Privacy Policy
Our Commitment to Protect Your Personal Information
The Alberta Post-Secondary Application System (APAS) is an organization established by Alberta's post-secondary institutions to provide students with access to essential information and services to support applications for admission to one or more of Alberta's post-secondary institutions.
APAS recognizes the importance of your privacy and the sensitivity of your personal information. The ApplyAlberta system will manage your personal information in accordance with the Alberta Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP Act) and other relevant privacy legislation. APAS has prepared this Privacy Statement to explain how it collects, uses, discloses, protects, and otherwise treats the personal information of applicants and others in the course of providing application services for Alberta post-secondary institutions.
Please be aware that in the course of applying to a post-secondary program, you will receive additional information about how your personal information will be collected, used, disclosed, and otherwise treated in connection with that program from the receiving institution(s). This Privacy Statement does not apply to the practices of institutions or other bodies APAS does not control.
Collection, use and disclosure of your personal information
The main purpose of ApplyAlberta is to enable you to apply for admission to the Alberta post- secondary programs of your choice from a single location. The ApplyAlberta system collects, uses, and discloses your personal information under the authority of the FOIP Act as follows
- The ApplyAlberta system collected the personal information you provided when you created your online account through the Government of Alberta identity management systems, including your name, gender, date of birth, email address, and Alberta Student Number (ASN).
- The ApplyAlberta system collects the personal information you enter to complete your ApplyAlberta Profile including your address, contact information, citizenship, academic history, first language spoken, whether you were working or going to school, and your country of residence at the time of application. ApplyAlberta saves this information in its database so you may apply to a number of Alberta post-secondary programs without re-entering your information.
- When you choose to apply to an Alberta post-secondary program as part of the online process, the ApplyAlberta system provides your ApplyAlberta Profile to that post-secondary institution.
- APAS uses the information collected by the ApplyAlberta system for statistical purposes to improve its service and to improve the post-secondary education system. For these purposes, it provides statistical information to Alberta post-secondary institutions and to the Alberta Ministry of Advanced Education. APAS has specific written agreements with each of these bodies. This is governed in accordance with applicable provincial or federal privacy legislation and where applicable, rules of regulatory bodies.
- APAS uses your personal information for purposes reasonably consistent with the above uses.
Keeping your personal information accurate
APAS is committed to maintaining the accuracy of your personal information for as long as it is being used for the purposes identified.
To help keep your personal information accurate, up-to-date and complete at the institutions you have applied to, you are encouraged to use the Update Profile function whenever your information changes.
Accessing your personal information
You are able to view the personal information the ApplyAlberta system has collected using the "My Profile" function.
Alternately, a routine request for your own personal information may be directed to APAS using the contact information below. You will have to provide your identification information before a response is provided.
If necessary, an enquiry may be referred to the Information and Privacy Office, Alberta Human Services which provides related access and privacy services through a shared service agreement with APAS. The Information and Privacy Office will forward an access request form to you to fill out and return. The form will provide APAS with the details needed in order to search for and provide you with the personal information the ApplyAlberta system may hold about you. There may be a fee for your request, however; upon request you will be provided with an estimate in advance.
Steps we take to protect personal information
APAS endeavours to maintain physical, procedural and electronic security with respect to its offices and information storage facilities to prevent unauthorized access, use, disclosure, or destruction of your personal information.
The personal information you provide is recorded in an ApplyAlberta database. All personal information stored in ApplyAlberta databases is protected with levels of security appropriate to the sensitivity of the personal information.
When personal information is accessed by APAS employees, it must be accessed only on a need to know basis related to the employee's job responsibilities. Appropriate use of personal information means using it to accomplish the purposes for which it was collected (e.g., to provide a service).
APAS keeps its employees current about its policies and procedures for protecting personal information and reinforces the importance of complying with them.
If you have questions or concerns about how your personal information is being managed, please contact APAS using the contact information below.
Steps you should take to protect your personal information
Access to your personal information on the ApplyAlberta system is protected with a password you select. It is strongly recommended you do not disclose your password to anyone. APAS will never ask you for your password in any unsolicited communication.
Website Usage Information Collected
The ApplyAlberta application process is a secure process providing service based on your authenticated account and your right to access the service. Therefore, the ApplyAlberta system records each time you login and records your activities. Further, any information you enter or update is logged, including the date and time of the change. This logging protects users by enabling APAS to investigate potential misuses of the ApplyAlberta system.
Also, as a standard function, the ApplyAlberta web servers automatically collect certain information about your visit to the ApplyAlberta website. The ApplyAlberta system collects and stores only the following information:
- the previous Internet page from which you linked to the ApplyAlberta site
- the date and time you accessed the ApplyAlberta website
- the Internet domain name or IP address from which you access the ApplyAlberta site
- the type and version of your browser
- the name and size of the file you request
APAS uses this information to help make its site more useful to visitors - to learn about the number of visitors and types of technology visitors to the ApplyAlberta site use. This information is collected in compliance with the FOIP Act.
Use of cookies
A cookie is a file placed on your hard drive with your temporary internet files while you are visiting a website. The ApplyAlberta system uses cookies to track how visitors use the website and to maintain a login session. ApplyAlberta does not store personal information in cookies, nor collect personal information from you without your knowledge as you browse this site. ApplyAlberta does use cookies to aid in the collection of anonymous statistical information such as browser type, screen size, traffic patterns and pages visited. This information is then used to improve service.
Security
For site security purposes and to ensure web services remain available to all users, the ApplyAlberta system employs software programs to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage.
Links to other websites
This website contains links to other sites. APAS is not responsible for the content or the privacy practices of external websites. You are encouraged to examine each site's privacy policy and disclaimers and make your own decisions regarding the accuracy, reliability, and correctness of material and information found.
More Information
APAS takes its responsibility to respect and protect your personal information seriously. APAS meets its responsibilities to ensure your privacy by regularly reviewing its privacy policy. For more information about any of the policies and practices described above, please contact us at info@applyalberta.ca.
System Availability
ApplyAlberta Outages
Mar. 21 to Mar. 21, 2024
Institution Outages
Mar. 20 to Mar. 20, 2024