Internship Policy

Gradopus Labs is an India-based brand offering practical, project-based software development internships and technology learning.

Gradopus Labs is not a university, college, government body or accredited institution, and it is not incorporated as a company. Taking part in a Gradopus Labs internship does not give you a degree, academic credit, a government-recognised qualification or an accredited credential.

In this policy, "we", "us" and "our" mean Gradopus Labs and the person who operates it. "You" means a student who applies for, or takes part in, a Gradopus Labs internship.

This policy explains how our internships work: how you apply, what you will be asked to do, how your work is reviewed, when a certificate may be issued and what you can do if something goes wrong.

It applies to every applicant and intern in a Gradopus Labs internship, and to the mentors and reviewers who work with them.

Each internship also has its own internship details, shown to you in writing before you enrol or accept a place, for example on the program's page. They set out the specific terms of that internship, such as its fee, duration, weekly time commitment, tasks and completion requirements. If the internship details and this policy disagree, the internship details apply to that internship, except that they cannot remove any protection this policy or the law gives you.

Nothing in this policy limits any right you have under the law.

Our internships are structured learning experiences. You work on software development tasks, receive guidance from a mentor and have your work reviewed against criteria that are shared with you in advance.

The internship details for each internship will state clearly:

• what you will learn and the kind of work you will do;
• the enrolment fee for the program (section 3.1);
• whether your work is limited to practice tasks or also includes contributing to a real product or client project.

3.1 Fees and stipends

• Students pay an enrolment fee to join a program. The fee for each program is shown on its page before you enrol. To be confirmed: the fee for each program
• The enrolment fee is the only charge. There is no application, assessment or certificate fee.
• Paying the fee gives you access to the program. It does not guarantee that your work will be accepted, that you will complete the program, or that you will receive a certificate, a job or a placement.
• Gradopus Labs does not currently pay stipends. If a stipend is ever offered, its terms will be stated in writing before you accept a place.
• Fees are not refundable except in the cases set out in the Payment, Refund & Stipend Policy.

Calling an arrangement an "internship" does not, on its own, decide its legal status. Gradopus Labs will meet the obligations that apply under Indian law to the way each internship is actually arranged.

Who can join. You must be 18 or older. Each internship also lists any other eligibility requirements, such as the skills or prior knowledge needed to follow the tasks. Requirements are limited to what is genuinely needed for the internship. To be confirmed: other eligibility requirements per internship

Equal opportunity. We do not exclude or treat any applicant less favourably because of gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, caste, religion, region, place of birth, language, disability, marital status, pregnancy, family background or economic background. Where a skill is required, we assess the skill itself, not the name of your college or how you acquired it.

How to join. All programs are currently open enrolment: you create an account, review the internship details on the program's page, and enrol by paying the enrolment fee. There is no application or selection step. If a program ever requires an application, its page will say so, and this policy and the Privacy Policy will be updated first.

What we ask for. To create an account, we ask only for your name, email address and a password. We do not ask for identity documents, or for information about your religion, caste, health or finances. The Privacy Policy explains how this information is handled.

Selection. There is currently no selection step, because all programs are open enrolment (section 4). If an application-based program is introduced, its selection criteria will be published before applications open.

Before you commit. Whether you enrol directly or are offered a place after applying, you will see the internship details in writing before you pay or accept. Read them carefully. You are not committed to anything until you pay or accept.

Onboarding. Before your first task, you will receive:

• your start date and the name or role of your mentor;
• the communication channels to use;
• the tasks or modules you are expected to complete, with their review criteria;
• the completion requirements for the internship;
• a link to this policy and the related policies listed in section 19.

The duration, expected weekly time commitment and any fixed session times are stated in the internship details. To be confirmed: duration and weekly hours per internship

• We will not expect you to work more than the time commitment stated in your internship details.
• Unless the internship details say otherwise, you may arrange your own working time to suit your studies, within the deadlines set for each task.
• If you need to pause because of college examinations, illness or another genuine reason, tell your mentor as early as you can. We will try to agree a reasonable adjustment to deadlines.
• If we need to change the schedule, we will give you reasonable notice and will not shorten the time you have for work already assigned without your agreement.

