Overview
Reviewing and approving applications is where you make decisions about which students are eligible for housing. This module teaches you how to navigate the Applications section, review student submissions, view form responses and tags, and approve or deny applications individually or in bulk.
Who this is for: Housing directors, application managers, and staff responsible for processing housing applications.
What you'll learn: How to access and filter applications, review individual application details, approve or deny applications, manage waitlists, perform bulk operations, and export application data.
Duration: 15 minutes
Accessing the Applications Section
Navigate to Applications from the main navigation sidebar in the admin portal.
The applications table displays all housing applications with columns for:
Name: Student name with status badge
Email: Student email address
Student ID: SIS student identifier
Cycle: Which housing cycle they applied to
Status: Current application status
Submission Date: When the application was submitted
Tags: Application-specific tags
Filtering Applications
Click the filter button to narrow your view:
Filter by Cycle (e.g., "Fall 2025")
Filter by Status (e.g., "Under Review", "Approved")
Filter by Submission Date (e.g., "Last 30 days")
Filter by Tags (e.g., show only "First-Year" applicants)
Filter by Form Responses (e.g., students who requested specific buildings)
Save frequently-used filters as custom views like "Fall 2025 - Awaiting Review" or "Spring 2026 - Approved" for quick access.
Show Past Cycles: By default, the table only shows current and future cycles. Click "Show Past Cycles" to include archived historical applications in your view.
Selecting Multiple Applications
Use checkboxes in the Name column to select applications:
Check individual applications one by one
Check the header checkbox to select all visible applications on the current page
The selected count appears showing "X items selected"
Click "Deselect All" to clear your selection
Once applications are selected, bulk operation options become available.
Reviewing Individual Applications
Click a student's name from the applications table to open their application review page.
Application Review Page Layout
The review page is organized into sections:
Status Section (Top):
Current status badge
Approve button (green, visible when application can be approved)
Reject button (red, visible when application can be rejected)
Status options menu (⋮) for additional status transitions
Left Sidebar:
Profile biography card showing student photo and basic info
Activity log showing application history and status changes
Main Content Tabs:
Contact Info: Student contact details
Tags Management: View and edit application tags
Application Answers: All responses from YOUR application form
Housing Preference: Preferred buildings, roommates, room types
Additional Forms: Any supplemental forms submitted
E-Signature Documents: Contract status and signatures
Attachments: Uploaded files and documentation
Review Checklist: Track review completion steps
Notes: Internal staff notes about the application
Transactions: Financial transactions associated with application
Payments: Payment history and status
Meal Plans: Meal plan selections
Tab Visibility: Some tabs only appear if you have specific permissions or if the application has relevant data. For example, the Transactions tab requires transaction access permission.
Reviewing Application Answers
The Application Answers tab shows all responses from YOUR application form (the one you built in PLS-5):
See every question and the student's answer
View which tags were automatically applied based on their answers
Review roommate preferences, special requests, and accommodation needs
See uploaded files for questions that allowed attachments
Example: Your form asked "What's your preferred sleep schedule?" Student answered "Early Bird (10pm-6am)." The tag "Early Riser" was automatically applied. You can see both the answer and the tag in the review page.
Reviewing Tags
The Tags Management tab shows:
Profile Tags: Permanent tags about the student (e.g., "International Student", "Athlete")
Application Tags: Tags specific to this application/cycle (e.g., "Priority Assignment", "First Choice: East Hall")
You can manually add or remove tags from this tab. Tags help you filter, categorize, and match students during assignment.
Approving Applications
To approve an individual application:
Review all tabs to verify the student meets your requirements
Check that required documents are signed
Verify payment status if applicable
Click the Approve button in the Status section
What happens:
Application status changes from "Under Review" to "Approved"
Student becomes eligible for housing assignment
Student receives notification (if notifications are enabled)
Application appears in your "Approved" filtered views
Student can participate in room selection (if self-selection is enabled)
Bulk Approving Applications
To approve multiple applications at once:
From the applications table, filter to show applications you want to approve
Select multiple applications using checkboxes
Click the ellipsis menu (⋮) that appears
Select Approve from the menu
All selected applications change to "Approved" status
Bulk Approval Caution: When bulk approving, verify all selected applications meet your requirements. Bulk operations don't allow individual review—they apply the same action to all selected items.
