Datasets Overview
- 11 Nov 2025
- 3 minute read
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Datasets Overview
- Updated 11 Nov 2025
- 3 minute read
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What is a dataset?
You are likely familiar with the person record, which stores person-scoped data like name, birthdate, contact information, etc.
The person dataset is the collection of all person records in your database. There are other datasets in your database that collect other kinds of information.
The records in a dataset:
📊 Have an overview dashboard and a timeline of interactions
🔎 Can be queried and reported on
📂 Can store materials
👩👦 Can have parent/child relationships with other datasets
All of the above functions make datasets powerful tools for data collection.
The standard datasets
Go to Records. The datasets in your database appear in a list.
Different database types include different standard datasets:
Person
The Person dataset stores person-scoped information.
Application
The Application dataset collects application records.
Organizations and Organization Contacts
The Organizations dataset is pre-populated with the approximately 50,000 organizations identified by the College Board with a CEEB Code.
The Organization Contacts dataset represent the contacts at the schools with whom you communicate.
Person
The Person dataset stores person-scoped information.
Application
The Application dataset stores application records.
Enrollment
The Enrollment dataset stores enrollment-scoped information—that is, information about a student’s progress at your institution.
🚧 Enrollments are currently in development.
Organizations and Organization Contacts
The Organizations dataset is pre-populated with the approximately 50,000 organizations identified by the College Board with a CEEB Code.
The Organization Contacts dataset represent the contacts at the schools with whom you communicate.
Person
The Person dataset stores person-scoped information, including a record of a donor’s giving.
Application
The Application dataset stores application records. While this dataset is included in Advancement databases, it is not applicable and can be ignored.
Appeals
The records in the Appeals dataset represent specific outreach efforts to solicit gifts.
Campaigns
The records in the Campaigns dataset represent your broad fundraising initiatives or goals.
Class Years
The records in the Class Years dataset represent alumni classes, and include data like total alumni, fiscal year giving, total class giving, and current pledges
Companies and Foundations
The records in the Companies and Foundations dataset represent employers and non-human entities that have the capacity to give.
Educational Institutions
The records in the Educational Institutions dataset represent schools and universities.
Funds
The records in the Funds dataset represent funds, and include data like accounting information, restrictions, and fund contacts. Funds can be linked to individual gifts.
Named Spaces
The records in the Named Spaces dataset represent donor-named areas.
Performance Management
The records in the Performance Management dataset represent staff user accounts and their respective person record assignments.
Parent and child datasets
Datasets can have parent/child relationships. In the same way that an application records lives on a person record, Organization Contacts records require an associated Organization record to exist.
Custom datasets
Like person records, custom datasets can contain custom fields, addresses, devices, and relationships. While the standard datasets in Slate are related to schools, custom datasets can keep track of volunteer records, churches, alumni interviewers, community-based organizations, and more.
Custom datasets can keep track of alumni interviewers, churches, community-based organizations, employers, companies, volunteers, and more. If there is a need for a type of record that is not an applicant, person, or organization, creating a custom dataset may fit the bill.
🔔 Important!The creation and maintenance of custom datasets are time consuming processes. Upon creation, they contain almost no features or functionality. Creating a custom dataset is a long-term project that should only be attempted with ample planning time.
Custom datasets can represent institutions and individuals that:
have many data points which need to be stored, queried and reported on,
exist independently of person records, or
exist outside the normal scope of person records.
Not sure whether a custom dataset is right for your process?
Check out our Custom Datasets article, attend a community conversation to bounce your ideas off Technolutions staff, or explore the Record Management section of our Community Forums for inspiration from fellow Slate users and dataset aficionados.
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