1. Who we are and data controller status

Ireland Study Center is an EdTech portal that connects international students directly with Irish universities. Our platform enables students to discover university programmes, submit applications online and track their application status in real time through a personalised student dashboard.

For the purposes of GDPR, Ireland Study Center is the Data Controller responsible for the personal data you submit to our platform. We determine the purposes and means of processing your data during the application process.

However, once your application data and documents are transmitted to a university of your choosing, that university also becomes an independent Data Controller of your data. Your data transmitted to a university will additionally be subject to that university's own privacy policy. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any universities you apply to.

2. What data we collect

When you register, apply or interact with our platform we may collect the following personal data:

• Full name and date of birth
• Email address and phone number
• Country of origin and nationality
• Academic qualifications, transcripts and degree certificates
• Passport copy and identification documents
• English language test results (IELTS, PTE, TOEFL iBT, Duolingo)
• Course preferences and application details
• Application status updates and communication history
• Login credentials for your student dashboard account

We also collect non-personal technical data including browser type, IP address, device information and pages visited through cookies and analytics tools to improve platform performance.

3. How we use your data

We use your personal data for two distinct categories of communication:

Transactional communications (cannot be opted out of while using the service):

• Creating and managing your student account
• Processing and forwarding your university applications
• Sending application status updates and offer notifications through your dashboard
• Communicating essential information about your application, required documents or deadlines
• Sharing your application documents with universities you apply to
• Complying with legal and regulatory obligations

Marketing communications (consent required, unsubscribe available at any time):

• Sending course recommendations based on your interests
• Platform updates, new university partnerships and new programme announcements
• Newsletters and study in Ireland guides

4. Legal basis for processing

We process your personal data on the following legal bases under GDPR:

• Contract performance — processing is necessary to provide our platform services to you including submitting your application and tracking its status
• Legitimate interests — to operate, secure and improve our EdTech platform and prevent fraud
• Legal obligation — where we are required by applicable law to process or retain your data
• Consent — for marketing communications and course recommendations. You may withdraw consent at any time by clicking Unsubscribe in any marketing email or by contacting us directly

5. Who we share your data with

We share your personal data only with the following parties and only as necessary to deliver our services:

• Irish partner universities — your application documents are transmitted to institutions you choose to apply to. Once transmitted those universities become independent Data Controllers and their own privacy policies apply
• Bitrix24 CRM — we use Bitrix24 to manage application pipelines and track your progress securely. Bitrix24 acts as a Data Processor on our behalf
• Hostinger (website hosting) — our platform is hosted on Hostinger servers located in the European Union (Lithuania), meaning your data remains within the EU while on our servers
• Legal or regulatory authorities — where required by applicable law

We never sell, rent or trade your personal data to third parties for marketing or commercial purposes.

6. How long we keep your data

• Active student accounts and application records are kept for the duration of your use of the platform
• Successfully enrolled student records are retained for 7 years after enrolment
• Unsuccessful or withdrawn applications are deleted after 2 years of inactivity
• Marketing consent records are kept for 3 years from the date of last consent
• Website analytics data is retained for 26 months
• You may request deletion of your account and associated data at any time

7. Your rights under GDPR

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of access — request a copy of the data we hold about you
• Right to rectification — ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure — request deletion of your data in certain circumstances
• Right to restrict processing — ask us to limit how we use your data
• Right to data portability — receive your data in a structured machine-readable format
• Right to object — object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Right to withdraw consent — withdraw marketing consent at any time without affecting transactional communications

To exercise any of these rights contact us at admin@irelandstudycenter.com. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection supervisory authority.

8. Cookies

• Essential cookies — required for the platform to function including login sessions and application tracking
• Analytics cookies — to understand how users interact with our platform (Google Analytics)
• Preference cookies — to remember your filter settings and course preferences

You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may affect platform functionality including login and application status tracking.

9. Data security

We implement the following security measures to protect your personal data:

• SSL/TLS encryption on all data transmissions between your browser and our platform
• Password-protected access to our CRM system with role-based access controls
• Restricted staff access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Regular security reviews of our platform and third-party processors

In the event of a data breach that poses a risk to your rights we will notify you and relevant supervisory authorities within 72 hours as required by GDPR.

10. International data transfers

Our platform is hosted on Hostinger servers located in Lithuania, which is an EU member state. This means your data remains within the EU while stored on our platform servers — providing strong GDPR protections by default.

However, as Ireland Study Center operates from Dubai, UAE — a country outside the European Economic Area — some data is accessed and processed by our team in the UAE. The UAE is not currently recognised by the European Commission as providing an adequate level of data protection equivalent to GDPR.

To ensure your data remains protected during this transfer we rely on Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) as approved by the European Commission under Article 46 of GDPR. These clauses create legally binding obligations on both parties to protect your data to EU standards regardless of where it is processed.

Additionally when your application is transmitted to an Irish university your data moves within the EU and is subject to full GDPR protections under that university's own data governance.

11. Children's data

Our platform is intended for users aged 18 and above. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under the age of 18. If you believe a minor has submitted data through our platform please contact us immediately at admin@irelandstudycenter.com.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically as our platform evolves or as legal requirements change. We will notify registered users of significant changes by email and by posting the updated policy on this page with a revised date. Continued use of the platform after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.