abusive language in chat or unauthorised broadcast.
• Using AOSARS contact channels for commercial solicitation, multi-level marketing or political campaigning unrelated to course content.

9.3 Disciplinary process

1. Informal stage. Most concerns are best resolved by a direct conversation between the learner and the facilitator. We encourage this as a first step.
2. Formal stage. Where the conduct is serious or unresolved, a written complaint is filed with AOSARS at info@aosars.com. The learner concerned is informed and given seven days to respond in writing.
3. Determination. AOSARS issues a written determination within 14 working days, applying one of the sanctions in section 9.4.
4. Appeal. An appeal may be lodged within 14 days, in writing to info@aosars.com. Grounds for appeal are limited to procedural irregularity, new evidence not previously available, or manifest disproportionality of sanction.

9.4 Sanctions

Sanctions range, in increasing order of severity, from a written warning, a requirement to issue a written apology, suspension from a specified forum or class, suspension from the course for a defined period, and termination of enrolment. Fees already paid are not refunded on disciplinary termination.

Intellectual Property Policy

This policy explains who owns what on aosars.com: the materials we provide, the work you submit and the trade marks we use.

10.1 AOSARS proprietary materials

The following are owned by AOSARS or used under licence and are protected by applicable Kenyan and international intellectual property law:

• All course materials, lecture videos, slide decks, workbooks, assessments and the AOSARS Learning Management System.
• The AOSARS name, logo and all related trade marks.
• All e-books and book-publishing imprints owned and operated by AOSARS.
• AOSARS templates, style guides and training frameworks.

10.2 Your licence to use them

We grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use AOSARS materials for the duration of your enrolment or engagement, solely for personal, non-commercial learning purposes. You may not reproduce, distribute, sublicense, publicly display, modify, download or create derivative works of AOSARS materials except as expressly permitted in writing.

10.3 Your work in training

You retain ownership of the intellectual property in the assessments, projects and dissertations you submit to AOSARS as part of a training course. By submitting, you grant AOSARS a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to use your work for marking, moderation, internal quality assurance and, with your separate written consent, anonymised teaching and research.

10.4 Your work in consultancy

Ownership of deliverables produced in a consultancy engagement is governed by the relevant consultancy page on aosars.com, and by section 8.2 in the absence of a contrary provision.

10.5 Copyright infringement notices

If you believe content on aosars.com infringes your copyright, send a written notice to info@aosars.com identifying the work, the URL, your contact details and a good-faith statement that the use is not authorised. We will investigate and respond within 14 working days.

Complaints and Grievance Procedure

We take complaints seriously and treat them as an opportunity to improve. This procedure applies to any complaint by a learner, consultancy client, facilitator, contractor or member of the public about AOSARS services, staff or decisions.

11.1 Stage one: informal resolution

Most concerns are resolved most quickly by raising them directly with the person concerned, or with that person's immediate supervisor. We encourage this informal stage as a first step and aim to resolve concerns within five working days.

11.2 Stage two: formal complaint

If your concern is not resolved informally, or if it is too serious for informal resolution, submit a formal written complaint to info@aosars.com including your name and contact details, a clear statement of the issue, the outcome you are seeking and any supporting evidence. We acknowledge formal complaints within three working days.

11.3 Investigation and decision

A formal complaint is investigated by a senior officer not previously involved in the matter. The investigation aims to complete within 21 working days. You will receive a written decision setting out the findings, any actions to be taken and your right of appeal.

11.4 Stage three: appeal

If you are dissatisfied with the formal decision, you may appeal within 14 days, in writing to info@aosars.com. Appeals are limited to procedural irregularity that affected the outcome, new evidence not previously available, or manifest unreasonableness of the decision. The appeal decision is final within AOSARS.

11.5 External escalation

Where your complaint is not resolved through this procedure, you retain the right to escalate to the relevant supervisory authority or competent court. AOSARS will not penalise you for any complaint made in good faith.

Data Breach Response and Notification

Despite our best efforts, no security regime is invulnerable. This policy explains what we do if personal data in our custody is compromised, lost or accessed without authorisation.

12.1 What constitutes a breach

A personal data breach is a breach of security leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data. This includes lost or stolen devices containing personal data, accidental sending of personal data to the wrong recipient, unauthorised access by an employee, ransomware and phishing-related compromises.

12.2 Reporting a suspected breach

Any AOSARS employee, contractor, learner or third party who suspects a breach must report it without delay to info@aosars.com. Reports may be made at any time, including outside business hours, and will be treated as urgent.

12.3 Our response timeline

1. Hour 0 to 24: contain and assess. We isolate affected systems, preserve evidence and conduct an initial impact assessment.
2. Hour 24 to 72: regulator notification. Where the breach is likely to result in risk to the rights and freedoms of data subjects, we notify the relevant supervisory authority within 72 hours, in the form required by applicable Kenyan law.
3. Within 7 days: notify data subjects. Where the breach is likely to result in high risk to your rights and freedoms, we notify you directly, in plain language, describing the breach, the data affected, the likely consequences, the measures taken and what you can do to protect yourself.
4. Within 30 days: post-incident review. We conduct a formal review, document lessons learned and implement remedial measures.

12.4 Records

We maintain a register of every breach, whether reportable to the supervisory authority or not, including the facts, effects and remedial action. The register is reviewed annually.