Privacy Policy
Get answers to frequently asked questions that can help summarize some of our Privacy Policy details.
University of Phoenix
PRIVACY POLICY – SUMMARY
Updated: April 18, 2016
Summarized below are key elements of our Privacy Policy. To read our full Privacy Policy (“Policy“), click here.
Scope of Privacy Policy
This policy applies to website visitors, current and potential students, alumni and any other user of services offered through our Sites, including any websites or mobile applications operated by or on their behalf.
This policy applies to both online and offline collection, storage, processing and transfer of Personal Information. However, certain Sites or services may be subject to additional privacy policies or privacy disclosures relating to the services provided on the Site(s) (collectively “Additional Policies“).
Information Collected
We collect various types of Information through our Sites and other websites where you can express interest in our services, through our mobile applications, via email, over Live Chat, the phone and in person where print materials and digital technology may be used to collect Information from you. Some Information is collected automatically through various web and Internet technologies, including Social Networking tools used by your University to foster communication and collaboration among members of our community. Other Information is collected when you provide it in response to an advertisement, a survey or a request for information; apply for admission or financial aid; register for classes; order educational or other products and services; set up a Social Network or other Site profile; or use one of our career resources, learning assessments or other interactive tools.
We may also obtain information from other sources and combine that with Information we collect about you.
Information Uses
We will not sell, rent or lease your Personal Information to others except as provided in this policy. We may collect, use and disclose Personal Information for the following purposes:
- To determine your admissibility and to register you for your selected educational programs
- To contact you regarding your status with the University
- To provide requested products and services
- To respond to your inquiries and provide customer support
- To administer promotions in which you have indicated an interest
- For our internal marketing purposes, which include, but are not limited to, sending you material about products, services, updates, etc. that we think may be of interest to you
- For fostering communication and collaboration among members of your University community through Social Networks
- For sharing with our Education Partners who may contact you with respect to their educational or other services
- For sharing with our Education Partners or Business Associates who are performing services on our behalf
- To analyze how Sites and services are being accessed and used
- For investigation of information security and information asset protection-related incidents
- To test, correct and improve our content, applications and services
- To develop new applications, products and services
- For Online Behavioral Advertising purposes
- To improve student retention, Site and service performance, user experience and delivery
- To prevent potentially illegal activities (including illegal downloading of copyrighted materials in accordance with our Copyright Infringement Policy)
- To investigate suspicious information that denotes illegal activity such as financial aid fraud
- To analyze academic and learning outcomes and preferences
- For external academic research and scholarship done by Business Associates or Unrelated Entities
- To obtain payment for services that we provide to you
- To provide you with information concerning arrangements and other options for the repayment of funds loaned to you for your education
- To maintain educational and business records for reasonable periods
- To enforce our Terms of Use
- To provide to Education Partners, Business Associates or Unrelated Entities in connection with the contemplated or actual reorganization, merger, acquisition, financing, securitization, insuring, sale or other disposal of all or part of our business or assets, including for the purposes of determining whether to proceed with such transaction or fulfilling any records or other reporting requirements to such parties. In the event of any actual reorganization, merger or acquisition, such Information may be transferred as part of the transaction to the acquirer
- And/or as may be required or permitted by legal, regulatory, industry self-regulatory, insurance, audit or security requirements applicable to the University, Apollo Education Group, our Education Partners or our Business Associates.
Financial Information
Your Financial Information will be used to provide requested products and services, to analyze operational and business results, to analyze risk, and for concluding your registration or other transaction you have initiated with us. It will not be sold, rented or otherwise transferred to an Education Partner, Business Associate or Unrelated Entity outside of these purposes, except in the case of a reorganization, merger or acquisition of our shares or assets.
And/or as may be required or permitted by legal, regulatory, industry self-regulatory, insurance, audit or security requirements applicable to Apollo Education Group, our Education Partners or our Business Associates.
Your Rights and Choices
Marketing Communications
If you do not wish to receive marketing email communications or direct mail communications from us, you may express your choice where indicated on the applicable email or other communication, or unsubscribe.
