A user with an avatar (maximum size � 50 x 50 pixels):

A subscriber with an avatar (maximum size � 100 x 100 pixels):

For more information regarding subscriptions, click here

To set your avatar, you will need to go to this page: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/profile.php?do=editavatar, where you can choose from a range of pre-selected avatars, or you can upload your own from your computer.

This is one of many perks of our subscription package. Click for more details

What do the other settings do?

In your User CP, there is a section under Settings & Options named 'Edit Options'.

• Login & Privacy: set your
  • 'Invisible Mode' - sets whether or not other members can see if you are online and what page you are viewing
  • 'Show Reputation Level' - shows your reputation level on posts if this option is enabled by the administrator
  • 'Allow vCard Download' - sets whether or not to allow other members to download a vCard containing your email address and username.
• Messaging & Notification - options include:
  • 'Receive Email' - whether or not you want to receive emails from other Members and administrators
  • 'Default Thread Subscription Mode' - how you want to be notified about new posts in threads to which you have subscribed
  • 'Private Messaging' - control how you want Private Messaging to work for your account
  • 'Visitor Messaging' - control how you want Visitor Messaging to work for your account
• Thread Display Options - these include:
  • 'Visible Post Elements' - whether or not you want to be able to see Signatures, Avatars and Images in posts
  • 'Thread Display Mode' - how you want to view threads by default (more info available here)
  • 'Number of Posts to Show Per Page'
  • 'Default Thread Age Cut Off' - the time period for threads to be displayed - threads older than this age will be hidden
• Date & Time Options - these include:
  • 'Time Zone' - your local geographical time zone offset from GMT/UTC
  • 'Start of the Week' - for the Calendar.
• Miscellaneous Options include:
  • 'Message Editor Interface' - This option allows you choose what kind of editor you will use when posting messages. Your choices include a basic text-only editor, a standard editor with clickable formatting controls, or a full WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor that will show your formatting as you type.
  • 'Forum Style' - only available if there is more than one style (or 'skin') available and the administrator has enabled this selection
  • 'Forum Language' - only available if there is more than one Language enabled. This will change the language in which all controls and board messages will be shown. It will not translate members' posts

What are subscriptions?

Subscriptions are a way of keeping track of different threads or forums. You can choose how you are notified about updates - for example by having them listed in your User CP and receiving email updates for each one.

How do I subscribe to a thread or forum?

To subscribe to a forum, click the 'Forum Tools' link above the list of threads then select 'Subscribe to Forum'. You will then have the option to choose the subscription mode for this forum. If the forum that you are subscribing to has any child forums (forums within a forum) then your subscription will be extended to these automatically.

To subscribe to a thread, click the 'Thread Tools' link at the top of the list of posts then click 'Subscribe to Thread'. You can then choose the subscription mode that you wish to use for that thread.

What subscription modes are available?

There are a number of different forum subscription modes available.

• No Email Notification - lists the subscription in your User CP only. You do not receive any notifications about new posts or threads in the forum.
• Daily Email Notification - sends one email a day with the new and updated threads in the forum and any sub-forums. If there are no new or updated threads in the forum or its sub-forums then you will not receive an email.
• Weekly Email Notification - sends one email per week in the same way as the Daily Email Notification.

Thread Subscriptions have the same options as forum subscriptions with the following additional option:

• Instant Email Notification - sends an email as soon as a new post is added to the thread. This is not sent for every reply and will only be sent once until you revisit the forums.

How do I manage Subscriptions and Folders?

Thread subscriptions can be sorted into folders for easy management. You can create as many folders as you wish by going to 'Edit Folders' in the 'Subscribed Threads' section of your User CP. To add a new folder, enter the folder name into one of the blank boxes and save the page. To delete a folder, delete the folder name. Editing a folder is done by simply editing the folder name in the list.

You can also manage your individual subscriptions by clicking 'List Subscriptions' under 'Subscribed Threads' in your User CP. Here you can select which subscriptions you wish to manage and delete them, move them to another folder, or change their subscription type.

Forum subscriptions are not managed through the List Subscriptions page and are shown on the User CP page where they contain the option to unsubscribe from the forum.

What are thread tools?

At the top of each thread, there is a link called 'Thread Tools'. By clicking on this link, a menu will appear with a number of options:

• Show Printable Version - this will show you a page with the thread post content in a reduced graphics format that is more 'printer friendly'.
• Email this Page - if you think the thread may be interesting to someone else, you can forward a link to it to their email address.
• Subscribe (or Unsubscribe) from this Thread - by subscribing to a thread, you will receive periodic email updates on recent activity within it. Click here for more information on subscriptions.
• Adding a Poll - if you started the thread, you can add a poll to it with this option. Click here for more information on polls.

Subscribers are able to hide their reputation gems, should they wish.

Members are then able to see certain pieces of information, shown below:

Subscribers are shown the same information, as well as the numerical value and who gave the reputation, shown below:

For more information on becoming a subscriber, click here.

This Privacy Policy sets out the data processing practices carried out through the use of the internet and any other electronic communications networks by The Student Room Group ("TSRG", "we" or "us"). We believe that it is important you know how we treat the information about you, which we receive from you. If you have any requests concerning your personal information or any queries with regard to these practices please contact [email protected]. Please note that all data thus captured will be used and held in accordance with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.

This statement (together with our terms of use and our cookie policy) sets out the basis on which any personal data we collect from you, or that you provide to us, will be processed by us. Please read the following carefully to understand our views and practices regarding your personal data and how we will treat it. By visiting thestudentroom.co.uk and other TSRG websites (the "TSRG site") you are accepting and consenting to practices described in this statement. If you do not accept the terms in this statement you should not access TSRG site.

