HESA Student and Staff Data Collection Notices

The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is the official agency for the collection, analysis and dissemination of quantitative information about higher education in the UK. It was set up by agreement between relevant government departments, the higher education funding councils and universities and colleges. HESA gathers information from higher education institutions in the UK at the request of various statutory customers, such as the Department for Education and the Office for Students. The data gathered is processed by HESA into a form suitable for each statutory customer, and is also used to produce statistics.

Like other higher education institutions, SOAS has to routinely pass certain personal data on staff and current and former students to HESA and HESA's agents and contractors. SOAS also contacts recent graduates on HESA's behalf to conduct the Graduate Outcomes survey. These transfers of data are required by law and are also a condition of SOAS's funding.

HESA has produced collection notices which higher education institutions are advised to make available to students and staff. The notices explain why personal data has to be transferred to HESA and what HESA does with the data. Links to HESA's Student Collection Notice, Staff Collection Notice and collections notice for the Graduate Outcomes survey are provided below. The notices and additional information on how HESA processes personal data are available on the Data Protection section of HESA's website . Please contact SOAS's Information Compliance Manager (email dataprotection@soas.ac.uk ) if you have questions or concerns relating to SOAS's transfer of data to HESA.

SOAS is committed to processing the personal data of staff and students in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (2018), together "data protection law". The School's Data Protection Policy provides further information on this commitment, and specifies the steps which SOAS is taking to conform to the requirements of data protection law. Students are advised to read the Student Data Protection Statement , which summarises how SOAS gathers and processes data about students, and what data we transfer to other organisations such as HESA.

HESA has provided the following statements on the collection and use of personal data from students and staff. The "We" referred to in the statements refers to SOAS. (Following these links will take you to the HESA website).

Student Collection Notice

Staff Collection Notice

Graduate Outcomes Collection Notice