If you do not wish to receive marketing telephone calls or mailings, you may express your choice to opt out by emailing the Office of Compliance.
Under California’s Shine the Light law, Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.83, we provide California residents the ability to opt out of disclosures to Education Partners for direct marketing purposes. To opt out of these disclosures at no cost, email the Office of Compliance.
If you do not wish to receive text messages, reply STOP to cancel future text messages. By sending STOP, you agree to one additional confirmation message stating that you've opted out and will no longer receive text messages from University of Phoenix. To get help, text HELP. You may also get additional support or help by sending an email toTextMsgSupport@phoenix.edu or by calling 866-766-0766.
Do Not Track (DNT) and Online Behavioral Advertising
University of Phoenix does not itself respond to web browser-based DNT signals.
We or our Business Associates may use data collected on this Site for Online Behavioral Advertising purposes, e.g., to customize ads to you on other websites as you browse the web. If you do not want your browsing behavior on the Sites to be collected for Online Behavioral Advertising purposes, visit http://info.evidon.com/pub_info/184?v=1.
Other Collection, Use and Disclosure
You may be able to opt out of our collection, use and disclosure of your Personal Information in other situations subject to applicable contractual, academic, legal or technical restrictions and reasonable notice. If you do not wish to receive marketing email communications or direct mail from us, you may express your choice where indicated on the applicable email or other communication, or click here to unsubscribe.
Other Important Information
We will take commercially reasonable measures to secure and store your Information to protect against the loss, misuse and alteration of the Information under our control. We utilize industry-standard security measures when accepting your credit card Information during your registration or other transaction you have initiated with us, as well as whenever we ask you to log in to any of our Sites.
If you become a student, your educational records are subject to the U.S. federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), state laws and your University policies. To obtain a copy of the Students' Rights to Privacy and Access to Educational Records policy, click here. You may also contact us via one of the below methods:
University of Phoenix
Attn: Registrar's Office
4025 S. Riverpoint Parkway
Mail stop: CF-L201
Phoenix, AZ 85040
Admissions and records Service Center: 800.866.3919
University of Phoenix may update this policy or revise it from time to time. If you are concerned about how your Personal Information is used or disclosed, you should contact us as described below or check back at this Site periodically to obtain a current copy of this Privacy Policy.
How to Contact Us or Access Your Information
If you want access to or wish to update any of your Personal Information or have any questions about our privacy practices, please contact our Compliance Office at Office.ComplianceUOPX@phoenix.edu or:
University of Phoenix
Attn: Office of Compliance
1625 W. Fountainhead Pkwy.
Mail Stop: CF-S905
Tempe, AZ 85282
University of Phoenix
PRIVACY POLICY – FULL VERSION
Updated: April 18, 2016
Scope
This policy applies to website visitors, current and potential students, alumni and any other user of services offered through our Sites, including any websites or mobile applications operated by or on their behalf. This policy applies to both online and offline collection, storage, processing and transfer of Personal Information.
Certain Sites or services may be subject to additional privacy policies or privacy disclosures relating to the services provided on the Site(s) (collectively “Additional Policies“). In the event of any direct conflict between any Additional Policies and this policy, the Additional Policies will control.
University of Phoenix may amend or otherwise modify this Privacy Policy at any time, so please revisit this page periodically to check for updates. The date of last revision is shown at the top of this document.
Contents
- Definitions
- How We Collect Information
- Information Collected Automatically on the Sites
- Information You Provide to Us
- How We Use and Disclose This Information
- Express Consent to Receive Prerecorded Voice Messages, Text Messages and Calls Using an Autodialer
- Student Educational Records
- Location of Information Processing
- Do Not Track and Online Behavioral Advertising
- Opt Out
- Your California Privacy Rights
- Our Security Measures
- Monitoring of Communications
- Internet Technologies Used
- Site Hosting and Links From Our Sites to Other Websites
- Privacy Policy Changes
- How to Access Your Information and Contact Us
1. Definitions
As used in this Privacy Policy, the following terms have the following meanings:
“Business Associates” means third-party, service providers which the University of Phoenix or Apollo Education Group, Inc. may contract with to provide services on our behalf, including but not limited to: Social Networking, hosting, web analytics, Online Behavioral Advertising, lead generation, academic, business, career or financial services.
