Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect information you provide directly to us when creating an account and planning your applications:

• Profile Details: Your name, email address, target degree (MSc/PhD), target semesters, and research focus (e.g. AI/ML, Software Engineering).
• Application Data: University shortlists, documents uploaded (SOP, CV checklists), and professor outreach logs (names, responses, follow-up dates).
• Authentication Logs: Credentials managed securely via our authentication framework (better-auth).

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information exclusively to power your workspace features:

• To display personalized admission chance estimates and timelines.
• To alert you when professor follow-ups are due or deadlines are approaching.
• To improve our static indexes based on anonymous application aggregates.

⚠️ We NEVER sell your profile details, transcripts, CVs, or statement drafts to third-party consultants or universities. Your drafts remain entirely private.

3. Data Security & Storage

Your data is stored in our secure PostgreSQL database and accessed via encrypted Prisma client queries. Security filters strictly scope all database reads to the currently authenticated user's ID, ensuring students cannot access each other's documents or professor logs.

4. Cookies and Session Management

We use secure cookies strictly for session persistence (maintaining your signed-in state). We do not use tracking cookies for advertisements.

5. Your Rights

You have full control over your data. At any time, you can edit or delete your account, shortlists, outreach records, and uploaded document metadata directly from the user dashboard settings.

6. Contact Us

If you have any questions or feedback regarding our privacy practices, please contact us at privacy@gradplanner.com.