The Academic Standards Committee proposes the following Transmittal and Receipt of PDF Transcripts Policy. This policy will manage the security and facilitate the processing of transcripts sent and received as PDF files.

Transmittal and Receipt of PDF Transcripts

I. OBJECTIVE & PURPOSE 

To establish a policy regulating the receipt and transmission of student transcripts sent in a Portable Document Format (PDF).  The purpose is to institute specifications to manage security and facilitate processing of transcripts received and sent in this format. 

The University of North Florida will set criteria regarding the third party vendors who will transmit student transcripts on behalf of the university.  These criteria will also apply to transcripts sent to UNF from a participating institution registered with an approved third party vendor.  To become an approved third party vendor, the following criteria must be met:

• The vendor must provide documentation attesting to FERPA compliance. 
• The vendor must comply with standards set by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) for document processing
• The vendor must provide electronic security features including, but not limited to, “watermarking” the PDF, electronic shredding options, and time and date stamping. 
• The vendor must be approved by the Director of Admissions or designee and the University Registrar or designee who will act on behalf of the Student Records Committee. 

Received transcripts will be considered official for student evaluation only if accessed by a designee of the Admissions or Registrar’s office.