Rejecting Applications
To reject an individual application:
Review the application to confirm it doesn't meet requirements
Click the Reject button in the Status section
Optionally add a note explaining the rejection reason
What happens:
Application status changes to "Rejected"
Student is blocked from room selection, payments, and roommate matching
Student cannot resubmit an application for the same cycle
Student receives notification explaining the rejection
Rejection Blocks Multiple Actions: Rejected status prevents students from making payments, selecting rooms, and joining roommate groups. Use this status when you're certain the student shouldn't participate in this housing cycle. If you just need them to edit their application, use "Return to Applicant" instead.
Other Status Options
Click the status options menu (⋮) next to the Approve/Reject buttons to access additional transitions:
Return to Applicant (In Progress)
Use when: Application needs edits or additional information from the student.
What happens: Status changes from "Under Review" back to "In Progress." Student can edit and resubmit their application.
Move to Waitlist
Use when: Application qualifies but no space is currently available.
What happens: Status changes to "Waitlist." Student cannot reapply but remains in the queue. When space opens, change status to "Approved."
Cancel Application
Use when: Student withdraws or you need to remove the application from active processing.
What happens: Status changes to "Canceled." Unlike Rejected or Archived, student CAN reapply to the same cycle if needed.
Undo Approval
Use when: Application was approved by mistake or circumstances changed.
What happens: Status changes from "Approved" back to "Under Review" for further review.
Archive Application
Use when: Cycle is over and you want to remove the application from active views.
What happens: Status changes to "Archived." Student cannot reapply to the same cycle. Use for historical record-keeping.
Status Menu Changes: The status options menu only shows valid transitions based on the current status. For example, if an application is already "Approved," you won't see "Approve" again—you'll see "Undo Approval" instead.
Navigating Between Applications
When reviewing multiple applications, you can navigate between them without returning to the table:
From the applications table, select multiple applications using checkboxes
Click the ellipsis menu (⋮) and select Review Applications
The first application opens in review mode
At the bottom of the page, navigation controls appear: "< Previous | Application 1 of 5 | Next >"
Click Next/Previous arrows or click on a specific application number to jump to it
Make your approval/rejection decision on each application
Navigate through all selected applications efficiently
Example workflow: You filtered for "Fall 2025 + Under Review" and found 50 applications. You select the first 10, click "Review Applications," then navigate through them one-by-one approving or denying each.
Bulk Operations on Applications
After selecting multiple applications, click the ellipsis menu (⋮) to access bulk operations:
Status Operations
Approve: Change all selected to "Approved" status
Reject: Change all selected to "Rejected" status
Move to Waitlist: Change all selected to "Waitlist" status
Cancel Application: Cancel all selected applications
Communication Operations
Send Communication: Send email or SMS to all selected applicants
Send Additional Forms: Request submission of supplemental forms
Send E-Signature Documents: Request signatures on housing contracts or documents
Assignment Operations
Auto-Assign Students: Run auto-assignment on selected approved applications (covered in PLS-8D)
Move to Resident: Convert approved applications to resident status (creates residency records)
Data Operations
Add/Remove Tags: Bulk tag management for categorization
Assign Meal Plans: Bulk assign meal plans to applicants
Efficiency Tip: Bulk operations save significant time during peak application periods. Instead of approving 100 applications individually, filter for "Under Review + All Requirements Met," select all, and bulk approve in seconds.