“Do Not Track” or “DNT” means a browser based signal that, when set, signifies an Internet user’s desire not to be tracked online.
“Education Partners” means a.) University of Phoenix, Apollo Education Group, Inc., and their subsidiaries and affiliates including companies or institutions that Apollo Education Group, Inc. or its subsidiaries may be providing educational or other related services to under contract and b.) Third-party companies who may participate in University of Phoenix or Apollo Education Group, Inc. career initiatives (e.g., potential employers).
“Financial Information” means specific Personal Information of a financial nature such as your credit card number.
“Information” means any Information collected and includes: “Personal Information,” “Financial Information,” “Web Analytical Information” or any other Information collected from you through our Sites.
“Personal Information” means Information that may be used, alone or in combination, to identify a specific individual and includes Financial Information.
“Online Behavioral Advertising” means the collection of data from a particular computer or device regarding web-viewing behaviors over time and across websites for the purpose of using such data to predict user preferences or interests to deliver advertising to that computer or device based on the preferences or interests inferred from such web-viewing behaviors.
“Site” or “Sites” means websites operated by or exclusively on behalf of University of Phoenix or its parent company Apollo Education Group, Inc. regardless of domain name or IP address.
“Social Network” means various Internet communication technologies provided on Sites that facilitate conversation and interaction between people online and includes, but is not limited to, blogs, discussion forums, wikis, chat sessions, news groups, etc.
“Social Network Content” (or “SNC“) means user-generated content you consent to share via a Social Network and includes, but is not limited to, Personal Information, digital sounds and pictures that you upload to a Social Network. It also includes your Personal Information that may be displayed on other users' Social Network pages.
“Your University” means University of Phoenix.
“We,” “us” and “our” refer to your University and Apollo Education Group, Inc.
“Unrelated Entities” means third-parties that are not Education Partners and who are not providing services as Business Associates.
“Web Analytical Information” means Internet-generated Information we collect when you visit our Sites or open emails sent by us. This Information may be linked with Personal Information. When linked with other Information identifying you personally, either alone or in combination with other Information, then such Information also will be considered Personal Information.
2. How We Collect Information
We collect various types of Information from you through our Sites and other websites where you can express interest in our services, through our mobile applications, via email, Live Chat over the phone, via printed forms and in person. Some Information is collected automatically through various web and Internet technologies including Social Networking tools used by your University. Other Information is collected when you provide it to us voluntarily.
We may also obtain Information from Education Partners, Business Associates and Unrelated Entities and combine that with Information we collect about you.
3. Information Collected Automatically on the Sites
Each time you visit one of our Sites, a Business Associate site or open one of our emails, Web Analytical Information is automatically gathered. In general, this Information does not identify you personally. Examples of Web Analytical Information include, but are not limited to:
- IP address
- Collection date
- Publisher name
- Connection speed
- Day of week, time of day (hour)
- Language settings
- Country, state, designated market area (DMA), city (relating to IP address, if available)
- Domain (.com, .net, .mil, .org, .edu, etc.)
- Web pages viewed
- Email clicks or other actions taken
This Information may be linked with Personal Information to accomplish the purposes described in this Privacy Policy.
