Sixth Form Applications

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Introduction

The Sixth Form Applications module provides schools and sixth form colleges with an end-to-end digital admissions workflow. It eliminates paper application forms and fragmented spreadsheets by offering a self-service portal for prospective students and a unified management workspace for school admissions staff.

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Conceptual Architecture

The module structures application data around a clear student profile, progressive confirmation locks, and flexible course catalogue configuration:

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1. Internal vs External Student Pathways

• Internal Students (This School): Existing Year 11 pupils already have residential, parental, and date-of-birth records stored in the school MIS. When an internal student selects the This school checkbox, non-essential address, parental, and date-of-birth fields are automatically hidden and exempted from validation, allowing them to focus directly on subject choices.
• External Applicants (Other Schools): Prospective students joining from other schools complete full contact details, home address, parent/carer contact information, current school name, date of birth, and contextual admissions criteria (e.g. Looked After Child / LAC, SEND, Sibling attending, or child of staff).

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2. Four-Stage Progressive Lock Architecture

To ensure data integrity, applicants must explicitly verify and check off each section before final submission:

• Lock Student Details (lock_student): Validates and locks core personal, contact, and school information.
• Lock Predicted Grades (lock_grades): Validates that all entered subjects have corresponding predicted grades and locks the grade table.
• Lock Course Choices (lock_courses): Validates subject choices against the school’s available curriculum and locks options.
• Lock Submission (lock_submission): Enables the final Submit Application button. Once submitted, the application locks permanently into read-only mode for the applicant.

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3. Dynamic Course Catalogue

Admissions managers define their available A-Level and vocational courses in module settings as a simple list. These courses immediately populate the applicant choice dropdowns, ensuring applicants only select valid offerings.

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4. Calculated Age & Cohort Intelligence

The system automatically calculates the applicant’s age as of 1st September of the upcoming academic year. This allows admissions teams to immediately filter and identify underage applicants or mature applicants requiring bespoke entry pathways.

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Roles & Permissions Matrix

The module uses granular role-based permissions to manage access across administrative staff, admissions leaders, and applicants:

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User Interface & Screen Tour

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1. Applications Management Dashboard (/applications)

The central hub for admissions officers, featuring real-time filtering and batch tools:

• Active vs Archived Views: Toggle between active applicants and archived records with a single click.
• Live Search: Rapidly find applicants by forename, surname, or email address.
• Status Badges & Colour Coding:
  • New: Application started; no sections locked yet.
  • Incomplete: In progress; some sections locked, but not all.
  • Ready to submit: All four sections verified and locked; awaiting final submission click.
  • Submitted: Formally submitted; read-only for applicant with submission timestamp recorded.
• Header Filters:
  • Age Next September: Filter by All Ages, 16 Next September (standard cohort), or Under / Over 16.
  • School: Filter by All Schools, This School (internal Year 11), or Other Schools (external joiners).
  • Status: Filter by All Statuses, New, Incomplete, Ready to submit, or Submitted.
• Row Actions Menu:
  • Impersonate Applicant: Log into the applicant’s view with a single click to guide them or adjust choices.
  • Unsubmit (Padlock Icon): Instantly re-open a submitted application to allow edits.
  • Download PDF: Download an official interview dossier for submitted applicants.
  • Archive / Restore: Move applications to or from the archive.
• Bulk Action Bar: Select multiple applicants to send batch reminders, archive records, or export a CSV file.

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2. Applicant Self-Service Portal (/application)

A clean, responsive multi-step interface for students:

• Student Details (/application/student): Captures name, verified email, mobile number, home address, parent contacts, current school, and criteria flags.
• Predicted Grades (/application/grades): Structured entry for GCSE English Language, English Literature, Mathematics, Sciences (Combined / Triple), Modern Foreign Languages, and up to 5 optional subjects.
• Course Choices (/application/courses): Selection of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices from the school’s configured course catalogue, plus an optional 4th subject choice.
• Submission Summary (/application/submission): Displays section lock statuses, captures any additional supporting information (e.g. career aspirations or SEN adjustments), and submits the application.

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Deep-Dive Workflows & Guides