How to set up the Funding Source before assigning to the Common Application
When using the Common Application process for your organization, it is required that you use a Master Template to build and clone the application forms.
Important: Your Global admin will need to confirm that they have activated the Enable Import Responses from Existing Application by selecting “Yes” to that item in the Administration > Manage Site Settings > General Settings. Items will not import to the additional applications unless this is selected.
Step 1: Create your Master Template application with all the required common sections and questions needed for all your organization’s applications. If your child application has questions that only pertain to that child application, do not add those to the Master Template, as you do not want to have to remove them in every single cloned copy you make from the Master. You will create those questions in the child application only.
Make sure to include a section that contains the Matching Fund Eligibility Question. (See: Adding the Matching fund Eligibility Question).
(See: Using a Master Application Template for additional information on creating a Master Template)
Step 2: Clone your Master Template and create your Common Application form. (See Creating an Application Form – Cloning an Existing Application for additional information on how to clone an application). The Common Application is the application the applicant will be looking for when applying. Be sure to name the Common Application a name that the applicant will understand.
Make adjustments to the General Information setup to apply to the Common Applications process, (i.e. deadline dates, instructions, etc.)
Step 3: Remove from the Common Application form, any sections, and questions that do not pertain to this Common Application or the individual fund’s “child” application. Keep only those items that are necessary for all the “child” funds and the common application process.
Important: Do not add any additional items to the Common Application if they are needed in a Common application to be pushed down to the child applications. Do those additions in your Master Template first. Do not change any of the XML names on items that came from the Master Template or you will lose any import mapping (pushing) capabilities for those items.
Note: If the common application process is the only application process you use. And you only have that one common application each cycle, then create your Master Template for that process and you will not need to remove any items when it is cloned.
Step 4: After you have cleaned up the Common Application you will begin cloning the Common Application to create each one of your separate fund’s child applications. Make sure when cloning that you adjust the General Information to apply to each separate fund’s application as those fund applications may have different deadline dates that are earlier than the Common Applications deadline.
Since the Common application has all the XML from the Master template and you did not change any of those names, when you clone the Common application, those XML names will clone with it keeping it intact with the Master Template.
Step 5: In each of the child applications remove any items that were cloned from the Common Application, that are not required for that fund’s application.
Step 6: At this point, in the child application, if you have additional items that pertain only to that child application, that the applicant will have to complete in the child application set it up. Make sure that each fund is marked as “Published (Viewable to the Applicant – Yes)
Step 7: In the Associated Application for each separate fund, select the child application you created for that fund. Repeat for each fund.
Step 8: In the Manage Application Funds (funding source) create a posting fund for the actual Common application that the applicants will be applying to. For the Associated Application select the Common Application form. Make sure that this fund is marked as “Published” (Viewable to the Applicant – Yes)
Step 9: Create a Common application by clicking on Create New Application
Step 10: Select from the listing of applications the Common Application by clicking on the name in the Application Form.
- Click on the Application Settings tab and select the “Manage Parent-Child Application Process”
- Step 11: The top two sections allow you to enter a message to the applicant so that they understand their instructions during the selection process. Enter your message using the editor box for each section.
Eligible Funding Information: This is the View Matching Funding Icon message to the applicant will see when they click on the “Grants Associated with this Common Application” icon on their dashboard. This message should give them instructions for that page.
Select Eligible Funding Instructions: This is the message that will appear on the screen the applicant sees after they submit the first Common Application.
Step 12: In the bottom section you will see two questions.
- Automatically Select Associated Funding Within This Common App:
Select “Yes” for this box if you want the system to automatically select the funds for the applicant, instead of allowing them to select.
- Mark Child(ren) Application As Submitted:
Yes - Select Yes if the child applications do not require any additional items to be completed on the child application level. The child application will then automatically be submitted and the applicant will not have to access the child application and submit it.
