Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Applicant Records

Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Applicant Records Notification of Student Rights Under FERPA

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

  • The right to inspect and review the student's education records within forty-five days of the day that the Institute receives the request for access.

    Students should submit written requests to the Registrar’s office in order to identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The Registrar will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.

    Students should specify the specific records being requested as stated below when making such written request:

    • Transcripts (Office of the Registrar)
    • Student Disciplinary Records (Office of Student Integrity)
    • Title IX records (Title IX Coordinator)
    • Student Housing (Department of Housing)
    • Financial Aid Records (Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid)

    For education records that are not specified above, please include a sufficient description and, if possible, the location for the requested records as these records are transient in nature and are not routinely maintained as part of a student’s FERPA records.

    Please note that fees may be assessed solely to remove other student information that is protected by FERPA and that may be contained within these transient records. You will not be charged to review your student records except as stated herein and we will notify you first if fees may be assessed.

  • The right to request the amendment of the student's education records that the student believes are inaccurate or misleading.

    Students may ask the Institute to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading. They should write the registrar, clearly identifying the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading.

    If the Institute decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the Institute will notify the student of the decision and advise the student of their right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.

  • 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.

    Disclosure Without Consent

    The Institute may disclose education records without a student’s prior written consent to certain parties under certain conditions, as allowed by FERPA, including:

    • ​School officials with legitimate educational interests

      A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill their professional responsibility.
    • Other schools to which a student is transferring
    • Specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes
    • Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid
    • Organizations conducting certain types of studies for or on behalf of the school
    • Accrediting organizations
    • Compliance with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena
    • Appropriate officials in cases of health and safety emergencies
  • The right to file a complaint with the United States Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the Georgia Institute of Technology 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, DC 20202-4605

Applicant Records

Access to applicant records is strictly controlled and governed by Institute policy. To the extent permitted by law, these records are treated as confidential.

Annual Notice of Directory Information Contents

We are committed to informing students of their rights under FERPA annually. The definition of Directory Information Under FERPA, "Directory Information," refers to student information that is not generally considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed. The Institute, pursuant to University System of Georgia policy, has designated the following categories of information as Directory Information effective December 31, 2024:

  • Student's name
  • Major field of study
  • Enrollment status
  • Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
  • Dates of attendance
  • Degrees, honors, and awards received
  • Dates of attendance
  • The most recent educational institution attended
  • Height and weight of athletes
  • Class level
  • Hometown
  • Institution assigned email address*
  • Thesis/Dissertation title

*Under this category, an institution-assigned email address may be disclosed without consent only to other, current students. In addition, students may not request email listings of the entire student body or segments thereof, except for academic purposes.

Students who wish to prohibit the release of Directory Information can view information on the registrar's confidentiality Web page.

Georgia Tech’s use of information concerning an individual’s financial assistance, including information from the Free Application for Financial Aid (FAFSA), is limited and restricted.  For more information, see the Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid policy on information sharing. 

Possible Federal and State Data Collection and Use

As of January 3, 2012, the U.S. Department of Education's FERPA regulations expand the circumstances under which your education records and personally identifiable information (PII) contained in such records — including your Social Security Number, grades, or other private information — may be accessed without your consent. First, the U.S. Comptroller General, the U.S. Attorney General, the U.S. Secretary of Education, or state and local education authorities ("Federal and State Authorities") may allow access to your records and PII without your consent to any third party designated by a Federal or State Authority to evaluate a federal- or state-supported education program.

The evaluation may relate to any program that is "principally engaged in the provision of education," such as early childhood education and job training, as well as any program that is administered by an education agency or institution. Second, Federal and State Authorities may allow access to your education records and PII without your consent to researchers performing certain types of studies, in certain cases even when we object to or do not request such research. Federal and State Authorities must obtain certain use-restriction and data security promises from the entities that they authorize to receive your PII, but the Authorities need not maintain direct control over such entities. In addition, in connection with Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems, State Authorities may collect, compile, permanently retain, and share without your consent PII from your education records, and they may track your participation in education and other programs by linking such PII to other personal information about you that they obtain from other Federal or State data sources, including workforce development, unemployment insurance, child welfare, juvenile justice, military service, and migrant student records systems.

Additional Information

Additional information on Georgia Tech's FERPA policies is available from the Registrar's Office.