OptomCAS Program User Guide
This guide provides you with documentation, reference guides, and direct links that answer common admissions questions about the OptomCAS 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 a member of your account team.
Cycle Timeframes
Applicant Portal
The Applicant Portal opens in late June and closes in late May. 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.), on the OptomCAS Application Cycle Dates page.
Configuration Portal
Between mid-April and late May, configurations are entered into the prelaunch environment. The account team and ASCO review submitted configurations in June.
WebAdMIT
You can view new applicants and initiate a transfer settings shortly after the new cycle opens in late June.
Program Participation Requirements
ASCO requires all programs to designate two contacts at your institution who will receive all communication from ASCO and OptomCAS, including the configuration, application, and WebAdMIT launch notifications.
Applicant Portal
The first three sections of the OptomCAS 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 OptomCAS application and OptomCAS 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.
- Review the requirements for the OptomCAS Complete application status.
- OptomCAS 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 OptomCAS 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 team and ASCO before it is available to applicants. If your program is reviewed after the cycle launches, ASCO will approve it.
WebAdMIT
Review the WebAdMIT Manual for any questions related to working in WebAdMIT. The Reference Guides and WebAdMIT Training and Support sections are additional resources as you configure WebAdMIT for your needs. Documents commonly requested include:
- Application Coupons Reference Guide: learn how to request coupons to offset application fees and disperse them to applicants. To purchase coupons, use the Coupon Code Payment Gateway.
- Application Coupon Codes FAQs: view answers to frequently asked questions about coupon codes.
- Background checks through Certiphi.
- Data Dictionaries and Master Code Lists: a comprehensive list of all fields available in the Export Manager and Report Manager, including associated lookup tables.
- Deferring Applicants via the Liaison-assisted Deferral Process: learn how to transfer deferred applicants from one cycle to the next.
- Integration Help Center and WebAdMIT API: learn how to set up an API and schedule automatic data exports from WebAdMIT into your SIS/ERP.
- Manual Designations: learn how to add additional programs (i.e., designations) to an application in WebAdMIT.
- Reporting Final Decision Codes: learn how to use WebAdMIT to place applicants in Decision Codes and report them back to ASCO.
- You can also use the Competing Offers and Shared Decision reports to find applicants with program competing offers made and accepted, as well as shared decisions. Note that you may see all or only a few of these reports.
- Note that OptomCAS requires you to report the following Decision Codes by January for the previous cycle:
- Denied
- Matriculated
- Requesting Official GRE CAS Codes: a guide on how to create CAS-specific codes in order to receive official GRE scores in WebAdMIT.
- 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, Applicant Gateway, Configuration Portal, Liaison Letters, and WebAdMIT, in addition to upcoming training opportunities.
For any questions, contact the Client Support Specialist Team.
Cycle Enhancements
2024-2025
The table below contains enhancements for OptomCAS 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 – Release Statement |
Applicants can edit their response to the Advisor Release question in the Release Statement section after submitting their application. Additionally, a new OptomCAS Certification Statements question was added that includes text about the use of Generative AI. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Personal Information – Other Information |
The following questions were added:
The COVID-19 questions were removed. Additionally, the First Generation College Student question and answer options were updated. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Academic History – Transcript Entry |
Applicants can view instructions when entering their coursework details. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Academic History – Standardized Tests |
The instructional text was updated to include updated information about OAT exam test date requirements. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Applicant Help Center |
The full text of the OptomCAS Applicant Responsibilities was removed from the Applicant Help Center and replaced with a link. This ensures that applicants can view the most accurate and up-to-date version of the text. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Configuration Portal |
Program Details Question Rules |
Select users with the Config. Portal Live Editing Access role can edit active and closed programs through the Configuration Portal, such as:
|
Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement. |
Available now |
|
Liaison Letters |
Recommendations |
Recommenders must now attest that they did not use a generative AI platform to write or modify their recommendation. Additionally, the Advisor answer option for the How do you know the applicant? question was changed to Academic Advisor. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
WebAdMIT |
Program Selections |
Some CASs are built where schools offer only one program per organization or most organizations only offer one program. If you participate in either one of these CAS types and only have one program, then WebAdMIT can automatically activate features for your single program. Note that if your organization offers multiple programs within a CAS, then this feature does not apply to you. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
WebAdMIT |
Work Groups |
In WebAdMIT, you can configure Work Groups to allow users to see specific panels on the Applicant Details Page. With this enhancement (from Release 11, 2023) if you remove access to a panel for a Work Group, the fields in that panel are also not available for the Work Group to see when creating exports, lists, or PDF manager templates. For example, if the Race and Ethnicity subpanel is not enabled for a Work Group, its members will not see the information from that panel when creating an export, and will not be able to create filters in List Manager using any of the fields from that panel. As a result of this enhancement, reports that are not shared with Work Groups from the Report Settings page will be inaccessible to anyone who is not a WebAdMIT Administrator. Review the How Work Groups Impact Access to Features and Fields documentation to learn more about the impacts of this enhancement. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
WebAdMIT |
List Manager Export Manager |
Total [Experience Type] Experience Hours fields were enabled. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
2023-2024
The table below contains enhancements for OptomCAS 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 |
Account Information |
The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection and processing of personal information of individuals within the European Union. The GDPR question explains the information we collect and how we use their information. Users located in a European Union country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland must opt into our policies when creating an account. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Dashboard |
A new notification banner is available for the application dashboard. CASs can share best tips and tricks with applicants as they complete their applications. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Applicant Portal |
Supporting Information – Experiences |
Applicants can edit in progress experiences after they submit their application. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
Liaison Letters |
Recommendations |
The instructions for uploading a letter of recommendation specifically state that letters of recommendation must be submitted on official letterhead and include a signature. |
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |
|
WebAdMIT |
In Progress Applicants Search Page |
CASs can now create a custom Program Plans question and answer values that are available in:
|
No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement. |
Available at cycle launch |