Collecting School Information on a Form

On the Profile tab of the person record, there are entities like Schools that collect multiple data points. For each school an applicant enters, there are multiple associated data points, like school name, CEEB code, and level of study.

Using grouped fields to collect related data

You can collect grouped data like this on a form with the Group Number setting on form fields. All school fields with the same group number are saved together within a single school.

To add a new school or update data for an existing school to a person record, Slate requires either a School Name or a CEEB code that matches a school in the Organizations dataset. The school name or CEEB code can also be used to match school data submitted through a form onto a school record that already exists for a particular student record.

Creating a grouped school field

To collect school information on a form:

Go to Forms.
Select an existing form, or create a new one.
From the palette, select a form field to collect the school data. Depending on the type of data, this may require a Text Box, Calendar, or Select List.
Configure the following settings:
- Label: Enter a registrant-facing label for the field.
- System Field: Select Schools and one of the school-scoped fields for which you want to capture data.
- Group: Enter a group number for the field. If this is the first group you’re creating on the form, you can leave this as its default value, 1.
- Autosuggest: Select an autosuggest value depending on the system field:
  - School: Name: When you’re creating the School: Name form field, select School Name Search. This enables autosuggest for school name when registrants enter a school name, CEEB code, or location of the school. When the registrant selects a school, the name of the school populates in the field.
  - School: CEEB: When you’re creating the School: CEEB form field, select School Key. This works in conjunction with the School Name Search autosuggest field to populate the text box with the CEEB code of the school selected by the student.
Select Save.
Repeat, using the same Group Number value, for as many school-scoped fields as you want on the form.

Using autosuggest to standardize inputs

Autosuggest makes forms easier to complete for the user and sanitizes data entry. Letting form registrants enter high school information manually can result in multiple spellings and formats for the same school, as with

St. Andrew’s Episcopal HS
St. Andrews Episcopal HS
Saint Andrew’s Episcopal
Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School

Collecting a CEEB Code value

Include a field to capture the school’s CEEB code. Since multiple schools can have the same name, the CEEB code is what will allow accurate reporting on submitted data.

Automatically setting common responses with Default and Hidden values

Certain data points can be automatically configured based on the form that is being submitted. For example, prospective students may be asked to specifically provide high school information on an inquiry form. The level of study for all submitted forms, therefore, will always be High School.

Rather than show another field on the form for which High School needs to be selected as the level of study, configure a Hidden form field with a default value to save this information automatically when a form is submitted.

Default Value(s) can be used to pre-populate common responses while also allowing a student to update to another value before their form is submitted. When used in conjunction with the Hidden (accessible through script) setting, a form will automatically save the default (or static) value upon form submission. The Hidden setting ensures that the field will not display to a prospective student and prevents them from selecting another value.

Use the Form Builder Palette to add an Option Buttons field to a form.