Annual Notice to Students

Students may review the consumer information posted at www.brandeis.edu/registrar/compliance/index.html. Included are key items disclosed in accordance with the federal Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA).

Brandeis Graduation Rate

In compliance with federal law, the University makes available to students and prospective students information concerning the rate at which full-time, first-time degree-seeking students complete requirements for the bachelor's degree within six years of entrance.

In 2015-16, the four-year average Student Right-to-Know completion rate for students entering 2006-2009 was 89%.

Policies Regarding Educational Records

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their educational records. They are:

(1) The right to inspect and review the student's educational records within forty-five days of the day the university receives a request for access.

Students should submit to the University Registrar, dean, department chair, or other appropriate official, written requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The university official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.

If the records are not maintained by the university official to whom the request was submitted, that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.

(2) The right to request the amendment of the student's education records that the student believes are inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student's privacy rights.

To seek the amendment of a record believed to be inaccurate or misleading, students should write the university official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading.

If the university decides not to amend the record, it will notify the student accordingly, advising of the right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding hearing procedures will be provided at that time.

(3) The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student’s education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.

Exceptions that permit disclosure without consent include but are not limited to:

(a) disclosure to parents of students who are claimed as dependents for tax purposes;
(b) disclosure to officials of another school in which a student seeks to enroll;
(c) disclosures in compliance with certain subpoenas;
(d) disclosures to university officials with legitimate educational interests.

An official is a person employed by the university in an administrative, supervisory, academic, or support staff position; a person or company with whom the university has contracted (such as an attorney, the National Student Clearinghouse, or a collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks.

Such an official has a legitimate educational interest if information in the educational records is necessary to the maintenance of the academic enterprise and/or to the officer's capacity to act responsibly in the student's educational interest.

(4) The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by Brandeis University to comply with the requirements of FERPA.

The name and address of the office that administers FERPA is: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20202-4605.

Public Notice Designating Directory Information/Privacy Settings


The university designates the following categories of student information as public "directory information,” such information may be disclosed by the institution for any purpose, at its discretion.

The university makes student directory information available electronically (as an online directory) at the start of the fall semester. (If you do not wish to appear in the online directory you must restrict the release of the “Name/On-Campus Info/On-line Directory” category.)

Current students may withhold disclosure of any category of information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, and may use the personal privacy settings within sage to restrict disclosure of directory information, all or in part. To access this function in sage, log on and in the Personal Information section of the Student Center select "privacy settings" from the dropdown menu.

Changes to privacy settings may require up to 48 hours to take effect. Brandeis University assumes that failure on the part of any student to specifically request the withholding of public information indicates individual approval for disclosure.

Categories:

Name/On-Campus Info/On-line Directory
Names (primary, preferred, passport and degree names), campus email address, campus mailbox, campus mailstop, directory phone, campus address, residence hall address

If this category is restricted from release, your information will not appear in the on-line directory. Of the information in this category the online directory only displays primary or preferred name, campus email, campus mailbox/mailstop, directory phone, and affiliation (undergraduate or graduate program).

Photo/Off-Campus Contact Info
All off-campus addresses, phone, and email information, date of birth, photograph and digital likeness.

Academic Information
Full-time/part-time status, class (freshman, sophomore, etc), dates of attendance, majors, and minors at Brandeis, previous institution(s) attended and major field of study, awards and honors, degree(s) conferred and date(s) conferred.

Athletic Information
Past and present participation in officially recognized sports and activities, physical factors (height, weight of athletes).

Sealing Student Records

After students graduate from the university, their records are sealed and no further changes are allowed. The correction of clerical mistakes is possible by petition to the University Registrar.

Name Changes

The transcript is the official, legal document that certifies a student's academic history. The name in which it is maintained will not be changed without a written request that must be accompanied by materials that prove that the requested new name has been assumed legally.

Name changes will be accommodated at the discretion of the University Registrar. Name changes are no longer possible for students who entered Brandeis prior to 1986.

Preferred Name Usage

The university recognizes that many of its members use names other than their legal names to identify themselves. As long as the use of this different name is neither offensive to others, nor for the purpose of misrepresentation, the university acknowledges that a "preferred name" can and should be used wherever possible in the course of university business and education, except where the use of the legal name is required by university business or legal need.

Therefore any member of the community may choose to identify themselves within the university's information systems with a preferred name in addition to the person's legal name.

As there are many distinct administrative systems at the university, this policy will be implemented in phases as resources allow.

Examples of where the legal name must be used: transcripts, enrollment and degree verifications, health insurance and Health Center documents, Financial Aid documents, Student Accounts, International student reporting, Study Abroad, student employment and payroll. Examples of where the preferred name will be used: Class and Grade rosters (both sage and Latte), Final Exam attendance sheets, Advisee lists, Degree Audit screens, on-line directory.

Inappropriate use of a preferred name (including, but not limited to, avoiding a legal obligation or misrepresentation) may be cause for disciplinary action, and the administrative removal of the preferred name. Revocation of a preferred name shall be at the discretion of the University Registrar. Any additional disciplinary actions will be determined through the normal disciplinary procedures of the university.

Official Communications

Brandeis University administrative offices use email as an official method of communication with our students. The university has contracted with Google to provide email service. Students are obligated to have a university email account and to either regularly check that account, or to set the account to forward email to an account that they do check regularly.