Terms of Service

Welcome to CollegePeer. These Terms of Service (the “Terms”) are a binding agreement between you and CollegePeer, LLC (“CollegePeer,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) and govern your access to and use of the CollegePeer website, applications, and services (together, the “Service”). Please read them carefully. By creating an account, booking or offering a session, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. What CollegePeer is

CollegePeer is an online marketplace that connects college applicants and their families (“Students”) with current college students and recent alumni (“Mentors”) for paid guidance sessions delivered through messaging and video. CollegePeer is a neutral venue and technology provider only. We are not a college counseling firm, admissions consultancy, employer, or educational institution.

Mentors are independent individuals, not our employees, agents, partners, or representatives. We do not participate in, supervise, or control the guidance Mentors provide, and we do not endorse any Mentor, Student, or the content of any session. Any agreement for a session is directly between the Student and the Mentor.

2. Eligibility and accounts for minors

You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service. If you are under 18, you may use the Service only with the involvement, consent, and supervision of a parent or legal guardian who agrees to these Terms on your behalf and is responsible for your use of the Service, including any payments. By allowing a minor to use the Service, the parent or guardian accepts these Terms and assumes full responsibility for the minor’s activity.

To act as a Mentor, you must be at least 18 years old and a current student or recent alumnus of an accredited college or university. You represent that all information you provide is truthful and that you are legally permitted to provide the services you offer.

3. Verification and background checks

We verify Mentors on a limited basis, primarily by confirming access to a school-issued email address. A “verified” badge means only that this limited check was completed. CollegePeer does not conduct criminal background checks, identity verification, or reference checks and does not independently confirm a Mentor’s qualifications, enrollment, admissions history, or the accuracy of their profile. You are solely responsible for evaluating whether a Mentor or Student is appropriate for you before interacting or transacting.

4. Accounts and security

You agree to provide accurate information, keep it current, and maintain one account for your own use. You are responsible for all activity under your account and for keeping your login credentials confidential. Notify us promptly of any unauthorized use. We may refuse, suspend, or terminate accounts at our discretion, as described in Section 15.

5. Bookings and payments

Mentors set their own per-session rates. When you book a session, the Mentor’s rate and a CollegePeer service fee are displayed together before you pay, and the total is charged at the time of booking. A booking is confirmed only after payment succeeds. All fees are shown in U.S. dollars.

Payments are processed by our third-party payment provider, Stripe. By making or receiving payments through the Service, you agree to Stripe’s applicable terms. We do not store full payment card numbers. The CollegePeer service fee helps cover payment processing and platform costs and is disclosed at checkout; Mentors receive their rate less this fee. Fees and rates may change prospectively, but changes will not affect sessions already booked.

6. Cancellations and refunds

• Student cancellation. You may cancel and receive a full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled session start. Cancellations made less than 24 hours before the session are generally not refundable.
• Mentor cancellation or no-show. If a Mentor cancels or fails to attend a confirmed session, you are entitled to a full refund.
• Quality concerns. If a session did not occur as described, contact us and we may, at our discretion, issue a full or partial refund or credit.

Refunds are returned to your original payment method through Stripe and may take several business days to appear.

7. Mentor payouts

Mentors are paid their session rate, less the CollegePeer service fee, through Stripe Connect. To receive payouts, a Mentor must complete Stripe’s onboarding and provide accurate payout and tax information. Payout timing is subject to Stripe’s processing schedule and to any holds, reversals, or refunds required by these Terms or by Stripe. Mentors are independent contractors responsible for their own taxes; CollegePeer does not withhold taxes on their behalf.

8. No guarantees; not professional advice

Mentors share personal experiences and opinions. CollegePeer and its Mentors do not guarantee admission to any school, any scholarship, financial aid, test score, grade, or any other outcome. Guidance provided through the Service is for general informational purposes only and is not professional counseling, legal, financial, or educational advice. You are responsible for your own decisions and for the accuracy of anything you submit to a college or third party.

9. Academic integrity

The Service is intended for coaching, feedback, and guidance. Mentors must not complete work on a Student’s behalf, including writing or substantially rewriting essays or applications, completing assignments or tests, or engaging in any conduct that violates a school’s academic-integrity or admissions policies. Students must not request such conduct. Violations may result in removal from the Service.

10. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• harass, threaten, defame, or discriminate against any person, or post unlawful, hateful, sexually explicit, or harmful content;
• solicit or arrange to pay for or provide sessions outside the Service to avoid fees, or share contact or payment details for that purpose;
• misrepresent your identity, credentials, enrollment, or affiliation;
• collect, store, or share another user’s personal information except as needed for a session;
• upload malware, attempt to disrupt or reverse-engineer the Service, or access it through automated means without our permission;
• use the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of these Terms.

11. Sessions and recording

Video and messaging sessions are private to the participants. You may not record, photograph, or otherwise capture a session without the clear, prior consent of every participant (and, where a participant is a minor, that participant’s parent or guardian). Private notes you take during a session are visible only to you.

12. Your content

You retain ownership of the content you submit, including profile details, messages, and reviews (“User Content”). You grant CollegePeer a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, store, display, and use your User Content as needed to operate and promote the Service. You are responsible for your User Content and represent that you have the rights to share it. We may remove content that violates these Terms.

Reviews

Reviews must reflect genuine, firsthand experiences. We may publish, decline to publish, or remove reviews, and may remove reviews that are fake, incentivized, defamatory, or otherwise violate these Terms.

13. Intellectual property

The Service, including its software, design, logos, and content (other than User Content), is owned by CollegePeer or its licensors and is protected by intellectual-property laws. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-transferable license to use the Service for its intended purpose. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works from the Service without our permission.

14. Third-party services

The Service relies on third-party providers (including Stripe for payments, and providers for hosting, email, and video connectivity) and may link to third-party sites. We are not responsible for third-party services or content, and your use of them is governed by their own terms.

15. Suspension and termination

You may stop using the Service and close your account at any time. We may suspend or terminate your access, remove content, or withhold or reverse payouts if we reasonably believe you have violated these Terms, created risk or legal exposure, or engaged in fraudulent or harmful conduct. Sections that by their nature should survive termination (including Sections 8, 12, 13, and 16–19) will survive.

16. Disclaimers

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, and any warranties regarding the conduct, reliability, or qualifications of any Mentor or Student or the results of any session. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free.

17. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, CollegePeer and its officers, employees, and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, data, goodwill, or opportunities, arising out of or relating to the Service or your interactions with any Mentor or Student. Our total liability for any claim relating to the Service will not exceed the greater of (a) the total service fees you paid to CollegePeer in the three months before the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) US$100. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so parts of this section may not apply to you.

18. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless CollegePeer from any claims, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of your use of the Service, your User Content, your interactions with other users, or your violation of these Terms or of any law or third-party right.

19. Dispute resolution and arbitration

Please read this section carefully; it affects your legal rights. Except for claims that qualify for small-claims court, you and CollegePeer agree to resolve any dispute relating to these Terms or the Service through binding individual arbitration rather than in court, and you and CollegePeer waive the right to a jury trial and to participate in a class action. Arbitration will be conducted on an individual basis under the rules of a recognized arbitration provider. If this arbitration agreement is found unenforceable, any dispute will be resolved in the courts described in Section 20. Where required by law, this section does not apply to a minor, and a parent or guardian’s consent governs.

20. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Subject to Section 19, the state and federal courts located in California will have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute not subject to arbitration.

21. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and, for material changes, take reasonable steps to notify you. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.

22. Contact us

Questions about these Terms? Email us at support@collegepeer.org.