Approved Uses of SSN

The primary uses and reasons for collecting a SSN include the following

• Enrollment: Those wishing to enroll in academic offerings at Prairie State College - both credit and non-credit - are required to provide a SSN for secondary identification purposes. IRS regulations do require the University to request a SSN as a Taxpayer ID number for use in tax reporting.  In addition, any student applying for Financial Aid or Student Loans must provide a SSN to the University.
  
  
  • If a person enrolling in a Prairie State College academic offering - credit or non-credit -refuses to provide a SSN, certain services such as transcripts, enrollment verification, tax reporting, financial aid and other services may not be available to the individual,and Prairie State College cannot guarantee a complete academic record for the individual.
  • Historic hardcopy academic records may contain a student's SSN, as SSN was previously used as the student ID.
• Employment: A SSN must be provided on l-9's in accordance with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), as overseen by Human Resources Payroll Division.
  
  
• Any person employed by the University must provide a SSN as the taxpayer ID number as directed by the IRS. This includes all employees, including part-time and student employees. Providing the SSN is a condition of employment. Applicants for employment must also provide a SSN, if requested, for mandatory background checks.
  
  
• Employee Benefits: If required by a benefits provider, the SSNs of dependents/beneficiaries may be collected to receive service. Prairie State College may also release an employee's SSN to benefit providers.