This policy applies to all users, members, subscribers, customers and person who visits and use the TSRG site ("you").

Generally you can visit the TSRG site without providing personally identifiable information about you. We collect personally identifiable information from visitors to this website through:

• the registration form when you create an account;
• in surveys if you choose to take part in them;
• when you email us with an enquiry;
• when you participate in discussion boards or other social media functions on the TSRG site;
• the transactions you undertake through this site including details of payment cards used when you place an order.

In addition to the above, our servers automatically collect domain names, IP addresses, browser details, your country of origin and how you got to the site (please see our cookie policy for more detail).

We process personal information collected via this website for the purposes of:

• providing and personalising our services;
• dealing with your enquiries and requests;
• administering orders and accounts relating to our suppliers or customers;
• administering membership records;
• providing information about products and services; and
• conducting market research.

We will send you information according to the preferences on your email preferences page we think will be useful to you. If you would like to change these preferences at any point, please visit your email preferences page in the My Accounts section.

From time to time we would like to send you emails from carefully selected third parties that offer products or services that we think may be of interest to you. We will only do this if you have opted-in to receive such emails through your preferences.

We may use your IP address to help diagnose any problems with our serves or to administer the TSRG site. Your IP address may be used to help identify you and to gather broad demographic information to help us understand our users requirements.

TSRG is intended for general use and does not knowingly collect personal data from children. We take specific steps to protect the privacy of children by not allowing minors to sign up to the site unless parental or legal guardian consent is provided. Parents and legal guardians are responsible for the activities of their children online.

Your information may also be used to send you details of those products or services that we offer that we have identified as likely to be of interest to you.

If at any point you would like to opt-out of receiving communications from us, or would like to change the channels (such as email or post) that we use to contact you, please go to your email preferences page.

We may share your personal information with any member of our group, which means our subsidiaries, our ultimate holding company and its subsidiaries, as defined in section 1159 of the UK Companies Act 2006. We may also share your personal information with selected third parties including:

• business partners, suppliers and sub-contractors for the performance of any contract we enter into with them or you;advertisers and advertising networks that require the data to select and serve relevant adverts to you and others;
• analytics and search engine providers that assist us in the improvement and optimisation of our site;
• data when obliged to disclose such data by law, or the disclosure is 'necessary' for purposes of national security, taxation and criminal investigation;
• when you chose to register using the online payment method (i.e. debit or credit card) our payment processor, PayPal in order for them to safely and securely process the payment information (please contact PayPal via http://www.paypal.co.uk/uk for information on their Privacy statement and security measures);
• when you elect to submit work on TSRG site to gain access to the database, such work will also be submitted along with your name to plagiarism detection software;
• or we have your consent.

TSRG site may contain links to other websites that are outside our control and are not covered by this Privacy Policy. If you access other sites using the links provided, the operators of these sites may collect information from you that will be used by them in accordance with their privacy policy, which may differ from ours. We are not responsible for the privacy or security practice or the content of such websites.

Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to the TSRG site; any transmission is at your own risk. Once we have received your information, we will use strict procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorised access.

Given that the Internet is a global environment, using it to collect and process personal data necessarily involves the transmission of data on an international basis. This means for instance that data you pass to us may be transferred to and processed outside the European Economic Area (EEA). It may also be processed by staff operating outside the EEA who work for us or one of our suppliers. Such staff may be engaged in, amongst other things, the fulfilment of your order, the processing of your payment details and the provision of support services. By submitting your personal data, you agree to this transfer, storing or processing. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this policy. By communicating electronically with us, you acknowledge and agree to our processing of personal data in this way.

Privacy settings on thestudentroom.co.uk (TSR) enable you to customise the amount of personal information that you display to other members. These are vital for keeping you safe to enjoy TSR to the full, and The Student Room Group Ltd (“we”) want to make it as easy as possible for you to use the site without worrying. You can set your privacy settings to allow the following levels of access: Everyone; Registered Members; Contacts; or Friends only.

The sorts of information that would be covered by your privacy settings are:

• Contact Information
• Profile information, such as your 'About Me' section
• Profile Pictures
• Photo Albums
• Friend lists
• Visitor Messages
• Group memberships

To edit your privacy settings, click here.

A cookie is a small piece of information sent by a web server to a web browser, which enables the server to collect information from the browser. Find out more about cookies on www.youronlinechoices.com and control cookies on your browser.

We use cookies to anonymously track people’s visits to this website and to keep track of people’s browsing patterns across the site, and to build up a demographic profile. This is used for improving the site and is always anonymous, aggregated data.

Our use of cookies also allows registered users to be presented with a personalised version of the site, carry out transactions and have access to information about their account. For more information please read our cookie policy.

Most browsers will allow you to turn off cookies. If you want to know how to do this please look at the menu on your browser, or look at the instruction on www.youronlinechoices.com. Please note however that turning off cookies will restrict your use of our website (for example, you will not be able to login).

We use the following cookies on our site:

Please note that this privacy policy is subject to change from time to time. Any changes we may make to our privacy policy in the future will be posted on this page and, where appropriate, notified to you by email. Please check back frequently to see any updates or changes to our privacy policy.

The Data Protection Act 1998 gives you the right to access information held about you. Your rights to access can be exercised in accordance with the Act. Any access request may be subject to a fee of £10 to meet our costs in providing you with details of the information we hold about you. If any of the information we hold about you is incorrect, please let us know and we will review it. We may also update the information we hold if we believe that it is incorrect.

TSRG has security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse and alteration of information within its control. We strongly recommend that all users should take steps to keep their log in information secure and cannot be held responsible for any failure to do so. If you suspect that the security of your log in information has been breached, please take steps to change both your password and email address under the options available in My Account.