Each task tells you, before you start:

• what you are expected to build or do, and what you should learn from it;
• what to submit (see section 9);
• the criteria your submission will be reviewed against;
• whether the task is required for completion or optional;
• its deadline, if it has one.

Tasks are designed mainly for learning. If an internship includes contributing to a real product or a client project, the internship details will say so before you accept.

You will not be asked to do work that is unrelated to the learning objectives of your internship.

What you can expect. You will have access to a mentor or reviewer who can answer questions about your tasks, give feedback on your work and help when you are stuck. To be confirmed: communication channels and expected response time

What we expect from you.

• Use the official communication channels for internship matters.
• Ask for help when you need it. Asking questions is part of learning and is never held against you.
• Tell your mentor early if you expect to miss a deadline.
• Be respectful in all communication.

Mentors and interns are not expected to reply outside reasonable hours. Personal contact details are shared only where both people agree.

What you may be asked to submit. Depending on the task:

• a link to a GitHub repository (or another code host named in the task);
• a live deployment URL, where the task requires one;
• project documentation, such as a README explaining how to set up and use your project;
• a demonstration, for example a short recorded walkthrough or a live demo with your mentor;
• other evidence needed to show your own contribution, such as your commit history.

Submission rules.

• Links must open securely (https://) and be accessible to the reviewer. If a repository is private, give the reviewer access as the task instructs; you do not have to make work public to have it reviewed.
• Work you submit must be your own. Credit any third-party code, libraries, tutorials or other resources you use, as the task instructions require. Follow the task's instructions on the use of AI coding assistants and disclose where you have used them. To be confirmed: the general rule on AI-assisted work
• In group tasks, each member must be able to show their own contribution.
• Never include passwords, API keys, access tokens or other people's personal information in a repository, deployment or document you submit.
• Keep your submitted links working until the review is complete. If a link stops working, the reviewer may be unable to accept the submission.

Review. A reviewer assesses each project submission against the criteria published for that task. Submitting a link, a file or a demonstration does not by itself complete a task. Project submissions count towards completion only once a reviewer accepts them.

A reviewed submission will be marked as one of:

• Accepted: it meets the task's criteria;
• Changes requested: it needs specific improvements, which the feedback will explain;
• Rejected: it does not meet the criteria, for example because it is incomplete or not your own work.

After changes are requested or a submission is rejected, you may submit a new attempt. A task may limit the number of attempts; if so, the limit is shown on the task. Earlier attempts and their feedback are kept.

Participation. You are expected to work steadily on your tasks and keep your mentor informed of your progress. If your internship includes live sessions, the internship details will state which sessions are expected and how missed sessions can be made up. To be confirmed: whether there are live sessions and any attendance expectations

Deadlines. Task deadlines are set so that the work can reasonably be completed within the stated time commitment.

• Unless a task says otherwise, late submissions are still reviewed, and the reviewer can see when the work was submitted. To be confirmed: whether lateness affects evaluation or completion
• If you have a genuine reason for needing more time, such as illness, a family emergency or examinations, ask your mentor for an extension before the deadline where you can. Reasonable requests will be considered fairly.
• Missing a deadline is never, on its own, treated as misconduct.

• Your work is evaluated only against the criteria published for each task and the completion requirements of your internship. To be confirmed: any scoring or grading scheme
• Every review that requests changes or rejects a submission comes with written feedback explaining why and, where possible, what to improve.
• The same criteria apply to every intern on the same task.
• If you believe a review is wrong or unfair, you can ask for it to be looked at again by following the process in section 18.

You complete an internship when you meet all of the completion requirements published for it. These include:

1. every required task has an accepted review (or, for a non-assessed activity such as a reading module, is marked as done in the way the task describes); and
2. any other requirement stated in your internship details. To be confirmed: any additional completion requirements per internship

Optional tasks do not affect completion.

