Terms of Service

1 · Who we are

Candid Campus is operated by Candid Campus LLC. We run a platform that connects families with verified college students and recent graduates for paid, informational calls about campus life. Candid Campus is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any university. Student hosts speak only for themselves.

2 · Accounts & eligibility

You must be 18 or older to create a full account, which enables you to book a call and pay. A minor (under 18) may take part only when a parent or guardian books the call and consents on their behalf, and may create an account to browse and build a shortlist. Booking, payment, and consent stay with the parent. Hosts may be current undergraduate, graduate, professional, doctoral, or post-baccalaureate students, or recent graduates within the platform’s 24-month window who are not enrolled in further post-secondary study. Each host may represent one institution, must control their sign-in email, and must complete a government-ID check. We review that academic affiliation before listing and may require periodic re-verification. Hosts are paid for calls as self-employment income: to enroll in payouts, a host must be legally authorized to receive self-employment income in the United States (as a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or under other work authorization) and attests to this during onboarding. Many student-visa holders (for example, students on an F-1 visa) are not authorized to receive this kind of income while enrolled, and receiving it can jeopardize their visa status — this requirement exists to protect them. You are responsible for keeping your sign-in secure and for activity under your account.

3 · Bookings, payments & refunds

For paid calls, the price shown at booking is the price you pay, plus tax where applicable. No surprise add-ons. Payments are processed by Stripe. Candid Campus sets standard call prices. Before accepting a paid call, the student sees exactly what they’ll earn and receives the majority of the listed price. The remainder funds verification, the private call bridge, payments, and support.

For paid calls, cancellations and refunds follow the schedule in our Trust & Safety policy, which is part of these terms. In short: cancel 24+ hours ahead for a full refund; if the student no-shows or a technical issue means the call never connects, you’re refunded in full. If your side doesn’t join a call the student showed up for, it’s charged as a late cancellation (reviewable for genuine emergencies). If a call didn’t go well, tell us as soon as possible, and we will make it right.

If you host calls, your earnings are yours. If paid-call earnings settle before you’ve finished payout setup, we set the money aside and it transfers automatically the moment you connect your bank — and we’ll remind you until you do. An account that remains unresponsive for twelve months may be treated as dormant, and any set-aside earnings are then handled in accordance with applicable unclaimed-property law. We never keep them.

4 · Referral and creator programs

A host’s secure referral link can earn the host the displayed cash reward when a new host or family joins through that link and completes a paid, retained first call. The standard host referral reward is currently $5. Rewards become transferable after the seven-day refund hold. Canceled, fully refunded, duplicate, self-referred, test, or fraudulent activity does not qualify, and referrals, bookings, and earnings are not guaranteed.

The August 2026 Host Referral Boost is limited to the first ten eligible new hosts approved after creating an account through the signed campaign link while enrollment is active. Signing up or applying does not reserve a seat. An enrolled host earns $7 instead of the standard $5for each of their first five qualified referrals; a reversed reward does not consume that five-referral limit. The standard rate applies afterward. We may pause new enrollment, but doing so does not revoke an enrolled host’s offer or legitimate booked, pending, or settled rewards.

An invited host may activate a creator program by accepting the current creator agreement, opting into a public featured profile, and supplying an approved Linktree or social profile URL. An active creator’s signed referral link gives an eligible family $5 off its first call, limited to one redemption per family, with no overall redemption cap while the referral offer remains active and within its displayed validity window. Creator offers are not public coupon codes and cannot be applied by entering an identifier manually.

Before a family’s first qualifying funded booking, its most recent valid creator-link visit within the attribution window controls attribution. That first booking may be with any host. Funding the booking permanently associates the family account with that creator for later qualifying bookings; later creator-link visits do not overwrite the association. An attributed booking made during the referred family’s first 12 months on the platform creates a $5creator earning; later bookings do not. There is no cap on the number of referred families. The earning becomes transferable only after the call is completed, the family retains payment, and the seven-day refund hold passes. Canceled, fully refunded, duplicate, self-referred, test, or fraudulent bookings do not transfer. We may pause new attribution while reviewing abuse, but pausing does not delete legitimate booked or settled reward records. Cash transfers use the host’s connected Stripe payout account.

Creators must clearly disclose their material relationship with Candid Campus when promoting the service, including that they may earn a commission from qualifying bookings. Paid-content briefs are separately scoped and paid; opting in does not guarantee work. Campus-tour opt-in places an active creator in the priority opportunity queue as that offering launches, but does not guarantee an assignment.

5 · Acceptable use & conduct

Keep contact and payment on the platform. You agree not to solicit or share personal contact details to move a relationship off Candid Campus, not to harass, threaten, or discriminate against anyone, and not to misuse, scrape, or disrupt the service. Student hosts are held to the same standard and to a strike system; serious violations end access immediately.

6 · The conversations

Calls are voice-only, run over a relay line so phone numbers stay private, and are never recorded by us. That promise runs both ways: no participant may record, transcribe, or otherwise capture a call, or publish or share what was said in a way that identifies another participant, without written permission from them and from us. Students speak candidly because the conversation stays in the room; recording one is a serious violation that ends access immediately, and depending on your state’s recording-consent laws it may also be illegal.

Conversations reflect personal opinions and lived experience. They are informational only and are not admissions, financial, legal, or professional advice, and not a prediction or guarantee of any admission, scholarship, or outcome.

7 · Disclaimers & limitation of liability

The service is provided “as is.” To the fullest extent permitted by law, Candid Campus LLC disclaims implied warranties and is not liable for indirect or consequential damages; where liability can’t be excluded, it is limited to the amount you paid for the call at issue. Nothing here limits rights that can’t be waived under applicable law.

8 · Suspension & termination

You can delete your account anytime from Account › Privacy; any open calls are released or refunded first. We may suspend or remove an account for a violation of these terms or the Trust & Safety policy, or to protect the community.

9 · Changes & contact

We may update these terms; if a change is material we’ll give notice and update the date above. Continued use after a change means you accept it. These terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Questions? Email hello@candidcampus.io.