Workflow decisions

Use this reference when an admin needs to decide which Edmissa area should hold a piece of work. It is a decision guide, not a setup walkthrough.

Start with the thing users are trying to do:

If the team needs to	Use	Why
Review new student interest before creating long-term records	Leads	Leads give users a review step for incoming information before it becomes daily student work.
Store information about the student as a person	Student profile	Student profiles hold identity, contact, study, source, ownership, and location details that can support multiple applications.
Track progress through an admissions, visa, enrollment, or service workflow	Application	Applications move through pipelines, stages, requirements, checklists, documents, tasks, comments, and approvals.
Assign follow-up work to a person with a due date	Task	Tasks make ownership and timing visible.
Collect or review a file	Document	Documents store uploaded files and connect them to the right student profile or application.
Store a reusable data point	Field	Fields define the information Edmissa can collect, display, validate, search, and report.
Decide which fields users see in a form	Form template	Form templates arrange existing fields into forms for creation, editing, intake, and stage work.
Give users repeatable steps to complete	Checklist	Checklists turn repeatable work into items users can complete, warn on, or block on.
Trigger work automatically after a clear event	Automation	Automation rules create tasks, notifications, or workflow updates after a matching moment.
Show where an application is in a workflow	Pipeline stage	Stages represent the current work state and control movement, timing, access, notifications, and requirements.

Choose the Daily Work Area

Question	Choose	Do not choose
Is this incoming information that still needs review?	Leads	Do not create a student profile until the Lead is real, useful, and checked for duplicates.
Does this information describe the student across all future work?	Student profile	Do not put one university, deadline, offer, or visa outcome into student fields when it belongs to one application.
Does this work have stages, requirements, or a final outcome?	Application	Do not use only tasks when users need workflow reporting or stage movement.
Is this a small action with an owner and due date?	Task	Do not create a new pipeline stage for ordinary follow-up work.
Is the main item a file users must upload, review, replace, or expire?	Document	Do not store file status in notes or text fields when a document type can track it.

Choose the Setup Area

Decision	Use	Good first question
What information should Edmissa store?	Fields	Is the value about the student, or about one application?
Which fields should users see together?	Form templates	Who fills this in, and at what moment?
Which steps should users complete every time?	Checklists	Should unfinished items only guide users, warn them, or block progress?
Which moments deserve automatic action?	Automation	Is the trigger clear enough to run without a person deciding each time?
Which work states should appear on the board or reports?	Pipeline stages	Does this represent a real state of application work, not just a task?
Which files should be accepted and reviewed?	Document types	What format, size, scope, expiry, and approval rules does this document need?

Student Profile or Application

Use this table before creating fields, forms, or reports.

Information	Better home	Reason
Name, date of birth, nationality, passport number, email, phone	Student profile	These describe the student and usually stay useful across applications.
Preferred destination, study level, source details, assigned counselor	Student profile	These guide recruitment and follow-up before or across applications.
University, program, intake, application deadline	Application	These can differ for each application.
Offer status, submission date, visa appointment, visa outcome	Application	These belong to one workflow and one result.
Notes about a phone call or handoff	Student profile or application, based on context	Put the note where the next user will look for the related work.
Follow-up date or reminder	Task	A field or note will not create the same ownership and due date visibility.

If the same student can have two different answers at the same time, the value probably belongs to an application.

Lead, Student Profile, or Application

Situation	Recommended choice
New web form submission needs review	Keep it as a Lead until a user checks it.
The student already exists	Link the Lead to the existing student profile when the data is trustworthy.
The student is real but not ready for an application	Create or update the student profile and assign follow-up.
The student is ready to start a specific service	Create an application from the correct student profile.
The form should create both student and application work	Use a form and workflow setup that creates the student profile and starts the application together.

Search before creating. Duplicate student profiles make documents, tasks, and applications harder to trust.

Task, Checklist, or Stage

Need	Use	Example
One person should do one follow-up by a date	Task	Call student about missing bank statement.
Several steps should be completed the same way each time	Checklist	Confirm passport validity, review financial evidence, record submission date.
The application is in a different state of work	Stage	Document Collection, Visa Application, Visa Approved.
A task needs several steps before it can be completed	Task with checklist	Review document pack and complete each review item.
Stage movement should stop until required work is complete	Stage requirement or blocking checklist	Do not move past Document Collection until required files are ready.

Do not add a stage for every small action. A stage should describe where the application is, not everything a user must do while it is there.

Document, Document Type, or Field

Need	Use	Reason
Store the uploaded file	Document	The file can be previewed, reviewed, replaced, and tracked.
Define the kind of file users should upload	Document type	The type controls accepted formats, size, expiry, scope, upload mode, versioning, and approval.
Ask for a value, date, choice, or note	Field	Fields store structured information that can appear in forms and views.
Ask for a file inside a form	File-upload field connected to a document type	The form collects the file while document rules still control it.
Track whether a file is acceptable	Document approval or checklist	Approval answers whether the uploaded file is acceptable. A checklist tracks human review work.

Use documents for files. Use fields for data about the work. Use checklists for review steps around the file.

Form Template, Field, or Stage Form Rule

Question	Use
Do we need a new data point?	Create a field.
Do we need users to see existing fields in a better layout?	Create or update a form template.
Do only some stages or roles need a different form?	Configure pipeline form management for that stage and role.
Do users need a quick form from the sidebar?	Use a form template with sidebar visibility when the form is used often.
Do users need fewer required fields in early intake?	Use a simpler form template rather than weakening the field design for every workflow.

Create fields first, then arrange them in form templates. Form templates do not replace fields.

Automation or Manual Work

Use automation when	Keep it manual when
The trigger is clear and repeatable.	A person needs to judge whether the action should happen.
The action has a predictable owner or audience.	The owner changes based on context that Edmissa cannot reliably know.
The rule reduces missed follow-up.	The rule would create noise or duplicate reminders.
The team can test the rule with sample Leads, student profiles, and applications.	The workflow is still changing every week.
The result can be monitored after launch.	Nobody owns rule maintenance.

Start with a few useful rules. Retire rules that users ignore.

Common Decisions

Admin decision	Recommended path
We need to collect passport files from students.	Create a Passport document type, then use documents, forms, or stage requirements where needed.
We need to know each student's preferred destination.	Create a student field and place it on the right student form template.
We need to track the university for each application.	Create an application field in the relevant pipeline and add it to the application form.
We need counselors to call new Leads within one day.	Use Leads for intake, assign ownership, and consider an automation rule that creates a task.
We need to stop visa applications from moving forward before review.	Use a stage requirement, approval, or blocking checklist on the relevant pipeline stage.
We need a manager to see delayed work.	Use stage timing, delay notifications, task reports, or a focused automation rule.
We need different forms for different stages.	Create form templates, then assign them through pipeline form management.

Guide	Use it for
Leads	Review incoming Leads before creating or connecting student profiles.
Student profiles	Manage student-level information and related work.
Applications	Create applications and move them through pipelines.
Tasks and follow-ups	Assign and complete follow-up work.
Documents	Upload, review, and track files.
Fields	Configure student fields and application fields.
Form templates	Arrange fields into user-facing forms.
Checklists	Configure repeatable work steps.
Automation Engine	Create workflow rules for tasks, notifications, and updates.
Pipeline stages	Configure application stages, timing, requirements, access, and notifications.

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