To exercise the FERPA directory information opt-out, submit a written request to your school’s registrar by the deadline stated in the school’s annual FERPA notice, listing the categories of information you want withheld. Federal law lets schools release basic identifying details like names, addresses, and phone numbers without your consent, but only if they first tell you what they plan to share and give you a chance to say no.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 20 USC 1232g – Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Miss the window and the school can treat your information as releasable for the rest of the period covered by that notice.
What You’re Actually Restricting
Directory information is data in a student’s education record that would not generally be considered harmful if disclosed. The federal regulations name specific examples: student name, address, telephone listing, email address, photograph, date and place of birth, major, grade level, enrollment status, dates of attendance, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, height and weight of athletes, degrees and awards, and the most recent school previously attended.2eCFR. 34 CFR 99.3 – What Definitions Apply to These Regulations Grades, disciplinary records, financial aid details, and disability information are never directory information and always require your written consent before disclosure.
That federal list is a floor. Each school picks which items it will actually treat as directory information, so definitions vary from campus to campus. Read the school’s annual FERPA notice carefully; it names the exact categories in play at your school, and those are the categories your opt-out needs to address.
Two items are permanently off limits regardless of what a school designates. A school can never treat a Social Security number as directory information. Student ID numbers are also excluded unless they are used only to access electronic systems and cannot pull up education records without a second authentication factor like a password or PIN.3GovInfo. 34 CFR 99.3
Who Has the Right to Opt Out
For students under 18 in elementary or secondary school, FERPA rights belong to the parents. Once a student turns 18 or enrolls in any postsecondary institution at any age, the rights transfer entirely to the student.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 20 USC 1232g – Family Educational and Privacy Rights The transfer is absolute. A parent paying tuition does not keep the right to control their child’s directory information, and the opt-out decision belongs to the student from that point forward.5eCFR. 34 CFR 99.5 – What Are the Rights of Students Families often miss this during the transition from high school to college.
The Annual Notice and the Deadline
Before releasing any directory information, a school must give public notice that includes the types of information it has designated, your right to refuse that designation for your records, and a deadline for responding in writing.6eCFR. 34 CFR 99.37 – What Conditions Apply to Disclosing Directory Information Most schools issue this notice at the start of the academic year through enrollment packets, student handbooks, or email.
FERPA requires a “reasonable period” for you to respond but does not set a specific number of days. Schools typically allow somewhere between two and four weeks after the notice. There is no federal right to a late opt-out, so treat the deadline as a hard cutoff. If you miss it, the school can release the designated categories for the rest of the period the notice covers.
How to Submit the Request
The opt-out must be in writing. Some schools provide a specific form, on paper or through a student portal, with checkboxes for each category. Others accept a letter or email to the registrar. Whichever route your school uses, include:
- The student’s full legal name and student ID number.
- A clear statement of which categories you want withheld, matching the language in the school’s annual notice.
- An explicit note if you want everything restricted, so the registrar isn’t left guessing.
You can opt out selectively. A student might allow their name in a graduation program and on a Dean’s List while keeping their home address, phone number, and email private. Freeform letters need to list each restricted category by name; checkbox forms handle this on their own.
After submitting, look for confirmation. Many schools flag restricted records in their student information system, and you can verify the restriction through a student portal. If nothing appears within a few business days, follow up with the registrar. Keep a copy of everything you sent. That paper trail is your best protection if something later gets released that shouldn’t have been.
What Changes After You Opt Out
The restriction applies to everyone outside the school equally. There is no way to tell the registrar to share your name with employers but not with marketers. Once a category is restricted, it’s restricted for all outside requests.
That has real consequences. The school cannot confirm your enrollment or degree to anyone who asks, including employers running background checks. Your name won’t appear in graduation programs, honor roll announcements, yearbooks, or athletic rosters. Scholarship organizations that call the school to verify enrollment may hit a wall. You can still share your own information voluntarily with anyone you choose; the opt-out only stops the school from sharing on your behalf.
An opt-out stays in effect until you formally rescind it in writing, and the school must keep honoring it even after you graduate or leave.7U.S. Department of Education. Eligible Student Opted Out of Directory Information Has Left School Many former students forget about an opt-out from years earlier and are puzzled when a new employer can’t verify their degree. A brief written request to the registrar lifts it.
What the Opt-Out Does Not Cover
The opt-out controls public disclosure, not every use of your information inside the school. Federal regulations carve out two situations where it has no effect. You can’t use it to stay anonymous in your classes; the school can still require you to share your name, student identifier, and institutional email address in any class you’re enrolled in, whether in person or online. And the school can still require you to wear a student ID badge showing your name or photograph for campus security.6eCFR. 34 CFR 99.37 – What Conditions Apply to Disclosing Directory Information
The opt-out also doesn’t stop school officials from viewing your records for legitimate educational purposes. Administrators, advisors, faculty, and certain contractors acting as “school officials” can access records as needed to do their jobs, without your consent and without a chance to opt out.8eCFR. 34 CFR 99.31 – Under What Conditions Is Prior Consent Not Required to Disclose Information If you transfer to another school, the original institution can send your records to the new one for enrollment purposes without asking you.
Military Recruiters Are a Separate Opt-Out
Federal law creates a disclosure channel for military recruiters that runs independently of your FERPA directory information choices. For secondary school students, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act requires school districts to give military recruiters and colleges each student’s name, address, and telephone listing on request, even if the district doesn’t designate those items as directory information under FERPA.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 20 USC 7908 – Armed Forces Recruiter Access to Students and Student Recruiting Information
You can opt out of this separately. A parent, or the student once they turn 18, can submit a written request telling the district not to release information to military recruiters, and the district must notify families of that right. Some schools combine the FERPA directory notice with the military recruiter notice into a single form; if a parent then opts out of sharing names, addresses, or phone numbers with third parties, that opt-out covers military recruiter requests as well.10U.S. Department of Education. Guidance on the Military Recruiter Provision of the ESEA If your school sends the notices separately, you need to respond to both.
For postsecondary students, the Solomon Amendment requires colleges and universities to give military recruiters access to a wider set of student data on request.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 10 USC 983 – Institutions of Higher Education That Prevent ROTC Access or Military Recruiting on Campus Ask your registrar how to restrict this if you want to keep it separate from your FERPA directory opt-out.
If the School Ignores Your Opt-Out
You can file a formal complaint with the Student Privacy Policy Office at the U.S. Department of Education. The complaint must be in writing, describe the specific facts that support your belief a violation occurred, and be filed within 180 days of the violation or within 180 days of when you learned about it.12U.S. Department of Education. File a Complaint
The Department encourages you to try resolving the issue with the school first, though it isn’t required. To submit, download the FERPA Complaint Form from the Department’s website and email it to FERPA.Complaints@ed.gov, or mail it to the Student Privacy Policy Office at 400 Maryland Ave, SW, Washington, DC 20202-8520.12U.S. Department of Education. File a Complaint FERPA does not give individuals the right to sue a school directly. Enforcement runs through the Department, which can investigate and ultimately threaten to withhold federal funding from schools that fail to comply.