Keeping information secure is a priority for Macquarie Community College (The College). The College respects the privacy of its current, former and prospective students, staff, contractors, clients, members and volunteers.
Information provided by individuals and organisations to the College is generally provided for the purposes of facilitating access to and participation in MCC’s education and training courses and community-based activities.
The College adheres to the thirteen Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) issued by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). The College also adheres to the National Standards for Disability Services in keeping personal information secure and confidential.
How we Manage Personal Information
The College takes all reasonable steps to ensure that personal information is not released to unauthorised persons or organisations. We protect any personal information received by the College by keeping it secure in appropriate filing systems and software systems whilst in use. We adhere to a comprehensive archiving and destruction schedule.
The College has security measures in place based on a risk assessment process to protect against the loss, misuse, and alteration of the information. The College also encrypts some digital information and transactions.
Enrolled students and their trainers can access information via a secure login from the College website. The information about students which is held, or students add or amend, via the website link, is protected by restricting access through that login. Accordingly, all individuals with log-ins must ensure that their password is not disclosed or made available to others.
How we Collect and Hold Information
It is the College’s usual practice to collect personal information directly from individuals or their authorised representative. However, we may collect personal information from a third party or from a publicly available source, with consent for this such collection or a reasonable expectation of the collection of personal information in this way, or if it is necessary for a specific purpose, such as the investigation of a complaint.
In addition, the College’s website and social media accounts automatically collect some personal information about individuals when they are engaging with us. Our website uses cookies to provide a better browsing experience. If you prefer not to have cookies collected you can disable this option in your browser settings.
Why we Collect, Hold, Use and Disclose Personal Information
The College collects personal information only for purposes directly relating to the carrying out of our business activities and only when it is necessary for, or directly related to, such purposes. Some examples include:
- enquiring about courses provided by the College
- enrolling in courses provided by the College
- asking to be placed on a mailing list or course waiting list
- being assessed for eligibility for government subsidies or fee exemption
- completing documentation to satisfy course requirements
- submitting job applications
- commencing employment, volunteering or work placement with the College
- being engaged as a contractor
- submitting membership application forms
- nominating for the position of Director on the Board of Directors
- enquiring about or utilising other College services such as room hire
- planning business events and industry consultations
- liaising with business and industry representative bodies
- requesting and receiving tenders for the supply of goods and/or services
The Australian Government requires the College to provide certain encoded student information for statistical research purposes to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). With the exception of the NCVER, no personal details identifying individuals is requested or will be divulged. Data is supplied at times to other Government agencies through standard reporting and accountability requirements and is generally anonymous.
The College also uses the data collected for statistical and business purposes such as diagnosing a fault and improving our services. The College may use products such as Google Analytics to analyse the audience statistics of our website and improve its content.
The College uses digital tools in its marketing processes from 3rd party vendors (e.g. Google Adwords, Facebook advertising) to promote our services on the internet. These tools also enable remarketing and re-engagement to reach people who previously visited our website. These 3rd party vendors use cookies and/or device identifiers to serve ads based on someone’s past visits to our website. Information about how you can opt out of Google’s use of cookies or device identifiers can be found at Google’s Ads Settings.
Program Marketing
The College contacts prospective, current and former students by phone, mail, email and other electronic messages for the purpose of marketing. You may at any time opt out and request that all such marketing contact cease. All requests will be promptly complied with and you will be removed from any marketing lists.
The College does not allow for the use of student information for any secondary marketing.
Cross Border Disclosure of Personal Information
The College does not disclose personal information to any overseas recipients. Where personal information is stored on overseas servers the College takes reasonable steps to ensure these third party providers comply with the Privacy Act obligations including contractual safeguards.
How you can Access Your Information
You may request access to your personal information held by the College by contacting us on 1300 845 888. If it is a complex request or one that relates to older documents that are not readily available, we may charge a small administration fee. We will advise you of the fee and gain your agreement prior to completing the access request. Access to personal information may be denied if the College has a sound legal reason to do so.
How You Can Make a Complaint
If you believe that your privacy may have been breached, you can lodge a complaint in writing to the Privacy Officer at [secretary@macquarie.nsw.edu.au] or call us on 1300 845 888. All complaints will be acknowledged within 5 working days and resolved within 30 days where possible. If unresolved, individuals may escalate their complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).