NextGen Match is a student project built by Group 5 at Richfield Graduate Institute of Technology. It connects students and graduates with employers. This page explains in plain language how your personal information is handled.
What we collect
- Everyone: your name, email address and a password (stored only as a one-way bcrypt hash, never as readable text), and the time you accepted this policy.
- Students: the profile you choose to fill in (phone, location, qualification, bio, institution, skills) and any CV or certificate files you upload.
- Employers: your company name, description, website, location and logo, and the job listings you post.
- Activity: job applications and match scores, saved jobs, messages, notifications, complaints you raise, and a security log of important actions with the IP address they came from.
Why we collect it
To create your account, match students to listings, let students apply and employers review applicants, let users message each other, and keep the platform secure. We do not sell your information and we do not use it for advertising.
Who can see it
- Employers can see a student's profile, skills and documents only for students who applied to their listings.
- Students can see employers' public company details and listings.
- Administrators can see account details, listings, complaints and the security log in order to run and moderate the platform.
How we protect it
Passwords are hashed with bcrypt; accounts lock after repeated failed logins; sessions expire after 15 minutes of inactivity; all database queries are parameterised; uploaded files are type-checked; and sign-in, registration and password-reset attempts are rate-limited.
Your rights
- Access and correct: you can view and edit your profile at any time.
- Delete: you can permanently delete your account yourself from your profile page (students) or company profile page (employers). This removes your profile, skills, documents, applications, saved jobs, notifications and the messages you sent, and anonymises your account. Entries in the security log are kept but no longer identify you.
- Complain: use Report a problem to raise a concern with the platform administrators. You may also contact the Information Regulator (South Africa).
Consent
You are asked to accept this policy when you register, and the time you accepted it is recorded. If you do not accept, an account cannot be created.
Backups
Administrators can create database backups for disaster recovery. Backups contain the same information as the live database and are kept private by the administrators. Deleting your account does not remove your information from backups that were made earlier.