Privacy Policy

The purpose of this policy is to explain the privacy protocol for the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. Safeguarding your confidentiality and protecting your personal information is a fundamental concern of the Q College. Q College is committed to meeting or exceeding the standards established by the BC Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA)

The Information We Collect

This personal information privacy policy is intended to explain how Q College conforms to legislation which is designed to protect your privacy, to regulate the use and collection of information, and to state the steps Q College has taken to ensure your personal and financial information is handled appropriately and securely.

The Act requires Q College to obtain informed consent from an individual before collecting personal information about that individual, with certain exemptions. The college must state why it is collecting the information, and how it will use the information collected. The Act also requires Q College to keep information it has collected in a secure and safe manner, protecting the individual’s right to have his or her information protected. The Act also describes with whom the personal information may be shared.

Q College’s privacy policy has been built upon the regulations set by British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA).

Q College is responsible for maintaining and protecting the personal information under its control. In fulfilling this mandate, Q College designates individuals who are accountable for the Q College’s compliance with PIPA. The Senior Educational Administrator is the Privacy Officer of the college.

• Q College will identify the reasons for which personal information is collected before or at the time the information is collected
   
• Q College will obtain consent of the individual for the collection, use or disclosure of personal information except where the law makes exemptions, permissions, requirements for collection, use, or disclosure of personal information
   
• Q College will limit the personal information collected to those details necessary for the purposes identified by Q College. Q College will only use, disclose and retain personal information for the purpose for which it was collected unless the individual has otherwise consented, or when its use, disclosure or retention is required or permitted by law. Personal information will only be retained for the period of time required to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected
   
• Q College endeavours to maintain personal information as accurate, complete and up-to-date as possible to fulfill the purposes for which it is to be used
   
• Q College will protect personal information by security safeguards that are appropriate to the sensitivity level of the information
   
• Q College will make information available to individuals concerning the policies that apply to the management of any personal information collected
   
• Q College will inform an individual, on request, of the existence, use and disclosure of the individual’s information, and shall give the individual access to it in accordance with the law. Individuals may verify the accuracy and completeness of their information and may request that it be amended, if deemed appropriate
   
• Individuals may direct any questions or enquiries with respect to the college’s privacy policies or practices to the Senior Educational Administrator who is the Privacy Officer of Q College

How We Use This Information

Q College gathers and uses personal information to provide students with the best possible educational services as defined in Q College’s mission statement. Most of the information Q College collects comes from you, with your consent. When you apply to register, Q College will ask you to provide information that enables Q College to complete the registration process. This also includes information on academic, health, and personal matters needed by Q College to provide the best possible education to you.

Personal information is collected to communicate with you, process your application and ultimately to provide you with the quality educational services you expect.

Personal information is collected to enable the college to operate its administrative function, including payment of college fees.

Some information is collected anonymously to constantly improve our college, e.g., surveys.

Information on health, psychological, or legal information is collected to provide certain specialized services in those areas or as adjunct information in delivering educational services.

If for any reason personal information is required to fulfill a different purpose; the college will endeavour to notify you and ask you for your consent before the college proceeds.

Who We Share This Information With

Q College keeps personal information strictly confidential and treats it with care and respect. However, some of an individual’s personal information may be shared with others as noted below.

Other educational institutions routinely contact the college for personal information about students. For example, if you enrol in another school, college or university, the enrolling institution normally requests student records. Your permission to pass on these records is obtained when you register and authorizes Q College to disclose such information to other appropriate educational institutions for your continuing studies.

Contact information may be used by administration for the purposes of informing students and graduates of ongoing events, specials, newsletters, and meetings.

In some cases, when communication is over the telephone, your consent to the use and/or disclosure of your information will be obtained verbally. In other cases such as when you communicate through e-mail, your consent will be obtained electronically.

The type of information the college is legally required to disclose most often relates to court issues, legal proceedings, court orders, Private Colleges and Training Institutions Agency (PCTIA) and government tax reporting requirements.

Only the information specifically requested is disclosed and Q College takes precautions to satisfy itself so that the authorities making the request have legitimate grounds to do so.

Q College may be legally required to disclose personal information in some situations not limited to an investigation of illegal activities, reasonable methods to collect overdue accounts, a medical emergency or suspicion of illegal activities etc. Only required information will be disclosed.

The college does not sell, lease, or trade information about students to other parties.

Accessing Information

In the course of daily operations, access to personal information is restricted to authorized personnel who have a legitimate reason for accessing it. For example, Instructors will have access to personal information about you but not your account with the college.

All employees of Q College are required to abide by the privacy standards governed under PIPA. They are also required to work within the principles of ethical behaviour as set out in employment contracts or job descriptions and must follow all applicable laws and regulations. Employees are well informed about the importance of privacy. To reinforce their understanding and commitment to upholding client privacy and confidentiality, employees receive a handbook about our policies.

Q College sometimes contacts outside organizations to perform specialized services such as printing, market research or data processing. Suppliers of specialized services are given only the information necessary to perform those services.

If you choose to limit the sharing of your personal information, please contact Q College administration office and submit a written letter specifying which items of personal information you wish to limit, and to whom you wish these items to be restricted. Please remember that certain agencies, by law, have access to certain types of personal information.

Security

Q College maintains current security standards to ensure that your personal and financial information is protected against unauthorized access, disclosure, or misuse.

Student files are stored in secured filing cabinets. Access is restricted to only those employees (Instructors, Administrative Staff, etc.) who by nature of their work, are required to see them.

The college manages electronic files appropriately with passwords and security measures that limit access by unauthorized personnel. The college’s security practices are reviewed periodically to ensure that the privacy of your information is not compromised.

Personal information is destroyed after legal minimum retention requirements have been met.
Q College makes decisions based on the information it has. The college makes every effort to ensure information is accurate and complete.

You may access and verify any of your personal information with appropriate notice so that the office is able to supply you with the information you require. Most of this information is available in the registration forms and other forms that you filled out (at which time you were supplied copies of).

You may access and verify your college records, with appropriate notice, during normal Q College hours.

To help the college keep your personal information up-to-date, Q College encourages you to request the college to amend inaccuracies and make corrections. Where appropriate, Q College will communicate these changes to other parties who may have received said information previously from the college.

The college may add, modify or remove portions of this policy when it is considered appropriate to do so. You may ask for the most recent update of this policy at the college office.

Questions, concerns, and complaints about privacy, confidentiality and information handling of the college may be addressed to the college’s Privacy Officer by calling the college office. If necessary, you will be referred to use the college’s complaint procedure and appeals policies

General

Q College may amend this policy from time to time. If such amendments affect how Q College uses or discloses personal information already held by Q College in a material way, Q College will obtain consent.

Contact us

For more information on Q College and privacy please contact our privacy officer at:

Senior Education Administrator (SEA)
250-298-5059