OTACAS Program User Guide
This guide provides you with documentation, reference guides, and direct links that answer common admissions questions about the OTACAS Applicant Portal, Configuration Portal, and WebAdMIT. It also contains resources that may help you work more efficiently throughout your admissions process. If you have additional questions or need further assistance, please contact your Account Manager and Client Success Manager.
Cycle Timeframes
Applicant Portal
The Applicant Portal opens in late July and closes in mid-June. You can view the specific cycle dates, including final processing dates (e.g., last date to submit transcripts, last date to request letters of recommendation, etc.), in the OTACAS Application Cycle Dates page.
Configuration Portal
Between early May and mid-June, configurations are entered in the prelaunch environment. The Account Manager and Client Success Manager review submitted configurations in June.
WebAdMIT
You can view new applicants and initiate a transfer settings shortly after the new cycle opens in late July.
Program Participation Requirements
AOTA requires all programs to designate two contacts at your institution who will receive all communication from AOTA and OTACAS, including the configuration, application, and WebAdMIT launch notifications.
Applicant Portal
The first three sections of the OTACAS application (i.e., Personal Information, Academic History, and Supporting Information) compose the core application. They contain questions that are commonly asked of applicants across all participating programs, such as an applicant's biographic information, standardized test scores, and experiences. The fourth section of the application is Program Materials, which is customized by you through the Configuration Portal (discussed in the next section).
You can access the OTACAS application and OTACAS Applicant Help Center to review the applicant experience. You can also create a test application in the Applicant Portal; we recommend creating a new account and adding "test" to your name (e.g., TestJohn TestDoe).
For a general overview of the applicant experience, review the following documents:
- Applicant Processing Reference Guide: learn how applicants move through the application and Liaison processes applicant materials, such as transcripts and official test scores.
- Application Statuses Reference Guide: review what each application status means and how you can interact with applicants at different stages.
- Requirements for the OTACAS Complete application status can be found here.
- OTACAS Quick Start Guide and FAQs: a suggested timeline for completing and submitting the application, links to important pages including cycle dates and fees, and a FAQs section.
You can direct any applicant inquiries related to the application to OTACAS Customer Service.
Configuration Portal
Use the Configuration Portal Quick Start Guide to make sure you configure your program(s) efficiently and completely in the prelaunch environment. Be sure to check out your CAS's configuration options and review the best practices found throughout. If any optional sections of the application are required for your program (e.g., experiences, test scores, etc.), you'll want to note this on your program home page.
Once you've configured your program, you'll need to have it approved by the Account Manager and Client Success Manager before it is available to applicants.
WebAdMIT
Review the WebAdMIT Manual for any questions related to working in WebAdMIT. The Documentation and Reference Guides and WebAdMIT Training and Support sections are additional resources as you configure WebAdMIT for your needs. Documents commonly requested include:
- API Overview: learn how to set up an API and schedule automatic data exports from WebAdMIT into your SIS/ERP.
- Custom Export Field Layout: a comprehensive list of all fields available in the Export Manager, including associated lookup tables.
- Master College Code List: a comprehensive list of all college names and their respective Liaison, MDB, CEEB, FICE, and/or IPED codes.
- Transfer Settings Guide: a review of how programs and templates built in WebAdMIT are carried forward each cycle.
The Release Notes feature new enhancements in the Applicant Portal, Configuration Portal, and WebAdMIT, in addition to upcoming training opportunities.
For any questions, contact the Client Support Specialist Team.
Cycle Enhancements
2021-2022
The table below contains enhancements for OTACAS for the cycle timeframes noted at the top of this page. Note that some sections have multiple enhancements. If an action is required by participating programs to use the enhancement, click the links under Enhancement Details to learn more. Additional enhancements may have been automatically released; review the Release Notes to learn more.
|
Portal |
Section |
Enhancement Details |
Implementation |
Availability |
|
Applicant Portal |
Personal Information – Biographic Information and Contact Information |
Liaison utilizes the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for a variety of standard "lookup" values, such as country names, states, etc. By default, the Country drop-down lists Taiwan as "Taiwan (Province of China)." This enhancement allows CASs to use an alternate name for Taiwan. Note that this enhancement does not affect WebAdMIT or Admissions by Liaison, which will continue to display the ISO standard lookup value, Taiwan (Province of China). |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Personal Information – Other Information |
The Felony and Misdemeanor questions were removed. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Academic History – GPA Entries |
The instructions text was updated to better assist applicants. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Configuration Portal |
Question Rules |
You can choose to request or require a document upload based on an applicant’s response to an Extended Profile or program-level question using the Show Document Question Rule. |
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available now |
|
Configuration Portal |
Question Rules |
You can choose to show or hide your programs based on an applicant’s response to an Extended Profile or program-level question using the Program Availability Question Rule. |
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available now |
|
Configuration Portal |
Organizations and Programs |
Association users can batch activate or reset programs to draft in the Configuration Portal. A new Organization column is added so association users can filter by organization and perform these batch actions more easily. |
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available now |
|
Letters by Liaison |
Account |
Evaluators can now submit their evaluations as a guest, without creating a Letters by Liaison account. Guest users can create an account at any time while working in Letters by Liaison, and evaluators who already have an account can also complete an evaluation as a guest. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
WebAdMIT |
Applicant Details Page |
You can now view which applicants reapplied from a previous cycle in WebAdMIT. There are two fields to track this information and both populate as Yes or No:
|
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
2020-2021
The table below contains enhancements for OTACAS for the cycle timeframes noted at the top of this page. Note that some sections have multiple enhancements. If an action is required by participating programs to use the enhancement, click the links under Enhancement Details to learn more. Additional enhancements may have been automatically released; review the Release Notes to learn more.
|
Portal |
Section |
Enhancement Details |
Implementation |
Availability |
|
Applicant Portal |
Academic History – Colleges Attended |
The workflow for entering colleges has been improved. Enhancements include:
|
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Add Program Page |
Applicants can skip the Add Program page after creating their account. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Login Page |
The cycle dates on the login page text were updated. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Personal Information – Other Information |
The Did you receive your GED? question uses conditional answer values. If the applicant selects No, then no additional questions appear. If the applicant selects Yes or In Progress, then the applicant can select the month and year they received or will receive their GED. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Configuration Portal |
Organization Details |
You can offer applicants a deep link to the application's Add Program page with your programs pre-filtered. This allows applicants to quickly access your programs without needing to set their own filters. If an applicant has not yet created an account, the deep link will first instruct them to create an account, and then will take them to the pre-filtered Add Program page. |
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Configuration Portal |
Questions |
When you create a question in the Configuration Portal, you can choose to hide the question in the full application PDF in WebAdMIT. These questions will still display on the Applicant Details page in WebAdMIT and be available in the List Manager and Export Manager. |
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available now |
|
WebAdMIT |
Report Manager |
A new Applicant-based report is available: Local Status History. This report includes the applicant’s:
Every Local Status change for an applicant is listed on one row. If an applicant has multiple Local Status changes, the report will include multiple rows with this information. This information can still be accessed under the History panel on the Applicant Details page. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |