Privacy Policy

1          Controller

The controller of the processing is: 

Robert Kennedy College AG
Technoparkstrasse 1
8005 Zurich
Switzerland

You can contact us at the address above or by sending an email to hello@rkc.swiss

1          Scope

This privacy policy stipulates how Robert Kennedy College AG, Technoparkstrasse 1, 8005 Zurich, Switzerland (hereinafter "RKC" or "we") processes personal data of its web users and customers ("you") who provide personal data on its website and/or mobile applications (“website”), whether these personal data are provided by you or by a third party, and whether personal data are transmitted to RKC via the website or via other means.

2          General

RKC is a private educational institution for online masters level programmes in an exclusive partnership with the University of Cumbria (UK), the University of Salford (UK) and York St John University (UK) (hereinafter referred to as “Universities”). 

On our websites college.ch, rkc.swiss, york.mba, salford.rkc.edu, rkc.edu we offer information about our products and services, online programme access (login required), newsletters and blogs. 

Data you provide will be processed by RKC and its Universities for providing educational services to you. We will process your data only for the purpose, unless you have consented to further use of your data or the applicable law permits such further use. Our employees are obliged to treat personal data confidentially.

Your data is protected in conformity with the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (SR 235.1; hereinafter referred to as “FADP”). For data processing according to the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU 2016/679) please refer to the GDPR addendum below.

As we process most personal data electronically, we have taken appropriate IT organisational and technical measures (e.g., IT security) to ensure that your personal data is protected. We also regularly educate our employees in data protection and information security. 

3          What Personal Data is Collected for What Purpose

We may collect your master data (e.g. first name, last name, gender, birthdate, country of birth, residence address, phone number, e-mail address, occupation, and photo); personal data about the services obtained; education data (e.g. course attendance and grades); payment transaction data; online preferences; your blogs/feedback, and alumni information. 

Prospective students: Based on the consent you provided to us in the request catalogue page we will contact you with relevant information, upcoming activities, news, promotions, and events. You can unsubscribe from any message and opt out of any other communication by requesting to do so with an email to team@rkc.edu. 

Registered students: Your data will be used to fulfil our contractual obligations and will be passed to the relevant University. We may also use it to contact you with information, upcoming activities, news, promotions, and events.

We use your personal data to communicate with you and third parties (e.g. Universities); for evaluating, concluding and performing our educational online and onsite services to you; for billing purposes; or for market research, surveys and marketing, such as contacting you by postal mail or e-mail, and understand trends and needs of our prospective students, registered students and others using our website or other services we offer.; 

Input fields on the website that are absolutely necessary for the provision of our educational services are marked accordingly during registration. The disclosure of personal data in non-marked input fields on the website is voluntary. You can inform us at any time that you no longer wish us to process your personal data you provided voluntarily. 

Furthermore, we collect your surfing and usage data when you access our website and share it with third parties (e.g. Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Meta). This data includes, for example, information about which browser and browser version you are using, when you accessed our website and where from, which operating system you use, from which website (link) you accessed our website, which elements of the website you use, and how you use these elements. These personal data are stored together with the IP address of the device you are using to access our website. They serve to correctly display and optimise our website, to protect it against attacks or other infringements, and to personalise your user experience. We do not draw any conclusions about the data subject from these surfing and usage data. We only evaluate personal data anonymously, unless they are required to clarify infringements.

4          Newsletter and Blogging

If you subscribe to our newsletters you will receive them only from us, and can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” link from any message. From time to time we may use an external service to deliver the newsletter.

Some of our services may enable you to submit your own content. Unless otherwise indicated, please remember that any personal data you submit or post as user-generated content could become semi-public information (e.g. shared with other registered students) or public information. You should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your personal, financial or other information in such submissions or posts. We cannot prevent others from using that information in a manner that may violate this Privacy Policy, the applicable law or your personal privacy and safety. We kindly remind you that you post such information at your own risk. 

5          Retention Period

We only process your data until the purpose is fulfilled or as required by law.

If you have opened an account with us, we will store your data you provided for an unlimited period of time. However, you can request the deletion of your account at any time. We will delete your data, unless we are required otherwise by applicable law.

To refuse further business contact with a data subject due to misuse, payment default, or other legitimate reasons, we may store personal data for five years, or ten years in case of recurrence. 

6          Processing by Third Parties and Abroad 

Within the purpose agreed herein, we may have your data processed by our group entities, the Universities, or third parties. Such third parties are marketing and market research companies, companies that operate our information technology (outsourcing partners), financial service providers, debt collection companies, or attorneys and government bodies or providers of cookies. If we commission group companies or third parties with the processing of personal data, the third party must take appropriate security measures to ensure the confidentiality and security of your personal data.

Your personal data are mainly processed in Switzerland, in the member states of the EU and the EEA and in the UK. These countries ensure an adequate data protection.

Our providers also process data in the USA, in India an in Australia.

We cannot rule out the possibility that certain providers of IT systems, infrastructure or cloud services may process the data in other countries. In such a case, we request that they enter into the standard contractual clauses, which are recognized by the FDPIC or that they enter into appropriate binding corporate rules. In exceptional cases, we may also transfer personal data abroad without such contractual safeguards, e.g. in the case of legal proceedings abroad, in cases of overriding public interests, if the performance of a contract requires such disclosure or if you have separately consented to the disclosure.

7          Inclusion of Third Party Elements on Our Web Site

Our website includes content from various third party providers, such as, for instance, videos from video platforms, such as Vimeo or YouTube, or social media button from platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. This content enables you to enjoy content from those platforms on our website or simply to share our content on the relevant social media networks. 

When you browse our website, if such content is displayed as part of the website, a connection to the servers of the third party provider is automatically established. Personal data about your visit to our website, in particular your IP address, will be transmitted to this third party provider. Therefore, if you have signed in to that third party’s account at the time you visit our website (for example, with a Facebook or Google account), that third party may detect that you visited our website. You authorise us to share this information with the third party provider that hosts your social media account.

Please note that the information regarding the purpose and scope of data processing by such third parties, as well as your rights and setting options, is provided by such third parties. You can find the privacy policy of our partner Universities below:

University of Cumbria;

University of Salford;

York St John University.

8          Cookies

We use cookies on our website. 

Cookies are data packets sent from the webserver of our website to your browser. They are stored on your computer and can be retrieved by the webserver at a later visit. Cookies store information about the online preferences of visitors to the website and enable us to improve the visitor experience. 

Session cookies are used to uniquely assign to you or your Internet browser information stored on the webserver that are necessary when accessing the website (e.g., the online shop) during a web session (e.g., so that the contents of the shopping basket are not lost). Session cookies are deleted after closing your Internet browser. 

Permanent cookies are used to save your preferences (e.g., preferred language) over several independent accesses to our website, i.e. even after closing your Internet browser or to enable automatic login. Permanent cookies are deleted according to the settings of your Internet browser (e.g., one month after your last visit). By using our website and the corresponding functions (e.g., language selection or auto login) you agree to the use of permanent cookies.

You can delete current session or existing cookies in your Internet browser at any time, and deactivate the setting of additional cookies in your browser settings. However, deactivation may affect the functionality you enjoy on our website.

We share all information collected with the cookies with our cookie providers, in particular Google Ireland Limited, Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited, LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company and Meta Platforms Ireland Limited.

6          Your Rights

At your request:

-       we will will inform you about and - if so - which personal data we process (right of confirmation, right of access). 

-       we will cease processing personal data, in part or in full (right to withdraw your consent to the processing of personal data for one or more specific purposes; right to erasure (right “to be forgotten”).

-       we will correct the relevant personal data (right to rectification);

-       we will restrict the processing of the relevant personal data (right to restriction of processing); in this case we will only store or use your personal data to protect our own legal claims or the third party rights;

-       you will receive the relevant personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format (right to data portability).

To request any of the rights described in this section, for example if you no longer wish to receive our e-mail newsletters or if you wish to delete your account, please use the appropriate function on our website, or contact us at the address stated above. 

If we do not comply with your request, we will inform you of the reasons for our non-compliance. For example, we may legally refuse to delete your personal data if we still need it to fulfil the purpose, for which it was originally provided (for example if we continue providing our services to you), if the processing is based on mandatory law (for example mandatory accounting regulations), or if we have a predominant interest of our own (for example in the case of a lawsuit against the data subject). 

If we assert a predominant interest in the processing of personal data, you have nevertheless the right to object to the processing; provided, however, that your individual situation compares differently to that of other data subjects (right to object). This could be the case, for example, if you are a person of public interest, or if processing increases the risk of you being harmed by third parties. 

 

Zurich, February 2024 (Version 3)

   


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GDPR Addendum

1          Scope

This GDRP addendum (“Addendum”) stipulates in addition to the https://college.ch/privacy-policy how Robert Kennedy College Zürich GmbH, Technoparkstrasse 1, 8005 Zurich, Switzerland (hereinafter "RKC" or "we") processes personal data of its web users and customers located in the European Economic Area (“EEA”) based on the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”; EU 2016/679). 

The Addendum applies only if we process your personal within the scope of the GDPR, regardless of the means of processing. 

Unless otherwise stipulated or overridden in this Addendum, the terms of the Privacy Policy apply also under this Addendum and the GDPR.