4. Information You Provide to Us
In addition to the Web Analytical Information automatically collected when you visit our Sites, or a Business Associate site, University of Phoenix also collects, uses and discloses Personal Information that you provide to us voluntarily online or offline when you respond to an advertisement, a survey or a request for information; register for classes; apply for financial aid; order educational or other products and services; set up a Social Network or other Site profile; or use one of our career resources, learning assessments or other interactive tools. While the exact nature of the Personal Information may vary depending on the type of response or service requested, the following is a non-exclusive list of the types of Information that may be collected to the extent it is necessary and applicable for the intended purposes:
- First, middle and last name, previous names
- Street address, city, state, country, postal code
- Date of birth
- Place of birth
- Gender
- Race
- Ethnicity
- Country of origin
- Employment status and history
- Native language
- Address type
- Email address
- Valid day or evening telephone number
- Cell phone number
- Confirmation of the age of majority
- Campus (based on postal code list)
- Education Partner interested in
- Current degree program of interest
- Current modality of interest (e.g. online or on-ground)
- Publisher code (Site ID)
- Citizenship
- Number of previous credits earned or attempted
- Military affiliation
- Credits earned
- Prior education history
- Certificate, licensure or other professional information
- High school diploma or GED
- Lead source
- Individual Record Number (IRN) or Social Security number
- Credit card number
- Other Financial Information and information related to financial aid eligibility
- Social Networking content
- Learning, skill or career assessment and diagnostic data
- Career goals
- Video and / or audio media
- Other Information after you become a University student such as course assignments, grades and other educational records relating to your enrollment at your University and that may be required to be collected in the normal course of your studies
5. How We Use and Disclose This Information
Personal Information
We will not sell, rent or lease your Personal Information to others except in accordance with this policy.
We may collect, use and disclose Personal Information for the following purposes:
- To determine your admissibility and to register you for your selected educational programs
- To contact you regarding your status with the University
- To provide requested products and services
- To respond to your inquiries and provide customer support
- To administer promotions in which you have indicated an interest
- For our internal marketing purposes, which include, but are not limited to, sending you material about products, services, updates, etc. that we think may be of interest to you
- For fostering communication and collaboration among members of your University community through Social Networks
- For sharing with our Education Partners who may contact you with respect to their educational or other services requested by you
- For sharing with our Education Partners or Business Associates who are performing services on our behalf
- To analyze how Sites and services are being accessed and used
- For investigation of information security and information asset protection-related incidents
- To test, correct and improve our content, applications and services
- To develop new applications, products and services
- For Online Behavioral Advertising purposes
- To improve student retention, Site and service performance, user experience and delivery
- To prevent potentially illegal activities (including illegal downloading of copyrighted materials in accordance with our Copyright Infringement policy)
- To investigate suspicious information that denotes illegal activity such as financial aid fraud
- To analyze academic and learning outcomes and preferences
- For external academic research and scholarship done by Business Associates or Unrelated Entities
- To analyze risk and business results
- To obtain payment for services that we provide to you
- To provide you with information concerning arrangements and other options for the repayment of funds loaned to you for your education
- To maintain educational and business records for reasonable periods
- To enforce our Terms of Use
- To provide to Education Partners, Business Associates or Unrelated Entities in connection with the contemplated or actual reorganization, merger, acquisition, financing, securitization, insuring, sale or other disposal of all or part of our business or assets, including for the purposes of determining whether to proceed with such transaction or fulfilling any records or other reporting requirements to such parties. In the event of any actual reorganization, merger or acquisition, such Information may be transferred as part of the transaction to the acquirer
And/or as may be required or permitted by legal, regulatory, industry self-regulatory, insurance, audit or security requirements applicable to the University, Apollo Education Group, our Education Partners or our Business Associates
Financial Information
Your Financial Information will be used to provide requested products and services, to analyze operational and business results, to analyze risk, and for concluding your registration or other transaction you have initiated with us. It will not be sold, rented or otherwise transferred to an Education Partner, Business Associate or Unrelated Entity outside of these purposes, except in the case of a reorganization, merger or acquisition of our shares or assets.
6. Express Consent to Receive Prerecorded Voice Messages, Text Messages and Calls Using an Autodialer
If you have provided prior express written consent in the process of requesting information from the University about its educational offerings or services, or if you have provided prior express consent after becoming a student to receive communications related to purposes other than marketing, we may use an automatic telephone dialing system (auto-dialer), artificial or prerecorded voice messages, and text messages to communicate with you.
