Key Concepts

Understanding these core concepts will help you navigate BrightStep effectively.

Organization

An organization represents your institution on BrightStep. It contains all your campaigns, team members, settings, and branding. Each organization has its own isolated environment with its own configurations and data.

Campaigns

A campaign represents a single admissions cycle, typically for a specific academic year, intake period, or program (e.g., "Fall 2025 Admissions" or "Spring 2026 MBA Intake"). Campaigns have defined opening and closing dates during which candidates can apply.

Workflow

A workflow defines the sequence of steps that candidates must complete within a campaign. Each campaign has one workflow that structures the entire application process from start to finish.

Workflows allow you to design the candidate journey by specifying which steps are required, their order, and whether certain steps need approval before the candidate can proceed. This provides flexibility to tailor the application process to your institution's specific requirements.

Application Steps

An application is divided into steps that candidates must complete. Each step represents a specific requirement in the admissions process. Common step types include:

• Form — Collect information through customizable fields, including file uploads for documents such as transcripts, identification, or motivation letters
• Payment — Collect application fees or deposits
• Interview — Schedule and conduct video interviews

Application Status

An application's status indicates where it stands in the admissions process:

Pre-decision statuses

• In Progress — The candidate is still completing application steps
• Submitted — All required steps are complete

Post-decision statuses

• Under Review — The admissions team is evaluating the application
• Accepted — The candidate has been offered admission
• Rejected — The candidate has not been offered admission
• Waitlisted — The candidate is on a waiting list for potential admission
• Enrolled — The candidate has confirmed their enrollment
• Withdrawn — The candidate has withdrawn their application

User Roles

BrightStep supports four user roles, each with different permissions and responsibilities:

Administrator

Administrators have full access to the platform. They configure organization settings, create campaigns, design application workflows, manage team members, and handle billing.

Campaign Manager

Campaign Managers handle the operational side of admissions. They review applications, update candidate statuses, communicate with candidates, schedule interviews, and generate reports. They work within campaigns assigned to them by Administrators.

Interviewer

Interviewers conduct candidate interviews and provide evaluations. They manage their availability, view assigned interviews, and submit feedback and scores.

Candidate

Candidates are applicants who create accounts to apply to programs. They complete application steps, upload documents, make payments, attend interviews, and track their application status.

Tasks

Tasks help team members organize their work and track action items. Tasks can be assigned to Administrators, Campaign Managers, or Interviewers and include details such as due dates and related candidates.

Communications

BrightStep supports multiple communication channels to keep candidates informed:

• Email — Automated and manual messages sent to candidates
• WhatsApp — Instant notifications and messaging
• Direct Messaging — Two-way conversations between candidates and the admissions team (coming soon)

Notes

Notes allow team members to record internal observations about candidates. Notes are visible only to the admissions team and are not shared with candidates. They provide a way to document important information, concerns, or context during the review process.

Credits

BrightStep uses a credit system for certain platform features such as video interviews and communications. Organizations purchase credits and consume them as these features are used.