1          Contact

You can contact us as follows: 

Robert Kennedy College AG

Technoparkstrasse 1

8005 Zurich

Switzerland

RKC is represented by Dr. David Costa

Enquiries may be submitted to hello@rkc.swiss

In the European Union RKC is represented by: 

GDPR-Rep.eu provided by 

Maetzler Rechtsanwalts GmbH & Co KG

c/o Robert Kennedy College Zürich GmbH

Schellinggasse 3/10, 1010 Vienna, Austria

Website: https://prighter.com/q/15753276

Please add the following subject to all correspondence: ID-15753276

In the UK RKC is represented by:

PrighterUK-Rep by Prighter Ltd

c/o Robert Kennedy College AG

20 Mortlake Mortlake High Street, London, SW14 8JN

Website: https://prighter.com/q/15753276

Please add the following subject to all correspondence: ID-15753276

 

2          Processing by Third Parties and Abroad 

We share your personal data with third-party service providers that complete transactions or perform services on our behalf or for your benefit, such as:

-       Payment and contribution processing;

-       Customer relationship management (CRM) services;

-       Marketing and analytics;

-       Processing admissions applications;

-       Alumni outreach and engagement;

-       Event registration and coordination;

-       Providing course platforms or tools that enable or enhance our offerings;

-       Course registration and administration;

-       Course evaluations and assessments;

-       Enrolment verification;

-       Research insights and analytics;

-       Research collaboration;

-       Educational operations and collaborations;

-       Performing human resources administration; and

-       System maintenance and security.

 

We may share your personal data with the Universities for the purposes of administering programs and services, such as:

-       Cross-registration for courses and events with other universities;

-       Course registration and administration; 

-       Course evaluations and assessments;

-       Online education offerings through online platforms;

3          Research arrangements with the Universities. Legal Bases of Processing

The legal justification, upon which we base our processing of personal data under this Addendum, is stipulated in article 6(1)(a) GDPR (consent) and/or article 6(1)(b) GDPR (processing necessary for the performance of our agreement) and/or article 6(1)(c) GDPR (compliance with the law).

Our legal justification for processing your data is also based on legitimate interests pursuant to article 6(1)(f) GDPR, for instance for:

-       Providing, improving and customizing our educational offerings;

-       Administration of our operations;

-       Promoting the success of our current and former students;

-       Furthering research and understanding in fields of academic study;

-       Maintaining an ongoing relationship with alumni, donors and prospective donors, and helping to connect them with others;

-       Offering attendance to events and opportunities to volunteer; 

-       Conducting admissions research;

-       Understanding how our online platforms are being used;

-       Exploring ways to develop and grow our operations; 

-       Ensuring the safety and security of our students, faculty, fellows, employees and others; 

-       Cybersecurity; 

-       Enhancing protection against fraud, spam, harassment, intellectual property infringement, crime and security risks;

-       Preventing plagiarism; and

-       Meeting our obligations and enforcing our legal rights.

4          Retention Period

In addition to section 5 of our Privacy Policy, where we are processing your personal data based on our legitimate interests pursuant to section 4 of this Addendum, we generally will retain your personal data for a reasonable period of time based on the particular interest, taking into account your fundamental interests and rights and freedoms.

5          Processing Abroad

In addition to section 6 of our Privacy Policy, we may transfer your personal data outside the EEA relying on appropriate or suitable safeguards or specific derogations recognized under Chapter V of the GDPR.

The European Commission has adopted standard data protection clauses, which provide safeguards for personal data transferred outside of the EEA. We may use standard contractual clauses when transferring your personal data from a country in the EEA to a country outside the EEA. If your personal data are affected, you can request a copy of our standard contractual clauses by contacting us as set forth in section 2 of this Addendum. 

6          Your Rights

Upon request, we will inform you about and - if so - which personal data we process (right of confirmation, right of access). 

At your request:

-       we will cease processing personal data, in part or in full (right to withdraw your consent to the processing of personal data for one or more specific purposes; right to erasure (right “to be forgotten”). Your request to be forgotten will also be communicated to third parties to whom we have previously forwarded your personal data.

-       we will correct the relevant personal data (right to rectification);

-       we will restrict the processing of the relevant personal data (right to restriction of processing); in this case we will only store or use your personal data to protect our own legal claims or the third party rights;

-       you will receive the relevant personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format (right to data portability).

To request any of the rights described in this section, for example if you no longer wish to receive our e-mail newsletters or if you wish to delete your account, please use the appropriate function on our website, or contact our data protection officer or an employee as described in section 2 of this Addendum. 

If we do not comply with your request, we will inform you of the reasons for our non-compliance. For example, we may legally refuse to delete your personal data if we still need it to fulfil the purpose, for which it was originally provided (for example if we continue providing our services to you), if the processing is based on mandatory law (for example mandatory accounting regulations), or if we have a predominant interest of our own (for example in the case of a lawsuit against the data subject). 

If we assert a predominant interest in the processing of personal data, you have nevertheless the right to object to the processing; provided, however, that your individual situation compares differently to that of other data subjects (right to object). This could be the case, for example, if you are a person of public interest, or if processing increases the risk of you being harmed by third parties. 

If you disagree with our response to your request, you have the right to file a complaint with a competent supervisory authority, for example, in your country of residence or at the registered seat of RKC (right to appeal).

 

Zurich, February 2024 

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