Privacy Policy | Melbourne School of Theology

The following is a summary of the application of the privacy policy of the Melbourne School of Theology (“MST”).

MST is subject to Government legislation concerning privacy and is committed to protecting the privacy of your personal information. Personal information includes information about an individual whose identity is apparent, or can reasonably be ascertained, from the information. It includes “sensitive information”. “Sensitive information” includes information about an individual’s racial or ethnic origin, religious affiliation and health information.

In what circumstances does MST collect personal information?

MST collects personal information for the primary purpose of maintaining a database in order to operate effectively as a provider of Christian education and ministry. MST collects this information for related, secondary purposes including:

meeting our legal obligations,
administration,
contacting donors to, and graduates of, MST, and
(with the express exception of sensitive information) for marketing purposes.

MST will only collect sensitive information with the individual’s consent, unless the other provisions of Section 10 of MST’s Privacy Policy apply.

About whom do we collect personal information?

Applicants, Students, Graduates, Donors, College Council Members, Faculty and Staff
Some of the other people who come in contact with MST.

What types of personal information do we collect?

Electronically stored personal information	Paper records of personal information
Application and enrolment forms, any medical report and in-coming references, past and present Student’s attendance record, academic progress and results	Application and enrolment forms, any medical report and in-coming references, past and present Student’s attendance record, academic progress and results
Overseas Student visa information	Overseas Student visa information
Correspondence from, or concerning, Students, including copy references from MST	Correspondence from, or concerning, Students, including copy references from MST
College Council Members, Faculty, Staff and Graduate names and contact details	College Council Members, Faculty, Staff and Graduate names and contact details
Donor names and contact details and direct debit details where provided	Donor names and contact details and direct debit details where provided
The unique identifier (log-in identification and Student number) and email address of anyone who communicates with MST on-line
The results of on-line surveys made of Students, Graduates, Donors, Churches and Mission Agencies	The results of on-line surveys made of Students, Graduates, Donors, Churches and Mission Agencies
Newsletters from Graduates	Newsletters from Graduates
Website chat-rooms, forums, on-line tuition, message boards and / or news groups	Records relating to counselling of Students, Faculty and Staff (including performance appraisal)
Requests for prayer	Requests for prayer (also may be oral)

Use & disclosure of personal information

Personal information that MST collects will not be used or disclosed for any purpose other than the primary purpose for which it was collected or for a related, secondary purpose as listed above. The exceptions are where:

MST provides a debt collection agency, or a solicitor, with the name and contact details of a person who either has an outstanding debt payable to MST, or is involved in another legal matter concerning that person and MST.
MST provides a personal reference or a copy of a person’s academic results to another educational institution, prospective employer or mission agency, upon request of that institution etc, unless the Student or Graduate has requested in writing that such information be not provided.

Only authorized Faculty or Staff involved in providing training, education and ministry for the person providing personal information may have access to such information as they need to provide an appropriate service. Prayer requests that contain personal information will only be communicated to individuals or any category of individuals specified by the person making the request.

Information about a person’s race, ethnic origin or religious affiliation may be used in the compilation or analysis of statistics relevant to planning and marketing. Sensitive information that MST collects will not be used for any purpose other than the primary purpose for which it was collected. Sensitive information will not be disclosed for any purpose without the consent of the individual.

Data Quality and Security

MST will seek to ensure that personal information is kept up-to-date and complete. MST will take reasonable steps to protect and secure personal information from loss, misuse and unauthorized access. For example:

Electronically stored personal information	Paper records of personal information
Our site has security measures in place against loss, misuse and unauthorized access of personal information	Such information is kept in locked filing cabinets in the offices of the Principal, Principal’s PA or Administrative Assistant (Academic). Students’ files are archived in a locked, fire-proof Compactus
A log-in name or user name and a password are required to visit secure areas and only authorized Faculty and Administrative Staff are issued with these	Some personal information is kept separately in a locked safe.
Although most on-line surveys will not require identification, occasionally some surveys might ask a Student, Graduate or Donor for their unique identifier	Surveys are kept in locked filing cabinets in the offices of the Dean of Studies and the Publicity Officer

In relation to accessing their own student results, Students should ensure their own passwords are kept secure.

MST’s website has chat rooms, forums, on-line teaching environments, message boards and / or news groups available to their users. Students are reminded that any information that is disclosed in these areas will become public information and should exercise caution when deciding to disclose personal information.

Openness

On request, MST will seek to let a person know what sort of personal information it holds and why, how it collects and holds the information, and the circumstances under which it may disclose the information.

Access & Correction

MST will permit individuals to have access to their personal records in accordance with the MST Access to student records policy. Please inform us of any changes you think should be made to our records.

Identifiers

MST will not use or disclose Federal Government or agency identifiers, except for the reasons for which they were issued or if other provisions of National Privacy Principle 7 apply.

Anonymity

Should it be appropriate and practicable, a person may elect not to identify him or herself in entering into transactions with MST.

Trans-border data flows

MST will not transfer a person’s personal information out of Australia, except where regulations similar to the Australian National Privacy Principles bind the recipient, or with the person’s consent.