University students' data to be shared with private companies

Data belonging to thousands of students is to be shared with companies by the new universities regulator.

Campaigners and MPs have criticised the move, saying students risk being "exploited" for profit.

The plans came to light in a Statutory Instrument, which was due to become law on Monday.

The legislation permits the Office for Students (OfS) to share data with entities such as Pearson, the education company, as well as the Student Loans Company, HMRC and the Competition and Markets Authority.

The OfS holds data on declared mental and physical health conditions, academic progress, and graduate employment and earnings of all university students.

Labour tabled an early day motion, meaning a debate is required before it is passed into law.

Gordon Marsden MP, the shadow universities minister, said: "There is nothing we know of to stop that data being passed on or sold on to another company.

“There is not much point talking about people being in control of their own data if you have government blindly handing over masses of personal data to large companies without any of us knowing the terms under which it is handed to them, how much money they will earn from it and what they will do with it.”

The vast majority - 93 per cent - of students said that they would not want their data to be handed to commercial companies without their consent, according to a survey conducted by the university admissions system Ucas in 2015.

Dr Ben Williamson, an education lecturer at the the University of Stirling, said that the sharing of students’ data with private companies “begs a lot of questions”.

He said: “"There is concern here for data being used for purposes other than originally intended, or that the student has not given consent for.”

Jen Persson, director of the data privacy campaign group Defend Digital Me, warned that the move opens up the possibility of “exploitation of their personal data for profit”.

She added that the new law “sacrifices student privacy” by “offering detailed knowledge about the entire student population” to companies.

A spokesman for Pearson said that the data sharing is necessary to safeguard against “fraudulent access to public funding by centres offering qualifications awarded by Pearson.”

They added that Pearson adheres to data protection laws and would only use the data to “improve the quality and efficacy of our services for learners.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “As the new universities regulator, the Office for Students needs to be able to share information when needed, with other bodies so they can properly address any issues around quality, management and governance, student experience, and any potential wrongdoing.

“These regulations make this possible and any information shared would be subject to strict data protection laws protecting its use.”