PSYCAS Program User Guide

Cycle Timeframes

Applicant Portal

The Applicant Portal opens in early September and closes in late August. 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 PSYCAS Application Cycle Dates page.

Configuration Portal

Between mid-June and early August, configurations are entered into the prelaunch environment. The account team and APA review submitted configurations in August.

WebAdMIT

You can view new applicants and initiate a transfer settings shortly after the new cycle opens in early September.

Program Participation Requirements

APA requires all programs to designate two contacts at your institution who will receive all communication from APA and PSYCAS, including the configuration, application, and WebAdMIT launch notifications.

Applicant Portal

The first three sections of the PSYCAS 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 PSYCAS application and PSYCAS 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 PSYCAS Complete application status.
PSYCAS 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 PSYCAS 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 APA before it is available to applicants. If your program is reviewed after the cycle launches, APA 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.
Applicant Coupon Codes FAQ: view answers to frequently asked questions about offering coupon codes.
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 Transfer Settings: 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.
Invitation Codes Reference Guide: learn how to offer individual deadline extensions directly to applicants.
Manual Designations: learn how to add additional programs (i.e., designations) to an application in WebAdMIT.
Requesting Official GRE CAS Codes: a guide on how to create CAS-specific codes in order to receive official GRE scores in WebAdMIT.
Social Security Number (SSN) Documents Reference Guide: a guide on how to configure a PGP key to receive an encrypted file that contains the applicant's CAS ID and SSN.
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 PSYCAS 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	The Gender question now includes a third custom gender value: X. This allows CASs to meet their guidelines and new reporting options from state and federal governments.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch
Applicant Portal	Various	If a CAS has a custom question in the first three quadrants (i.e., Personal Information, Academic History, and Supporting Information) or Extended Profile section, then the question can be configured to be internal only, meaning that that question and answers will not be sent to other portals such as the CAS API and WebAdMIT.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch
Applicant Portal	Personal Information – Other Information	New internal questions were added: How did you hear about PSYCAS? As we continue to grow PSYCAS, we are interested in adding programs to which students are already planning to apply so that students experience the biggest benefit from a centralized application. Who do you wish was in PSYCAS, but currently is not? Please list the institution(s), program name(s), and degree level(s) for any programs that you would like to see included in PSYCAS.	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	Applicant-reported and Official Tests	Applicants can now submit their self-reported and official GMAT Focus tests.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch
Applicant Portal	Applicant Help Center	The full text of the PSYCAS Applicant Responsibilities was removed from the Applicant Help Center and replaced with a link to the content. This ensures that applicants can view the most accurate and up-to-date version of the content.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch
Liaison Letters	Delegates	Recommenders (i.e., evaluators, references) can designate assistants or "delegates" to help them submit their letters of recommendation on their behalf through Liaison Letters. Recommenders are still responsible for writing an applicant’s letter of recommendation.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available now
Liaison Letters	Evaluation Form	The Overall Recommendation question is now required.	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	Export Manager List Manager	The TOEFL Official PBT fields were removed. If you have exports and lists that include this field, you will want to review and update them as necessary.	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

2023-2024

The table below contains enhancements for PSYCAS 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	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	Add Program Page	New program filters are added: Degree Type Delivery Track	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch
Applicant Portal	Official IELTS Tests	Applicants can submit their official IELTS test scores to the CAS, and you can review those test scores in WebAdMIT.	No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.	Available at cycle launch

Portal

Section

Enhancement Details

Implementation

Availability

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

Add Program Page

New program filters are added:

Degree Type
Delivery
Track

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Official IELTS Tests

Applicants can submit their official IELTS test scores to the CAS, and you can review those test scores in WebAdMIT.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch