Information privacy for gender diverse students living in residence.
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From the moment you apply, your personal information is treated confidentially, in accordance with UBC’s Privacy policies and the Freedom of Information and Privacy Act (FIPPA).
Learn more about Privacy in Student Housing, how personal information is handled at UBC and the university’s Protection of Privacy information and guidance.
When seeking support
While you are living in residence, if you reach out for support, your information will be kept confidential by any staff members who are helping you and will not be shared or communicated with anyone who does not need to know this information to provide you with the required support.
For example, residence employees need to access specific student information to make room assignments or to answer a student’s questions if they contact us. But they only access the information that is needed to perform the specific task, and they won’t share or communicate that information with anyone who doesn’t need to know.
Accessing information in this way is especially important when the health and/or safety of an individual or the community may be at risk.
How is your info being shared? Ask us!
If you have reached out to ask a question or to seek support and you have any questions or concerns about how your personal information—including information about your gender identity or trans experience—might be shared, you are always welcome to ask the staff member you are speaking with.
Who has access to your information
Learn more about who has access to your information and what kind of access they have.
Student Housing employees only access information required to perform their duties and provide you with effective service and support.
Residence staff
The following staff, who perform a range of duties to support students living in residence have access to your housing profile, which includes the information you provided about your gender identity and trans experience.
- Residence Admissions and Administration staff: these staff work in the SHCS Main Office and need to access personal information for a range of duties, including processing applications, assigning rooms and answering student questions.
- Residence Front Desk: these staff work at our residence front desks and may need to access personal information when completing certain tasks, such as printing a student’s check-in card, or providing support for students.
- Overnight Mobile Team: these staff work in residence overnight to keep residence safe and provide support for students. They may need to access personal information when providing support for students.
- Residence Life Managers: these staff oversee our residence communities and provide leadership for student Residence Advisors. They may need to access personal information when performing certain administrative tasks or providing support for students.
Residence Advisors
Residence Advisors are student staff who live in residence and provide direct support for individual floors, houses and residence areas. They do not have access to the majority of your personal information and are not given access to information related to your gender identity or trans experience.
The only exception is if a Residence Advisor is responding to an emergency situation and, to provide the required support, needs to access a student’s check-in card, which includes a student’s chosen name and legal name.
Non-residence staff
Other UBC employees
In accordance with FIPPA and university privacy policies and guidance, some personal information is shared between UBC systems, such as the Student Housing Management System and Workday Student.
Your responses to the gender identity and trans experience questions in the Student Housing Management System are not shared with Workday Student or any other UBC system.
Information about your gender identity or trans experience is not shared or communicated outside of SHCS employees, unless it is required to provide necessary service and support.
Roommates
If you are assigned to a shared room, in the SHCS Online Service Centre, you have the option to release certain information to your roommate(s), which helps you connect before you move in.
If you choose to release your information, your roommate(s) will be able to view your chosen name, last name and email address under “Contact room/unit-mate” in the Online Service Centre. Your gender identity and trans experience information is not shared.
Parents, guardians and family members
UBC employees cannot release any information about a student to anyone else, including parents, guardians, family members or friends. However, students can choose to provide Third-party authorization to give other individuals access to certain information and records.
Third-party authorization does not give another person access to information about your gender identity or trans experience. It only authorizes our staff to release information about your residence fees and room assignments.
Emergency personnel
If they are responding to an emergency situation in residence, emergency personnel, including paramedics, firefighters or RCMP officers, may be provided access to a student’s check-in card, which includes vital information such as legal name and date of birth but does not include student’s gender identity and trans experience.
Property owner
After living in residence, if you are searching for a place to rent off-campus or elsewhere, you might provide UBC Student Housing as a reference. For us to confirm for a property owner (i.e., a “landlord”) that you lived with us, you need to provide third-party authorization.
Even with third-party authorization set up, we only release limited information about your residence fees and room assignment. We do not provide any information or confirmation about gender identity or trans experience.