Student Recruitment privacy notice

Information you need to know

The Student Recruitment Team is part of Liverpool John Moores University. See further information on the institution.

Liverpool John Moores University is the Data Controller.

Our Data Protection Officer can be contacted at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

This privacy notice applies to anyone who has enquired about one of our courses, or who has registered to attend an Open Day or other recruitment event. If you enrol and become a student, we will collect further information about you, which is explained in our Student privacy notice.

This privacy notice explains how the Student Recruitment Team uses your personal information and your rights in relation to that information.

For information about how the wider university uses personal data, please see the Privacy notice section of our website.

Information we are collecting

We collect basic contact details such as:

  • your name
  • email address
  • telephone number
  • postal address

We also collect information about your interests and preferences, where these relate to courses, events or recruitment activities, including activities held on campus or at external venues.

Source of the personal data

Most of the personal information we process is provided directly by you when you make an enquiry, register for an Open Day or other recruitment event, or engage with us as part of our recruitment activities.

In some cases, we may also receive your details from third-party platforms used to support student recruitment and events, for example where you have registered your interest through an external booking or enquiry system.

Why we are collecting your data and the legal basis for this

We collect and use your personal data to respond to enquiries, manage attendance at recruitment events, and provide information about courses and studying at LJMU. We only process personal data where there is a valid lawful basis to do so.

Where you have made an enquiry or registered for an Open Day or other recruitment event, your personal data is processed under Article 6(1)(b) of the UK GDPR. This allows us to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract, for example by providing the information you have asked for or administering your event registration.

In some circumstances, we process personal data under Article 6(1)(f) of the UK GDPR, where this is necessary for our legitimate interests. This includes activities such as analysing recruitment activity or improving our services. When we rely on this basis, we have considered the impact on your data protection rights and are satisfied that our interests do not override them.

Where you have given permission for us to contact you about future recruitment activities, courses or events, we process your personal data under Article 6(1)(a) of the UK GDPR, based on your consent. Where consent is relied upon, you can withdraw it at any time.

Who has access to this data

Your personal information is only accessed by authorised LJMU staff where this is necessary for them to carry out their role. This may include:

  • Student Recruitment and Admissions staff
  • relevant academic staff
  • authorised student ambassadors
  • colleagues in other university departments where your enquiry has been forwarded to them for a response

Your information may also be shared internally with Admissions, academic departments and professional services teams for the purposes of communicating with you about events and recruitment activities that may be relevant to your interests.

We also use approved third-party service providers to support student recruitment activities. This includes providers who help us manage communications and analyse recruitment activity, such as email communications platforms and market analysis services. These providers process personal data on the university’s behalf, only in accordance with our instructions and under contractual arrangements that meet data protection requirements.

We will not normally share your personal data with any other third parties without your consent, unless we are required to do so by law.

How the university protects your data

We are committed to keeping your personal data safe in line with data protection legislation and the university’s information security and data protection policies.

Personal data used for student recruitment is stored within secure systems. Access to these systems is restricted to authorised users and controlled through appropriate technical and organisational security measures. We regularly review our systems and arrangements to ensure that personal data is handled securely.

How long the university keeps your data

We keep your personal data only for as long as necessary and in line with the university’s Records Retention Schedule.

If you make an enquiry and go on to become a student, your enquiry and recruitment records are normally retained for six years after the end of your relationship with the university.

If you make an enquiry but do not go on to become a student, your information is usually retained until the end of the academic year following your most recent enquiry.

When your personal data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or destroyed. Anonymised statistical information may be retained permanently for reporting and analysis purposes.

Your rights

As a data subject, you have a number of rights. You can:

  • access and obtain a copy of your data on request - this could be in a portable electronic format
  • request that the university changes incorrect or incomplete data if you think that it is inaccurate or out of date
  • request that the university delete or stop processing your data, for example where the data is no longer necessary or legally required for the purposes of processing

If your personal data has been provided by consent, you have a right to withdraw that consent at any time.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact the Data Protection Officer at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

If you do not provide data

We will only be able to send you information about our courses or register you for Open Days and other recruitment events if you provide us with sufficient personal data.

If you do not wish to provide contact details, we can still talk to you about studying at LJMU, but we may be limited in the information or services we are able to offer.

Transfers of data outside the UK

We normally keep your personal data within the UK. In some cases, however, we may need to transfer it to another country – for example, to deliver a contract with you or to work with a partner organisation such as a university based overseas.

Whenever this happens, we make sure your information stays protected. This could be through a UK “adequacy regulation” (which confirms that the other country’s data protection laws are up to UK standards) or by putting strong safeguards in place.

These safeguards might include model contractual clauses, formal data sharing or processing agreements, or binding corporate rules. In short, even if your data travels abroad, it will continue to be treated with the same care and respect as it would under UK law.

Automated decision making

We do not use computers to make decisions about you based solely on your personal data. Any decisions that affect you will always be made by a human, ensuring that you are treated fairly.

How to complain to the university

You have a right to complain to the university if you think it has not properly responded to your request for personal information or feel it has not handled your personal data responsibly.

If you are not satisfied with how your request for information or how your personal data has been handled, you should set out your complaint in writing to:

Maria Burquest
University Secretary and General Counsel
Legal and Governance Services
2nd Floor Exchange Station
Tithebarn Street
Liverpool
L2 2QP

or by email via DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

How to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office

You have the right to complain to The Information Commissioner if you believe that our processing of your personal data does not meet our data protection obligations. The Information Commissioner can be contacted using the following details:

  • Post: Information Commissioners Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK95AF.
  • Telephone: 0303 123 1113.
  • Email: contact can be made by accessing the ICO website.