No - Select No if the child applications contain additional items to be completed by the applicant. The applicant will then click on the child application in their “My Applications” tab, complete the child application, and click submit in the child application to submit that application.
Step 13: At the Bottom will be two boxes, Un-Assigned Scholarships, and Assigned Scholarships.
The Un-Assigned Funding(s) will be a listing of all your funds that are currently published that you can assign to your Common Application. Data from the Common application will not push to any funds application that has not been assigned to it.
Step 14: In the Unassigned Funding(s) column, select all the Funds you have created applications for that are to be added to this common application and click on the right directional arrow to add it to the Assigned Funding(s) column. You can click the left directional arrow to move it back to the Unassigned Funding(s).
If you do not see a fund then it was not marked as published. You will need to return to the fund set up mark it published and then assign it to this section.
Step 15: Once you have your funds assigned, click on the Save to save the assignment and click on Manage Funds Criteria Information.
Step 16: In Manage Funds Criteria Information listing the funds you just assigned will appear.
Step 17: Click on the View Eligibility Criteria for each of the funds and set the Filter conditions based on the eligibility questions contained in your Common Application.
Once the applicant answers the question according to the correct eligibility they will be matched to that specific fund and that fund will show in the selection results.
(See: Manage Fund Criteria setup for additional information on creating the criteria filters)
How does an applicant apply using the Common Application?
Step 1: When the applicant searches for a fund that is linked to the Common Application form and clicks the “Apply” for that fund, they will be directed to the Common Application form.
Step 2: The applicant would then click the “Apply” for that form and will be directed to the Common Application’s dashboard to proceed with the application.
Step 3: There will be an icon on their dashboard “Funding Associated with this Common Application”.
Step 4: When they click on that icon the View Matching Funding page will appear.
Step 5: This page is a view-only page to show them what they are being matched to.
From this page, they can view details about all the funds that are available by clicking on the View Scholarship icon next to the fund they want to view. This will open a new tab in their browser displaying the detail section for that fund that was set up in the Fund Setup.
Once an applicant completes all the questions that determine eligibility for a specific fund, if they are eligible for that fund, a checkmark will appear next to the fund in this display. If they are not eligible the checkmark will not appear.
Step 6: The applicant can click “Return to Dashboard” to continue completing the application. As they complete it and return to this section more funds will appear as the questions are answered.
Step 7: Once the applicant completes their application and clicks the “Final Review and Submit” on their dashboard.
Step 8: They will receive the following System Alert message. They will need to click continue to proceed.
Step 9: After they click Continue, the following screen will appear.
Step 10: This screen will show the applicant the actual scholarships they will be applying for. The scholarships that are marked with a check in the box next to the name are the applications the applicant will be applying to.
Note: When setting up the Manage Common Application section of the application setup, if you selected the box on the “Automatically Select Associated Funding Within This Common App” the applicant will not be allowed to unselect the box for the scholarship they matched to. Once they submit those funds will automatically appear in their My Applications” tab.
If you did not select this box, then the applicant will be able to unselect the box next to any scholarship they do not want to apply to.
Step 11: Once the applicant selects (or is automatically selected), they will need to click the Continue With Submit button to complete the submission, or
Return to Dashboard, to reconfirm replies they have made, if they feel a scholarship is not selected that should have been.
Step 12: Once the applicant clicks the Continue with Submit. They will be directed to the preview of their application, where they can preview the application and check the box for the “Please check the check-box to confirm…” at the top of the page.
Step 13: Once they have previewed their application they can click the “Submit” to finalize the submission and receive the online submittal message. (The confirmation email will go out at this time as well.)
Step 14: When they click “Ok” on the message they will be directed to their “My Applications” tab. The separate scholarship applications will now appear in the applicant’s dashboard, with either a status of “submitted” if you selected to automatically submit when setting up the Manage Common Application section, or they will show with Pending Submission. If they are not submitted, then the applicant will need to go in on each separate application and completed it before it is considered submitted.