In the case of text communications, you may receive text messages periodically regarding the University of Phoenix. Message and data rates may apply. You may opt out at any time by texting STOP to cancel future text messages. By sending STOP, you agree to one additional confirmation message stating that you've opted out and will no longer receive text messages from University of Phoenix. To get help, text HELP. You may also get additional support or help by sending an email to TextMsgSupport@phoenix.edu or by calling 866-766-0766.
By consenting to receive texts you specifically authorize University of Phoenix to send text communications using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice. Your participation and/or your consent is not a condition of purchasing any goods or services. Your consent also provides authorization for the specific telephone number that may be contacted via this program.
7. Student Educational Records
If you become a student, your educational records are subject to the U.S. federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), state laws and your University's policies. Students have the right to limit access to FERPA-defined directory Information about them. To obtain a copy of your University's FERPA policy, click here. You may also contact us via one of the below methods:
University of Phoenix
Attn: Registrar's Office
4025 S. Riverpoint Parkway
Mail Stop: CF-L201
Phoenix, AZ 85040
Admissions and Records Service Center: 800.866.3919
8. Location of Information Processing
We operate or may process information in multiple jurisdictions, and some Education Partners and Business Associates may be located outside of the jurisdiction in which you reside. In such cases, your Personal Information may be collected, used, disclosed, stored and processed in these other jurisdictions for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. The data protection and other laws of the United States and other countries might differ from your jurisdiction. We require our Education Partners and Business Associates to use your Personal Information in accordance with this policy and to take reasonable steps to ensure that your privacy is protected in accordance with applicable laws. Please be advised that, by using our Sites and services, you are consenting to the transfer and processing of your Information across international borders. Your Information may be subject to the laws of those other jurisdictions, including lawful requirements to disclose Personal Information to government authorities.
9. Do Not Track and Online Behavioral Advertising
Do Not Track (DNT) is a browser based signal that, when set, signifies your desire not to be tracked online. Because there is not yet a consensus on how companies should respond to web browser-based or other DNT mechanisms, University of Phoenix does not itself respond to web browser-based DNT signals.
We may work with third party ad networks to either display advertising on our Sites or to manage our advertising on other websites. These ad networks use cookies and other Internet Technologies (e.g. web beacons) to collect non-personally identifiable information about your activities on our Sites and other websites to provide you targeted advertising based upon your interests. Some ads are targeted to your interests and preferences based on your browsing history, which is stored in a cookie on your computer. Your browsing history may be tracked in these cookies even if ads are not being displayed. To help us control the third parties on our Sites and also to comply with a cross-industry Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising managed by the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA), our online advertisements and Sites taking part in Online Behavioral Advertising are delivered with an AdChoices Icon, an industry trust symbol, that helps consumers understand how their data is being used and provides options to consumers who want to exercise control over that activity. By clicking on the AdChoices Icon and following the instructions, you can exercise your privacy preferences. If you opt-out using AdChoices, the third parties on our Sites will no longer use the information they collect about you in order to serve you interest based advertisements. Please note that this does not opt you out of being served non-interest based advertising and you may continue to receive generic ads. For more information, or to opt out of this type of information collection, you may also visit http://info.evidon.com/pub_info/184?v=1.
10. Opt Out
Marketing Communications
If you do not wish to receive marketing email or direct mail communications from us, you may express your choice where indicated on the applicable email or other communication or unsubscribe.
If you do not wish to receive marketing telephone calls or mailings, you may express your choice to opt-out by emailing the Office of Compliance.
If you do not wish to receive text messages you may opt out by texting STOP to cancel future text messages. By sending STOP, you agree to one additional confirmation message stating that you've opted out and will no longer receive text messages from University of Phoenix. To get help, text HELP. You may also get additional support or help by sending an email toTextMsgSupport@phoenix.edu or by calling 866-766-0766.
Marketing opt-out requests will only remove you from our list and the list of any Business Associate performing services on our behalf. We are not responsible for the use any other party may make of the Information once it has been transferred in accordance with this Policy, and you will need to contact such entity to have your Information removed from its database.
