When Coursera provides services to universities or schools, it may handle your student education records and is required to protect them under federal education privacy law (FERPA).
Students accessing Coursera through an institutional partner should be aware that their educational records — including performance data and course completions — may be shared between their institution and Coursera, and are subject to FERPA's access and amendment rights.
Cross-platform context
See how other platforms handle FERPA and Student Data and similar clauses.
Compare across platforms →If you use Coursera through your university or school, your educational records — including grades, course completion, and assessment data — may be shared with Coursera and treated as student records subject to FERPA protections.
1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: FERPA (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 C.F.R. Part 99) governs the privacy of student education records held by institutions receiving federal funding. Where Coursera acts as a 'school official' under FERPA, it may access education records under the 'legitimate educational interest' exception without student consent. The DOE's Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO) has enforcement authority. Additionally, state student data privacy laws — including California's Student Online Personal Information Protection Act (SOPIPA) and similar statutes in New York, Colorado, and Illinois — impose additional obligations on ed-tech vendors. 2)
Compliance intelligence locked
Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.
Watcher: regulatory citations. Professional: full compliance memo.