If you would like help understanding the risks when using a specific product, please reach out to subject matter experts listed below who can work together to provide an assessment of the software application or tool, as well as suggest alternate solutions if needed.

• General consultation on an education software product’s suitability can be provided by members of OIT’s Academic and Emerging Technology team. Use this Instructional Software Consultation link to schedule a time.
• Consultation on a software product’s security risk can be provided by UC Merced’s Chief Information Security Officer. Use this Security Consultation link to schedule a time.
• Use this link to review the full process for procuring third-party software.

Reviews will be shared and posted with recommendations described below.

• Software tools should be ADA compliant. When evaluating new tools or software, faculty should be familiar with the UC Procurement Guidelines regarding Accessibility and the Section 508 Accessibility Guidelines  and confirm with the vendor that their product meets these requirements.
• A key consideration should be how the product vendor handles student data and student privacy. For example, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Acts (FERPA) grants specific rights to students regarding their educational records, however, the way in which FERPA protection is provided may involve a combination to the tool and the way it is used.
• Software products purchased with University of California funds should meet information security and privacy standards in policies promulgated by the University of California Office of the President. A review of the following policies is advised regardless of the funding source. We encourage consultation the UC Merced’s Chief Information Security Officer to advise on policy interpretation and applicability, and to determine is an exception process is available, if needed.
  • BFB-IS-3: Electronic Information Security
  • Classification of Information and IT Resources
  • Secure Software Configuration
  • Appendix - Data Security (DS)
• Consider the cognitive demand on students who need to use multiple solutions across the campus technology ecosystem by mastering varying interfaces. If your preferred product provides no compelling features or functions beyond those provided by the campus’ standardized solution, consider the cost/benefit trade-off for students. In some cases, students may prefer common social media platforms, however there are benefits for students to also gain exposure to the professional communications technologies that are used in many workplaces. For example, Discord may be a comfortable tool for students, but Teams may be a more professional alternative.
• Instructional products such as course-specific software should be purchased via the campus bookstore. Using the bookstore for educational software allows for the campus to make contractual arrangements with the vendor which helps ensure appropriate protection for FERPA data, security, ADA compliance, liability, and continuity of service. Going through the bookstore also helps us track demand for educational technologies, so that we can explore campus bulk licenses, in-house development, or coordination amongst different tools with overlapping usages.
• Faculty should consider the financial burden placed on students when requiring them to by software that delivers functionality already provided by software that is site-licensed campus-wide.

Below is a listing of software products including those that have known issues. You should be particularly cautious when using these products. The assessment of these products covers 5 components. Each product posted below includes:

• A full written review.
• A listing of typical use cases.
• A recommendation rating in the following five areas:

1. Evaluation / Recommendation Status
   • Provides status on where the product evaluation is in the process and the final outcome of the evaluation.
2. Security Recommendation
   • OIT's security team will review the vendor security documentation and provide a recommendation based on UC Security requirements.
3. Student Privacy/Records Recommendation
   • If the product requested collects or requires any student data, the registrar will evaluate the product use and provide a recommendation based on FERPA compliance.
4. Accessibility Recommendation
   • OIT's Academic & Emerging Technologies team will review the product for accessibility and provide a recommendation based on ADA compliance and UC requirements.
5. Legal Recommendation
   • Before a contract with a vendor can be signed, campus procurement staff will review the vendor's terms and conditions to confirm they comply with UC contract requirements.

• The current Contract Status. Contract status can be helpful in obtaining campus-wide pricing discounts.

• Recommended for Use: The committee did not find any major areas of concern in this category given typical use cases defined in the review. Keep in mind that a tool is rated across several categories and a Recommended for Use rating in one category does not necessarily mean the tool is recommended overall. Be sure to review all the ratings.
• Use with Caution: The tool has been reviewed and issues were identified in this category. Use of this tool involves a level of risk for which you may be accountable, Read the full review for a description of the issues and our recommended practices if you do decide to use the tool.
• Not Recommended: Use of this tool us strongly discouraged, This is typically due to significant issues in the terms of use, privacy, or violation of established university policy or procedures. A list of our primary concerns is provided in the full review.
• Not Reviewed: Based on the product and how it will be used, some areas may not need to be reviewed.

• Contract in Place: A contract has been established between the tool provider and UC Merced or the UC systems. Please be sure to use the took under the official agreement to take advantage of the negotiated terms of use. Details can be found in the full review.
• Negotiations Underway: We are actively negotiating a contract with this vendor. The process can take anywhere from a couple weeks to several months.
• Queued: This tool has enough interest that we intended to purse a contract with the vendor to address issues discovered during our review.
• Not Planned: This tool either does not have issues that can be addressed by a contract, or there is not strong enough interest in the tool.

Once you have thoroughly reviewed the information on this page to understand the third-party software request process, you can make your own third-party software request by filling out this form.