This Privacy Policy explains how Next Goal ("we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, shares, and protects the personal data of users who access or use our web-based college recruiting platform (the "Service") at https://www.nextgoal.college.

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following types of information:

Account Information: Name, email, school, graduation year, academic and athletic profile data.

User-Generated Content: Emails, templates, communication logs, and analytics such as open/reply status.

Device & Technical Info: IP address, browser type, operating system, and usage activity.

Payment Data: Payment info is processed securely via Stripe. We do not store full credit card data.

Gmail Data (if you connect Gmail): Gmail access is optional. If you connect Gmail, we use it to send the recruiting emails you compose and approve. If you additionally grant read-only access, our reply-detection feature reads and stores the replies within email threads that began with a message you sent through Next Goal, so we can show you when a coach responds. We do not scan, index, or access the rest of your mailbox. See Section 4 for full details.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

Provide and personalize the Service
Send personalized emails to college coaches through your Gmail (if connected)
Track outreach effectiveness (e.g., email opens and replies)
Improve platform functionality, performance, and security
Fulfill legal obligations and ensure compliance

Gmail data is used only as described in Section 4.

3. Legal Bases for Processing

We rely on the following legal bases to process your data:

Contract: To deliver the Service you signed up for
Consent: For Gmail integration and optional profile features
Legitimate Interests: For analytics, platform security, and fraud prevention

4. Google User Data & Gmail API

Connecting Gmail is optional. It lets you send recruiting emails from your own address and see the coach replies to those messages. If you do not connect Gmail, none of this section applies.

Scopes we request

https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.send sends the recruiting emails you compose and approve, from your Gmail account. Used only to send messages you explicitly generate and authorize.
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.readonly is used only by our reply-detection feature. If you grant it, Next Goal reads the email threads that began with a message you sent to a coach through Next Goal, so we can detect when a coach replies and show that reply to you inside the app.

What we access, and what we do not

When you grant read-only access, Next Goal accesses only the email threads that originated from messages you sent through Next Goal, identified by the message IDs of those sent emails. We do not search, scan, or index the rest of your mailbox, and we do not access unrelated emails, contacts, attachments, or account settings. For replies in those threads we read and store the sender, recipient, date, and message content so we can display the reply, mark your outreach as answered, and help you write a response.

How we use Gmail data

We use Gmail data solely to provide user-facing features of Next Goal:

Sending the recruiting emails you compose and approve
Detecting and displaying coach replies to those emails
Showing outreach status (sent, opened, replied) and reply history
Helping you draft a response to a coach's reply

We automatically process the text of coach replies using Anthropic's Claude API to (a) estimate whether a reply appears to be a genuine personal response rather than an automated message, and (b) generate a suggested draft reply when you request one. Anthropic acts as our service provider (sub-processor) under a data processing agreement, processes this content solely on our behalf to provide these features, and does not use it to train its models. These AI features are assistive only: they do not make automated decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects, and you review, edit, and approve all AI-generated output before it is used or sent. We do not use Gmail data for advertising, and we do not sell it.

Limited Use

Next Goal Solutions LLC's use and transfer of information received from Google APIs will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements. Specifically:

We only use access to Google user data to provide or improve user-facing features that are prominent in Next Goal's interface.
We only transfer Google user data to others if necessary to provide or improve those features, to comply with applicable law, or as part of a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, and never for advertising.
We do not use Google user data for serving advertisements, including personalized, retargeted, or interest-based advertising.
We do not allow humans to read your Google user data unless: (a) we have your explicit consent to read specific messages; (b) it is necessary for security purposes, such as investigating abuse; (c) it is required to comply with applicable law; or (d) the data is aggregated and anonymized and used for internal operations in accordance with applicable requirements.

Storage, retention, and deletion

Gmail-derived data is stored in our secured Google Cloud (Firebase) infrastructure, encrypted in transit and at rest, and retained while your account is active and your Gmail connection is enabled. You can revoke Next Goal's access at any time by disconnecting Gmail in Next Goal settings or via your Google Account permissions at https://myaccount.google.com/permissions. When you disconnect Gmail or delete your account, we delete the associated Gmail-derived data, except where retention is required by law. You may also request deletion at any time at support@nextgoal.college.

5. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share limited data with:

Service providers (e.g., Firebase, Stripe) to operate the platform
Our AI sub-processor, Anthropic (Claude API), which processes coach-reply text on our behalf under a data processing agreement, solely to power reply-authenticity scoring and draft suggestions, and does not use it to train models
Gmail API (Google) for authorized email delivery
Legal authorities if required to comply with the law

6. Security

We use industry-standard security measures and encrypt data in transit and at rest. Your data is stored via secure Google Cloud infrastructure. However, no system can be 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute protection.

7. Data Retention

We retain your information for as long as your account is active or as necessary to provide the Service. You may request deletion at any time. Some data may be retained as required by law or for fraud prevention.

8. Children

Next Goal is not intended for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 13 in compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Users under 18 must have parental or guardian consent to use the Service.

9. Marketing Communications

By creating an account with Next Goal, you agree to receive marketing emails from us, including updates about our service, new features, tips for college recruiting, and relevant content to help you in your recruitment journey. You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by contacting us at support@nextgoal.college or using the unsubscribe links provided in our emails.

10. Your Rights

You may:

Request access to your personal data
Correct or update your information
Delete your account and associated data
Withdraw Gmail access at any time
Opt out of marketing communications at any time

To exercise these rights, contact us at support@nextgoal.college.

11. Contact

If you have any questions about this policy or your data, email us at:
support@nextgoal.college

Thank you for trusting Next Goal. We are committed to protecting your privacy and helping you reach your next step in the college recruitment journey.

Next Goal – Privacy Policy