About USF

A Preeminent Research University and AAU member with campuses across the Tampa Bay region, the University of South Florida is dedicated to empowering students to maximize their potential for lifelong success.

About This Site

The University of South Florida (USF) website is governed by USF's Office of University Communications and Marketing. These websites are maintained by communications professionals across campus, with the goal of presenting relevant, timely and accurate information to the millions of people who visit the site each year.

Technology Notes

The USF website is built with web standards, including HTML5 and CSS3, and utilizes responsive design techniques.

Privacy

USF does not collect personal information about you when you visit an official USF website, unless you affirmatively choose to make such information available.

USF’s servers automatically recognize the domain and IP address from which you accessed the website and record related information such as: information about operating systems, screen resolutions and the volume and timing of access to enable interacting with the site more accessible, informative and enjoyable. This information does not result in the identification of your personal e-mail address, home address, or personal phone number.

Many pages within usf.edu use tracking services to help us understand how our visitors use our sites. Those can be, but are not limited to:
Visit each company's privacy information for more details about they use this data. 

If you choose to share information with USF - either by sending a message or filling out an electronic form with personal information - USF will use the information only for the intended purpose. Some records containing personal information must be retained for a designated period of time in order to comply with Florida's record retention policies and Florida law.. Except as provided for herein, USF does not have an established practice of disclosing personal information in its possession to third parties without permission unless USF determines that such disclosure is in accordance with a contractual agreement with a service provider or is otherwise required by Florida or federal law. USF does not sell or disclose personal information for financial gain.

Under Florida law, emails sent to USF employees may be considered public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail to USF. Instead, make contact by phone or in writing.

Please be aware that as a large, public research university, there are many websites within the usf.edu domain. This policy relates to those websites on which USF conducts its official business. Because USF encourages the development and deployment of technology in an environment of academic freedom, USF cannot ensure that all websites within the usf.edu domain are in strict compliance with this policy at all times.

USF reserves the right to amend these privacy terms at any time without notice. The privacy, record retention and public records obligations of USF are governed by applicable Florida statutes and U.S. federal laws only.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) gives students the right to refuse to permit USF to publish or disclose items of Directory Information pertaining to them. In the course of conducting official USF business, applicant and student personal information may be shared with third parties who USF determines have a legitimate educational interest in such information or where otherwise permitted by Florida and federal law.  For more details, and to view and control the level of disclosure permitted for the Student Directory Information, please visit the Office of the Registrar's website.

Accessibility

USF is committed to providing all individuals access to our digital resources. We strive to make our web sites and digital content accessible by assuring compatibility with assistive technologies.  

Our accessibility standard is: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. 

Reporting a Digital Access Barrier

USF uses multiple content management systems and applications to deliver our services to the public.  
 
If you are having difficulty viewing or interacting with any digital resource, you may report it to us by completing the Digital Access Barrier Report form.  
 
Your concern will be reviewed in a timely manner. Appropriate campus subject matter experts will be consulted as needed. We will provide an initial response to your concern within 2 business days. We will resolve the complaint within 7 business days by removing the access barrier or implementing a remediation plan.