Enrolling, paying the enrolment fee, attending sessions or submitting work does not, by itself, complete an internship. The Project Submission & Assessment Policy explains how work is assessed.

When a certificate may be issued. A Certificate of Completion may be issued once you have met all of the completion requirements in section 12 and our records confirm this. Certificates are issued by Gradopus Labs; you cannot generate your own.

• There is no fee for a certificate.
• If your enrolment fee was refunded (which happens only in the limited cases in the Payment, Refund & Stipend Policy, such as a program cancelled by Gradopus Labs), a certificate is not issued for that enrolment.
• An issued certificate is never revoked because of a payment or administrative dispute.

What a certificate shows. A certificate records only what is documented in our records: your name, the program you completed, the relevant dates and a unique certificate ID. Anyone can check a certificate's status on our verification page, which shows only limited details.

What a certificate does not mean.

• It is not a degree, a university or government-recognised qualification or an accredited credential.
• It does not guarantee a job, a job interview, admission to further study or any other outcome, and it does not mean that any employer or institution endorses you.
• It does not describe skills, roles or achievements that are not documented in our records.

Academic credit. If you hope to use the internship for credit at your college, check with your college before you apply. Gradopus Labs cannot promise that any college will accept it.

Letters of recommendation are not part of the internship and are given only at a mentor's discretion.

Corrections and revocation. A certificate with an error (such as a misspelled name) can be corrected and reissued. A certificate obtained through plagiarised, falsified or fraudulent work may be revoked, after a fair process. Details are in the Certificate Issuance & Verification Policy.

As an intern, you agree to:

• give accurate information in your application and throughout the internship;
• submit only your own work, credited as required;
• treat mentors, reviewers and other interns with respect;
• keep your account and login details to yourself;
• follow the task instructions, this policy and the related policies.

The following are not acceptable and may lead to the steps described in section 17:

• harassment, bullying, threats or discriminatory behaviour of any kind, including sexual harassment;
• plagiarism, submitting someone else's work as your own, or falsifying evidence of your contribution;
• misrepresenting your internship, your role or your certificate;
• any breach of section 15.

Reporting harassment. If you experience or witness harassment, report it using the contact details in section 18. Reports are handled confidentially, and you will not be penalised for making a report in good faith. To be confirmed: the person or committee who handles harassment complaints

Confidential information. During an internship you may be given information that is not public, such as private repositories, unreleased product details, or information belonging to Gradopus Labs or a client. You must:

• use it only for your internship tasks;
• not share, publish or copy it outside the internship;
• return or delete it, and give up any access to it, when your internship ends or when asked.

Publishing and showcasing your work. You may not publish, upload to a public repository or include in a portfolio any code, documentation or other material that is confidential or belongs to a client unless you have received written permission from Gradopus Labs. Who owns work created during an internship, and when you may show it publicly, is set out in the Intellectual Property & Code of Conduct and, where relevant, your internship details or a separate written agreement, before you start any task they apply to. To be confirmed: ownership and showcasing rules for practice tasks and for client or product work

You may always describe, in general terms, the skills you used and the kind of work you did, for example on your CV, as long as you do not reveal confidential information.

Security.

• Never commit passwords, API keys, tokens or other secrets to a repository. If you do so by mistake, tell your mentor immediately so the secret can be changed.
• Use any access you are given (for example to a repository or server) only for your assigned tasks, and do not share it.
• Do not test, scan or attempt to access any system, account or data that you have not been explicitly authorised to use.
• Do not write or submit malicious code.

Third-party code and licences. Respect the licence terms of open-source and other third-party code you use, and credit it as the licence and the task require.

We want every intern to be able to take part fully. If you have a disability, a health condition or another circumstance that affects how you can take part, you can ask for a reasonable accommodation at any time, including before you apply.

