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Last updated: September 16, 2024

Undergraduate Application Notice and Declaration

Notice of Collection, Use and Disclosure of Your Personal Information Provided as Part of Your Ontario University Undergraduate Application

The Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (“OUAC”, “we”, or “us”) is a division of the Council of Ontario Universities (COU). We process applications for admission to Ontario university programs on behalf of the Ontario universities. To apply for admission to an undergraduate degree-granting program and/or a non-degree-granting program at a university in Ontario, your application is processed through the OUAC.

We are committed to respecting your privacy. This notice supplements our Privacy Statement and applies when you prepare, complete and submit an Undergraduate application to an Ontario university. Please read our Privacy Statement.

By applying through the OUAC, you authorize us to collect your personal information directly from you and from other organizations, as necessary, to complete and process your application. You also agree that we will disclose to the universities you apply to (the “Chosen Universities”) the personal information you provide to us and other personal information we collect in connection with your application. The Chosen Universities collect your personal information through the OUAC in accordance with their enabling legislation for the purposes of recruitment, admission and registration. Universities may use and disclose your personal information for other purposes in accordance with their own admission and personal information policies and practices. The notices of collection of personal information for each Ontario university can be found on their websites. Please review the policies of your Chosen Universities for further information.

Collection of Personal Information

  • We collect the personal information you provide in your application, or in reference to your application, as set out in our Privacy Statement, to process your application to your Chosen Universities, including:
    • Academic transcripts.
    • Your Ontario Education Number (OEN), when it is provided on your transcript; we keep it as a personal identifier for your OUAC Account.
  • We collect information about your status as an Indigenous person of Canada, if you choose to provide it.
  • We collect information about your status as a first-generation (parents/guardians did not attend a university or college) applicant, if you choose to provide it.
  • We collect information about your gender identity, if you choose to provide it. You may select the “Prefer not to answer” response option if you choose not to provide your gender identity.
  • We collect your diversity-based personal information, if you choose to provide it, namely:
    • Ethnic Group(s)
    • Religion and/or Spiritual Self-Identity
    • Sexual Orientation
    • Disability

You may select the “Prefer not to answer” response option available for each question if you choose not to provide your diversity-based personal information. No program, service or benefit will be withheld should you choose not to provide your diversity-based personal information.

  • We collect information about the OUAC voucher, if you choose to pay for your application using an OUAC voucher purchased by a Chosen University.
  • We collect your registration information from the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities (MCU) if you are accepted and then register at an Ontario university.

Use of Personal Information

  • We use your personal information to compile and process your application, as set out in our Privacy Statement.
  • If you applied last year, and you are applying this year, for admission to undergraduate degree-granting and/or non-degree-granting programs at universities in Ontario, we may use the academic information that we collected last year to process your application this year.
  • If you order academic transcripts in support of your application, we will use your personal information to process your transcript request.
  • We and/or your Chosen Universities may use your personal information, including but not limited to, your date of birth or OEN, for identification and document matching.
  • We may combine information collected from the MCU on university registration with your personal, academic, application choice, offer, and confirmation information, collected as part of your application to create data and aggregated data and reports as set out in our Privacy Statement.
  • If you choose to pay for your application using an OUAC voucher purchased by a Chosen University, we may combine the voucher information with your personal, academic, application choice, offer, confirmation and registration information collected as part of your application to create data and aggregated data and reports. The Chosen University that purchased the OUAC voucher that paid for your application may use the data and aggregated data and reports, in accordance with their own personal information policies and practices, for admission, enrollment and other academic policy development and research purposes.
  • We may combine information about your status as an Indigenous person of Canada, your status as a first-generation applicant, your gender identity and/or your diversity-based personal information with your personal, academic, application choice, offer, confirmation and registration information collected as part of your application to create data and aggregated data and reports. Your Chosen Universities may use the data and aggregated data and reports, in accordance with their own personal information policies and practices, to:
    • Identify any unconscious bias or systemic racism in the admission process and to monitor any programs implemented to address any bias.
    • Inform you of specific programs, services or supports available to equity-seeking groups, in an effort to improve the availability of a university education for equity-seeking communities.
    • Support the admission process. Examples include, but are not limited to, making offers of admission and awarding scholarships.

Disclosure of Personal Information

  • We disclose your personal information, including the personal information in your application, to each of your Chosen Universities. This information includes personal, academic, university/program choice data, offers and responses to offers, as set out in our Privacy Statement.
  • We disclose your personal information to your Ontario high school and/or school board to assist in the application process. This includes a restricted number of Ontario high school and/or school board officials who are authorized to update your academic and diploma information that we store at the OUAC. The notices of collection of personal information for each Ontario government institution can be found on their websites.
  • We may disclose your academic information to the Ontario Ministry of Education in order to verify your academic record.
  • If you order academic transcripts in support of your application, we disclose your personal information to the institutions where you ordered your transcripts from to process your transcript request.
  • If you intend to apply for the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and provide your authorization and consent specifically for this purpose, we disclose your personal information to the MCU so they can determine your eligibility for financial aid.
  • We and/or your Chosen Universities may disclose your personal information to the Ontario Ministry of Education to validate or assign an OEN. The notices of collection of Ontario government institutions can be found on the websites of those institutions.
  • We and/or your Chosen Universities may notify universities and colleges across Canada and/or regulatory authorities and law enforcement, at our absolute discretion, if you withhold information or submit any information with your application that is determined to be false, misleading or written by a third party, or if it contains evidence of academic dishonesty or inappropriate or unethical conduct.

Applicant’s Declaration

You consent to the personal information practices set out in the OUAC Privacy Statement and the Notice of Collection, Use and Disclosure of Your Personal Information Provided as Part of Your Ontario University Undergraduate Application.

You certify the following:

I certify that the personal information and documents submitted, or to be submitted, in this application, are true, complete and correct, including my declarations of citizenship and immigration status in Canada. I certify that any applicable autobiographic and personal submissions are true, accurate and authored solely and entirely by me and that all information requested in this application has been disclosed.

I understand that it is my responsibility to keep the OUAC and the universities where I have applied or registered informed of any changes to the information in my application, and I agree to update my application immediately after any such change occurs.

You also agree that you must:

  • Provide the required personal information requested in this application, along with your application fee. Universities will not consider incomplete applications. Universities may require additional personal information and/or submissions to complete your application.
  • Keep your OUAC username, password and application reference number confidential and secure. You must notify us immediately if you suspect any unauthorized access to, use or disclosure of this information.

Note: We and the universities reserve the right to verify any information provided as part of your application. If you withhold information or submit any information that is determined to be false, misleading or written by a third party, we and/or the universities may, at our absolute discretion, invalidate the application, resulting in its immediate rejection or in the revocation of an offer of admission or registration at a university.

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