Student Educational Records and Social Networking Content
Students who desire to prevent release of their directory and educational record Information in accordance with FERPA may place a FERPA Hold on their academic file. Click here to review your University's FERPA Policy in the Consumer Information Guide.
You may change various user settings related to sharing your Personal Information contained in any user profile you set up as part of Social Network activities furnished by us, subject to contractual, academic, legal or technical restrictions and reasonable notice. Note that your withdrawal from Social Network activities might prevent us from providing you with certain products or services.
Other Collection, Use and Disclosure
In any situation not covered by the foregoing, you may be able to opt out of our collection, use and disclosure of your Personal Information subject to applicable contractual, academic, legal or technical restrictions and reasonable notice. Note that if you opt out of certain uses of your Personal Information, we may no longer be able to provide certain products or services. For more information on your ability to opt out, email the Office of Compliance.
11. Your California Privacy Rights
Under California’s Shine the Light law, Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.83, we provide California residents the ability to opt out of disclosures to Education Partners for direct marketing purposes. To opt out of these disclosures at no cost, email the Office of Compliance.
12. Our Security Measures
We will take commercially reasonable measures to secure and store your Information to protect against the loss, misuse and alteration of the Information under our control. We utilize industry-standard security measures when accepting your credit card Information during the online ordering process, as well as whenever we ask you to log in to any of our Sites.
Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure. As a result, although we will utilize such measures, we do not guarantee you against the loss, misuse or alteration of Information under our control, and you provide Information to us at your own risk. You should always take care how you handle and disclose your Personal Information and should avoid sending Personal Information through insecure email, Social Networks or other Internet channels.
13. Monitoring of Communications
We may monitor and retain all incoming and outgoing communications for training of our representatives and for quality assurance purposes. To the extent such communications are selected, they are only retained as long as necessary to adequately discharge these purposes, unless a specific communication needs to be retained for legal reasons.
14. Internet Technologies Used
Cookies, web beacons and other relevant Internet technologies are used in our emails and on our Sites to allow us to accomplish the uses set out above as well as to deliver Sites messaging and to keep track of your Information. These small pieces of program code reside in your computer and browser and can be removed. If you desire to remove such technologies you may do so, but this may render our Sites unusable to you. You can opt out of cookies or the other Internet technologies used by disabling these features in your browser program. Please note that the deletion of certain opt-out cookies may require you to renew your Online Behavioral Advertising opt outs periodically. Consult your browser's Help menu for assistance in changing cookie settings or removing cookie files.
15. Site Hosting and Links from Our Sites to Other Websites
Some of our Sites may contain links to websites hosted by Education Partners, Unrelated Entities and Business Associates operating websites on their own behalf or on behalf of multiple entities. Some of these websites may collect your Personal Information and may apply their own policies on how your Personal Information is used. In addition, some of our Sites may have Additional Policies that apply to the use of Personal Information collected on that Site. Please make sure to read the policies of any websites you visit on the Internet carefully. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of any websites that are not operated by or exclusively for us, and the collection, use and disclosure of Information about you will be subject to the policies applicable on those websites.
16. Privacy Policy Changes
University of Phoenix may update this Privacy Policy or revise it from time to time. You should contact us as described below or check back at this Site periodically to obtain a current copy of this Privacy Policy. We urge you to review this Privacy Policy frequently to obtain the current version. Your continued provision of Personal Information or use of our services following any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of such changes. If we intend to use Information that personally identifies you in a manner materially different from what we stated at the time it was collected, we will attempt to notify you at least 30 days in advance. You will be given a choice as to whether or not previously provided Information may be used in a new way.
17. How to Access Your Information and Contact Us
If you want access to or wish to update any of your Personal Information or have any questions about our privacy practices, please contact our University Compliance Office at Office.ComplianceUOPX@phoenix.edu or:
University of Phoenix
Attn: Office of Compliance
1625 W. Fountainhead Pkwy.
Mail Stop: CF-S905
Tempe, AZ 85282