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Student Records Retention Schedule
For whom is this page intended?This retention schedule is intended for staff working in areas that hold information about the University's students, particularly freedom of information practitioners responsible for setting up records management systems in their business areas. What is the purpose of this retention schedule?The schedule sets out the minimum amount of time that the University needs to keep records about its students, with the exception of Disclosure Scotland information where the retention period is mandatory. The recommendations set out here have been produced in consultation with relevant departments and the University Archivist. This is an "exposure draft", which means it is not yet official policy. Please contact us with comments on this guidance document, and your feedback will help us formulate official versions. What information is covered by this retention schedule?This schedule focuses on information relating to identifiable, individual students of all types, including (but not limited to) undergraduates, taught and research postgraduates, visiting students, continuing professional development students, e-learning students and Office of Lifelong Learning students. It does not address general information about or for students, such as summary statistics or procedures. Areas where the fact that a person is a student is not significant for the purposes of that particular activity, such as the Fitness Assessment and Sports Injury Clinic, are not covered in this schedule as information about a student using these services will be treated in the same way as the information about the area's other clients. The retention periods set out here apply to both paper and electronic information. How should I use this retention schedule?This retention schedule can be used in 3 different ways:
Where different types of records are held on one file, it is not usually practical to weed individual files. Where this is the case, the retention period chosen for the file should be the longest retention period specified for any individual record or group of records on the file. Eg if a school's file contains a student’s application form, notes of progress meetings, and extension requests, then the entire file should be destroyed one year after graduation. How long should I keep my records?The University's recommendations for how long you should keep your student records are set out in the student records retention schedule. The retention periods recommended in the spreadsheet are minimum retention periods. With the exception of Disclosure Scotland information, it is acceptable to set a longer period in a business area retention schedule, so long as the reason for the non-standard retention period is recorded. The owner of the "golden copy" of the record is the area responsible for ensuring that the University keeps the records concerned for the recommended period. Other areas should destroy their copy of the record as soon as their business need for it has ceased. This is an "exposure draft", which means it is not yet official policy. Please contact us with comments on this guidance document, and your feedback will help us formulate official versions. Using the student records retention scheduleThe schedule is intended for use as an Excel spreadsheet, but we have provided a PDF version for users who do not have access to Excel. The first page of the Excel workbook is a contents page, listing all the activities covered by the schedule. This is followed by a series of tabs specifically for the following parts of the University:
The final tab is a full version of the retention schedule, listing all the records covered by the schedule in activity order. The Records Management Section uses this for administrative purposes. You can edit the spreadsheet to show only those items relevant to your area by inserting a new column at the start of the spreadsheet, putting an x in this column against every item that applies to your area and against the section headings, and then using autofilter to show only those items marked with an x. The PDF version of the schedule consists of the full list of the records covered by the schedule, in activity order. Student admission recordsThe College of Humanities and Social Science has developed the following retention guidance for its student admission records. Other areas of the University may choose to follow a similar approach. Core archival student recordThe core archival student record will enable the University to answer any enquiry concerning the identity of a student, the topics and subjects studied, the results of all assessments counting towards a qualification and details of the award achieved. It should also support the production of management information and the conduct of academic research on the University’s student population. The link below will take you to a list of the elements of the core archival student record.Why do we need a retention schedule for student records?A retention schedule promotes consistency by ensuring that we keep the same type of record for the same amount of time no matter where the record is held. It enables us to dispose confidently of records we no longer need, and ensure the retention of the minimum volume of records consistent with economy and efficiency. The retention of unnecessary records consumes staff time, space and equipment. It also incurs liabilities in terms of the need to service information requests made under Data Protection Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. Retention schedules assist with compliance with these Acts. The Data Protection Act requires us to keep records for no longer than necessary; we can be sued for retaining unnecessary information if this causes damage to someone. The s 61 Code of Practice issued by the Scottish Executive under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 specifically requires organisations subject to freedom of information legislation to have retention schedules for all their records. Although compliance with this Code is not mandatory, it is seen as indicative of whether or not an organisation has complied with the legislation. How was the student records retention schedule developed?We convened a Student Records Retention Project Working Party to produce a list of University functions which involved using information about identifiable individual students. The University Records Manager and a Records Administrator then identified the areas using this information and mapped the processes by which that student information is acquired, used, and either preserved or disposed of, producing a series of "information maps" illustrating the processes by which student information moved through the University. The records identified in the information maps were extracted into a spreadsheet. The University Records Manager then examined the spreadsheet and, through extensive consultation with Registry, the University Archivist and affected business areas, produced retention guidance. What help is available?The University Records Management Section provides advice, guidance and training on data protection, records management and freedom of information issues. Our website contains a wide range of guidance documents on records management topics. If you cannot find the advice you need on our website, we can be contacted at the email address below.
If you have any comments or suggestions regarding these pages please e-mail them
to us at recordsmanagement@ed.ac.uk The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336 Page last updated: Tuesday November 02 2010 |
