A candidate can apply for up to 3 courses.
Candidates used to be given a single reference number for all the applications they made at the same time. But the reference number was removed because:
- very few candidates ever quoted it when contacting support
- support users find the candidate’s application using their name or email address and details of the course
We want to find out the effect of removing the reference number on providers and support users.
How we identify candidates and their applications
We currently show 3 different identifiers:
- reference number - this represents all applications the candidate made at the same time and is seen by providers and support users
- application choice ID - this represents the candidate’s individual applications and is seen by support users
- candidate ID - this represents the candidate and is seen by providers and support users
Some of these have alternative names and there are also some identifiers which we do not share with candidates or providers. There’s more information about this in the proposal for how to deal with identifiers.
What we want to find out
We want to carry out research with providers and support users to find out:
- whether providers need the reference number
- whether its’s useful to search by email address
- how we can help users distinguish between applications from the same candidate
- how we can help users find related applications for a particular candidate
- what support users need from candidates and providers
- whether we should stop encouraging vendors to use the support reference
- how we can help users find an application without personally identifiable information
Finding out if providers need the reference number
The reference number is misleading because it appears as though it’s unique to an application. But as it relates to multiple applications, we think we should remove it.
Before doing so we want to see if providers need it for another reason such as being asked to quote it when contacting support.
Finding out if it’s useful to search by email address
If a provider is contacted by a candidate, they may need to search for their application in the service. If there are multiple applications from candidates with the same name, the provider may need a way to distinguish between them.
We want to find out whether it would be useful for providers to be able to search by email address. This would be harder to ask for and type compared to name, but it would be unique to a candidate.
To help test this we have updated the prototype by:
- removing the reference number from the application list and details pages
- removing the ability to search by reference number
- adding the ability to search by email address
Helping users distinguish between applications from the same candidate
If a candidate applies to more than one course at the same provider, searching by reference number, candidate name or email address will return multiple applications.
To select the right application, the user would need additional information like the course name. They’d need to either ask the candidate or check notes outside the service.
We want to find out how much of a problem this is and if it would be better to let users search by a unique ID for the application.
Helping users find related applications for a particular candidate without having to search
Some users who use both student record systems and Manage have requested the ability to search by candidate ID. This would let them find all applications that relate to a specific candidate.
Using the reference number is not a reliable way to do this because it only refers to applications made at the same time. The candidate can have more than one reference number.
To search using the candidate ID, a user would have to find it then cut and paste it into a search box to find the related applications.
We want to find out if it would be better to let users view all related applications for a particular candidate without having to search.
Finding out what support users need from candidates and providers
Some support requests have been more difficult to process without the reference number. For example, one candidate contacted support using an email address that did not match the one they used to apply.
The candidate’s name was also not given in full in their email. This meant the support user had to go back to the candidate for more information.
We want to find out what support users need from candidates and providers to carry out support requests efficiently.
Finding out whether we should stop encouraging providers and vendors to use the reference number
We wanted to have a single way for candidates, providers and support users to refer to an application. Since the reference number was given to candidates it was the most obvious choice.
Since we encouraged providers to use it, vendors enabled the ability to search by reference number in student record systems. Manage also lets users search by reference number.
However, this does not work well because:
- providers are still confused about what the reference number is, with many thinking that it’s unique to a candidate or to an application
- the reference number is no longer shown to candidates
We therefore want to remove the reference number from student record systems and Manage. But doing so would:
- require us to change what we’re telling providers to do, after putting a lot of effort into asking them to use the reference number
- possibly make it harder for users to find applications
Before we remove the reference number, we want to find out the needs of users who work in Manage and student record systems to find out whether we can:
- remove the reference number
- show the application choice ID and start encouraging vendors to use it
The application choice ID is unique to an application but is currently only seen by support users.
Helping users find an application without personally identifiable information
We want to check whether support users asking for personal details about a candidate is compliant with the UK General Data Protection Regulation.
We want to check whether there’s a difference between:
- asking for this information over email
- sharing this information around multiple internal systems such as Slack
If a candidate emails support they’ll include their name and email address anyway.
Screenshots#
Application list#
Application details#
