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You are here: CHESSN & myUniAssist > Privacy & your personal details
Privacy & your personal details
Introduction
Who will collect my personal information?
What personal information will be collected?
Privacy complaints
Introduction
Personal information for students who apply for Commonwealth assistance must be handled by Commonwealth agencies and higher education providers (HEPs) in accordance with the Information Privacy Principles (IPPs).  These IPPs are described in section 14 of the Privacy Act 1988.
A student is considered to be Commonwealth assisted if they receive a:
The framework for the provision of Commonwealth assistance is provided in the Higher Education Support Act 2003 and its various Guidelines.
Who will collect my personal information?
The provision of Commonwealth assistance to students will require students’ personal information to be shared between:
- higher education providers (HEPs)
- tertiary admission centres (TACs)
- the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST)
- the Australian Taxation Office (Tax Office).
The sharing of personal information between HEPs, TACs and Commonwealth agencies will generally be done only in accordance with written consent obtained from students before such information is shared.
In respect of personal information collected for the purpose of providing Commonwealth assistance, it is an offence under the Higher Education Support Act 2003 for a Commonwealth officer or an officer of a HEP to disclose, copy or record that personal information, other than in the course of their official employment.
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What personal information will be collected?
Students who are applying to study with a HEP, will need to apply either through a TAC or directly through a HEP.
Students applying initially for a place through a TAC will be asked to provide informed consent for their personal information to be provided to HEPs and DEST.
Students applying through a HEP will be asked to provide informed consent for their personal information to be provided to DEST either on a request for Commonwealth assistance form, or a form designed by their HEP. These forms will be issued by the HEP and will describe what personal information is being collected, how it will be used and to whom it may be disclosed. Students will be asked to sign a declaration on these forms agreeing to their personal information being used and disclosed for these purposes.
Personal information which will be collected for the purposes of Commonwealth assistance will include:
- Name
- Address
- Date of birth
- Gender
- Residency status
- Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander status
- Disability status
- Student ID issued by the HEP
- Tax file number (only for students seeking a Higher Education Loan Programme (HELP) loan)
- CHESSN
Under IPP 4, all organisations and agencies who receive students’ personal information for the purposes of Commonwealth assistance must ensure that this information is stored securely and that unauthorised access is prevented.
Once DEST receives students’ personal information, DEST will allocate a Commonwealth Higher Education Student Support Number (CHESSN). A CHESSN is a unique student identifier to help manage student information collected for the purposes of monitoring their use of Commonwealth assistance.
DEST will securely store students’ personal information in the Higher Education Information Management System (HEIMS). Students will be entitled to access their personal information that is stored on HEIMS via the private portal on the Going to Uni website called myUniAssist. This will enable a student to view his or her personal details, including their usage of Commonwealth assistance.
Personal information will only be provided to the Tax Office for students who have received Commonwealth assistance through the HELP programme.
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Privacy complaints
Students who have a grievance concerning privacy should first contact their HEP. HEPs are required to have grievance procedures for responding to students’ complaints for non-academic matters. These procedures should include privacy related complaints where a student believes that a HEP has breached the IPPs in relation to personal information collected for the purpose of Commonwealth support or Commonwealth assistance.
If a student is not satisfied that a complaint about the handling of his or her personal information has been resolved after pursuing the grievance procedures in place at his or her HEP, the student may contact DEST’s Privacy Contact Officer or write to:
The Privacy Contact Officer
Loc 765
Department of Education, Science and Training
GPO Box 9880
Canberra ACT 2601
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