Exporting Application Data
To export application data for reporting or analysis:
Apply filters to show the applications you want to export
Click the Export button
The system generates a CSV or Excel file with all visible applications
Export includes form responses, tags, status, and student information
Example use cases:
Export all "Approved" applications to share with assignment team
Export "Under Review" applications to track review progress
Export applications with specific tags for targeted communications
Export all Fall 2025 applications for end-of-cycle reporting
Common Review Workflows
Workflow 1: Daily Application Review
Filter by Status: "Under Review" + Cycle: "Fall 2025"
Sort by Submission Date (oldest first)
Review each application for completeness
Verify required documents are signed
Check payment status if applicable
Approve or deny based on your institution's criteria
Workflow 2: Processing Applications by Tag
Filter by Status: "Under Review" + Tag: "First-Year"
Review all first-year applications together
Bulk approve all that meet requirements
Repeat for other tags ("Transfer Student", "Graduate Student", etc.)
Workflow 3: Waitlist Management
Filter by Status: "Waitlist" + Cycle: "Fall 2025"
Check current occupancy to see if space has opened
Select students to move forward
Use status menu to move from "Waitlist" to "Approved"
Proceed with assignment
Understanding What You're Reviewing
When you review applications, you're seeing data from multiple sources you configured:
Form Responses = YOUR Application Form (PLS-5)
Every answer in the Application Answers tab came from YOUR application form. You built the questions, configured the validation, and set up tag mappings. Now you're reviewing the responses.
Tags = YOUR Tag Configuration (PLS-4)
Tags you see were either:
Automatically applied based on form answers (configured in PLS-5)
Manually applied by staff for categorization
Imported from your SIS integration
These tags will drive auto-assignment matching when you run YOUR rulesets (PLS-8D).
Eligibility = YOUR Cycle Configuration (PLS-6)
Applications only appear for cycles where the student meets applicability tag requirements. If a student doesn't have the required tags, they never see your cycle and can't apply.
Example: Your Fall 2025 cycle requires tag "Undergraduate" with AND logic. Only undergraduates can apply. Graduate students don't see this cycle in their portal.
Common Issues and Solutions
Issue: Large "Under Review" Backlog
Cause: Staff aren't processing applications regularly during peak periods.
Solution: Establish a daily review cadence. Assign specific staff to review applications. Use filters to see newly submitted applications first.
Issue: Applications Missing Required Documents
Cause: Student submitted application before completing signature requirements.
Solution: Check the E-Signature Documents tab. If documents are pending, either wait for student to complete them or send a reminder using the "Send E-Signature Documents" bulk action.
Issue: Can't Find Specific Application
Cause: Application may be in a past cycle, or student may not have submitted yet.
Solution: Click "Show Past Cycles" to include historical applications. Search by student name or ID. Check if application status is "In Progress" (not yet submitted).
Issue: Approve Button Not Visible
Cause: Application is already approved, or you lack approval permissions.
Solution: Check current status badge. If already "Approved," the button won't appear. Contact your super admin to verify you have appReview and appStatus permissions.
Best Practices
Create Review Views: Save filtered views for common review tasks like "Today's Submissions - Awaiting Review" or "Priority Applicants - Approved." This speeds up daily workflows and ensures consistent review processes.
Use Notes for Team Communication: The Notes tab is visible to all staff reviewing the application. Use it to document review decisions, flag special circumstances, or communicate with other team members about an applicant.
Review Checklist Items: If your institution uses review checklists (configured in cycle settings), verify all checklist items are complete before approving. Incomplete checklists may indicate missing requirements.
What's Next
Continue your Product Learning Session 8 journey:
PLS-8C: Manual Assignment Methods - Learn the three ways to assign approved students to beds
PLS-8D: Auto-Assignment Workflow - Use automated matching to assign large batches of approved applications
PLS-8E: Managing Residency Changes - Handle cancellations, transfers, and swaps
Complete PLS-8: PLS-8: Managing Applications & Assignments
Review Skills Complete: You now know how to review applications, understand what students submitted through YOUR forms, and make approval decisions. Next, you'll learn how to assign these approved students to beds using manual and automated methods.