How to ask. Contact us using the details in section 18 and describe what would help. Examples include extra time for a task, a different format for materials or sessions, captions or transcripts, flexible session times, or a different way to demonstrate your work.

How requests are handled.

• You only need to share the information needed to understand what support would help. You do not have to disclose a diagnosis.
• Requests are kept confidential and shared only with the people who need to know in order to arrange the accommodation.
• We will discuss the request with you and respond in writing. To be confirmed: expected time to respond
• If we cannot provide exactly what you asked for, we will explain why and try to agree an alternative.
• Asking for an accommodation will never affect your selection, evaluation or certificate.

If you want to withdraw. You may withdraw from an internship at any time by telling us in writing. You do not have to give a reason, although feedback is welcome.

If we need to end an internship. We may end your participation for serious or repeated breaches of this policy, such as plagiarism, harassment or a security breach. Before making a decision, we will:

1. tell you in writing what the concern is;
2. give you a fair opportunity to respond;
3. tell you the decision and the reasons in writing.

Where there is an immediate risk to people, systems or confidential information, your access may be suspended while the concern is looked into. A suspension is not a finding that you did anything wrong.

We may also end an internship early for reasons that are not your fault, for example if a program is discontinued. If that happens, we will give you as much notice as possible, and your enrolment fee will be refunded as set out in the Payment, Refund & Stipend Policy.

What happens to your work and records.

• Reviews already completed stay on your record.
• Submissions still waiting for review when an internship ends will be: To be confirmed: reviewed, or closed without review. You will be told which.
• A certificate is issued only if you met all of the completion requirements before the internship ended.
• Enrolment fees are not refunded when you withdraw or your participation is ended for misconduct, except in the cases set out in the Payment, Refund & Stipend Policy.
• You must return or delete confidential material, as described in section 15.

Appeals. You can ask for a termination decision to be reconsidered using the process in section 18.

If you have a concern about your internship, including a review, a deadline, an accommodation request, a termination decision or the behaviour of anyone involved, please raise it with us.

1. Start informally, where you feel comfortable doing so, by raising it with your mentor.
2. Raise a formal grievance by writing to support.gradopuslabs@gmail.com. Include your name, the internship, what happened and what outcome you are seeking.
3. We will acknowledge your grievance and respond in writing with a decision and the reasons for it. To be confirmed: acknowledgement and response timelines
4. If you are not satisfied, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed by someone not involved in the original decision, where possible. To be confirmed: who handles escalated grievances

You can skip the informal step for any reason, and you should go straight to a formal grievance for any complaint of harassment.

You will not be penalised for raising a concern in good faith. This process does not affect any right you have to seek other remedies available under law.

We collect and use only the personal information needed to run the internship: to assess your application, communicate with you, review your work, issue and verify certificates, and keep the internship secure. How we handle personal information is explained in the Privacy Policy.

Remember that a public repository or live deployment can be seen by anyone. Do not include personal information about yourself or others in work you submit beyond what the task requires.

Related policies:

• Student Terms & Conditions
• Privacy Policy
• Project Submission & Assessment Policy
• Certificate Issuance & Verification Policy
• Payment, Refund & Stipend Policy
• Intellectual Property & Code of Conduct

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do:

• the new version will be published with its version number and effective date;
• interns currently taking part will be told about significant changes before they take effect;
• changes will not apply retrospectively to work already submitted or reviewed, and will not make the completion requirements of an internship you have already accepted harder to meet without your agreement.

• Version 1.2, 23 October 2026: Added: minimum age 18, open enrolment only, no identity documents.
• Version 1.1, 23 October 2026: Added the operator's location and the official support email address (support.gradopuslabs@gmail.com). Effective date still to be set after legal review.
• Version 1.0, 21 October 2026: First published version. Effective date to be set after legal review. Adds the confirmed fee model (enrolment fee only, no certificate fee, no stipends, refunds only in limited cases) and the open-enrolment route.
• Draft 0.1, 21 October 2026: Initial internal draft.