CDMS Features
Comprehensive capabilities for your institution
CDMS supports operational processes across all departments. Each feature delivers measurable benefits across three key areas:
Understanding the Benefits
- Automation (Time Saving) Features which automatically perform previously manual tasks, saving significant staff time, reducing repetitive tasks, streamlining workflows and allowing your team to focus on enhancing the student experience.
- Data Security & Integrity Features ensuring data accuracy, consistency, and security across your institution. CDMS eliminates the need for staff to store and send sensitive data via spreadsheets and email, maintaining a single source of truth, reducing errors, and ensuring secure, centralised access to information.
- Efficiency Features improving operational speed and resource utilisation, making data available to all users directly, saving time and money and enhancing productivity across the whole team.
CDMS Features Shortcuts
- Application Management
- Student Onboarding
- User Management
- Student Data Management
- Finance Integration
- Learning Support
- Bursary Management
- CofE Features
- Reporting & Data Analysis
- HESA Compliance
- Regulatory & Data Protection
- VLE Integration (Moodle)
- Student Portal
- Faculty Portal
- Residential & Events Management
- Library (KOHA) & Alumni
Application Portal & Application Management
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online application with save-and-return functionality | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Application processing and offer management with automatic alerts for internal team | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatically requests and collects references | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Neurodiversity declaration and questionnaire | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Filtering out of ineligible applications | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Applications can be taken for Non-HE and HE courses | No | No | ✓ |
| Confirmation stage for conditional offers or additional information | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Interview booking, coordination, and outcome recording | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Student Onboarding
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic account creation (Moodle, cloud-based finance package, Email) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automation of welcome and information emails to students from multiple members of staff | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Integrated onboarding with workflows | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic internal emails to relevant users to call them to action | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Validation and approval of Identity Documents | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Student portal pop-up for students to accept policies and confirm information | No | ✓ | ✓ |
User Management
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic account creation from CDMS to email systems (G Suite & Microsoft 365) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Updates to data are reflected across the organisation in real time | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Notifications to CDMS users to alert them to tasks requiring their attention | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Academic Team feature for recording required data about faculty members | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Permission-driven access to student photos with sortable interface | No | No | ✓ |
| Supports multiple validation partners concurrently | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Formation/Tutor group management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
Student Data Management
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supports every stage of the student journey, from application to alumni | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Permission-driven access for managing changes to student data | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ensures all teams work from a single, always up-to-date dataset | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Clear record of attainment, live course progress and module registration | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Interview booking, interview management, interviewer alerts, interview notes and feedback | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Placement and Placement Supervisor Management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| In-built end-of-year process to allow moving to a new academic year efficiently | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Finance Integration
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Integration with financial packages such as Xero or Sage Online | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic creation of new student record in financial packages | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Student invoice generation and automatic generation of student statements | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Alerts on student status changes | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Student finance workflow built into the solution | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Stripe integration to enable secure online payments for a wide range of transactions | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Scheduled instalments & other application fees via Stripe | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Learning Support
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online student support questionnaire | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Workflow that manages student neurodiversity declaration | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Permission-driven student overview | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Updatable record for student support requirements | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| DSA application processing and ongoing support management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Learning support plan management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Bursary Management
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online bursary application | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Online management of bursary applications | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrated workflow for approval of bursary application | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Church of England Features
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safeguarding evidence collection and management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Placements & BAP management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Banner ID functionality | No | ✓ | No |
| Ordinand track to allow for easier management of complex student journeys | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ordination and Curacy placement details | No | ✓ | No |
| Common Awards functionality | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Diocesan and sponsoring bishops management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
Reporting & Data Analysis
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single data store of all relevant data | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Historical analysis and reporting | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Live analysis and reporting | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| User-friendly presentation of data that is accessible for all users (permission-driven) | No | No | ✓ |
| Organisation's senior leadership have direct access to data they require | No | No | ✓ |
| Custom report builder | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Dashboard visualisations for key metrics | ✓ | No | ✓ |
HESA
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| The CDMS data model is aligned with the HESA Data Futures schema | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Easy HESA data collection via student survey | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enables configuration of required fields for HESA returns | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enables individual view of student record for data validation | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data validation rules and error checking | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Field mapping configuration and direct export of XML file | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Regulatory & Data Protection
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supports GDPR compliance | No | ✓ | No |
| Permission-driven architecture | No | ✓ | No |
| Supports best practice in data handling and retention | No | ✓ | No |
| Maintains high levels of data integrity | No | ✓ | No |
| Reduces errors in data and processes | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Secure collection and storage of data | No | ✓ | No |
| Consent management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
VLE Integration (Moodle)
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic creation of user accounts in VLE | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic module creation and student registration | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic student data export to VLE | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Grades added in the VLE are automatically synced | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic group registration | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Range of data sharing between VLE and CDMS | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automated pathway-based bulk enrolment | ✓ | No | ✓ |
Student Portal
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students can update their data | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Students can request extensions, deferrals, or withdrawals and submit documents | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Easy to use interface for accessing data | No | No | ✓ |
| Forms for direct communication with the Finance Team | No | No | ✓ |
| Student handbooks and policies | No | No | ✓ |
| Extra pages can be added to the Student Portal by CDMS Admins | No | No | ✓ |
| An annual/session-based enrolment pop-up for confirmation of policies and details | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Faculty Portal
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Provides information and photos of faculty members to students | No | No | ✓ |
| Neurodiversity assessment by Learning Development Tutor | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Faculty Handbook and Training Resources | No | No | ✓ |
| Faculty policies and procedures | No | No | ✓ |
| Extra pages can be added to the Faculty Portal by CDMS Admins | No | No | ✓ |
| Formation group student lists | ✓ | No | ✓ |
Residential & Events Management
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Event attendance can be imported into CDMS to allow event attendance tracking | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dietary needs collection and management | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Collection and management of mobility and medical information | No | ✓ | ✓ |
Library (KOHA) & Alumni
| Feature | Automation | Data Integrity | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic creation of library ID in library software | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enables the creation of library cards for students | ✓ | No | ✓ |
| Shared data between library database and CDMS such as library card number | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatically populates fields within the library package | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reporting on current alumni | No | ✓ | ✓ |
| Alumni consent management | No | ✓ | ✓ |