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Notices


Disclaimer of endorsement

The topic and subtopic pages on students.gov contain hypertext links or pointers to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. These links and pointers are provided for the user's convenience. The U.S. Department of Education does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this outside information, nor can we guarantee that the outside sites we link to comply with the Section 508 accessibility requirements of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.

Links to non-government sites are marked with the words EXIT disclaimer to let you know that if you click them, you will be taken to the web site of a non-government organization. Privacy policies and other policies may be different at a non-government site from those at a government web site.

The inclusion on students.gov of links or pointers to particular web sites is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse any views expressed, or products or services offered, on these outside sites, or the organizations sponsoring the sites.

Students.gov does not link to commercial web sites whose primary purpose is to sell a product or service. However, some sites that provide useful information to students at no cost also offer products or services. Please use caution when considering a product or service offered by a linked website. We have done our best to review them, but the final responsibility for interacting with a website is yours, the user's. Please use your best judgment, and call the Better Business Bureau if you have any questions about the legitimacy of a business.

Linking Policy

  1. Mission: The mission of students.gov is to provide secure electronic access to a wide range of government information and services targeted to postsecondary students and their families.

  2. Linking: Students.gov is primarily a gateway to U.S. government-sponsored or owned websites. In selected cases we also link to appropriate and useful educational, organizational or commercial websites that support the mission of students.gov, if they provide relevant, timely and free information or no-cost services to students. The students.gov web team will review all suggestions for adding links to the students.gov database, using the criteria described here.

  3. General Evaluation Criteria: In reviewing and selecting web sites submitted to students.gov via our "Suggest a Link" process, we use the following general criteria:

    • Does the site support students.gov’s primary mission?
    • How well does the site complement the existing information, products, and services on students.gov?
    • How relevant and useful is the site’s content?
    • How accurate and timely is the information?
    • How does the site protect the privacy of personal information?
    • Does the site provide credible, authoritative, quality information to students?

  4. Specific Evaluation Criteria: In addition to the general criteria, we also evaluate these specific items:

    • The site must provide information free or at no cost. We will not link to sites whose primary purpose is to sell products or services.
    • The site must clearly relate to at least one of the topic or subtopic areas listed on the students.gov home page, and contain significant or comprehensive credible information related to that topic.
    • Students.gov will not link to the sites of postsecondary schools unless they are accredited and approved to participate in the Title IV Student Financial Aid programs of the U.S. Department of Education.
    • The site’s ownership and control must be clearly identified.

Students.gov will not link to sites that exhibit hate, bias, or discrimination. Students.gov reserves the right to deny or remove links at its discretion if it is determined that a website contains misleading or unsubstantiated claims or if it is judged by students.gov to be in conflict with our mission.

Accessibility/Section 508

Section 508 requires all federal agencies to make electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. We are constantly pursuing compliance with Section 508 specifications as set forth by the federal government. Federal websites, such as ours, provided by the Department of Education, are subject to regulations requiring self-enforcement of Section 508 compliance.

Privacy and Security

View our Privacy Policy to see how students.gov protects your privacy and security when you visit our website.

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