Review the descriptions below to better understand the functionality of each field and determine all the ways you and your applicants may interact with the cycle.
CONFIGURE CYCLES
The first tab of the program cycles editor is the Configure Cycle tab where you will create primary settings for the cycle.
| Item | Description / Uses |
| Cycle Name | The prefix is an alpha-numeric code assigned to the beginning of an application number. GO Smart recommends that you include the fiscal year in your prefix so that you can easily identify applications, ie GOS22. This code will be utilized as an applicant applies to the cycle, and the first application would be assigned OS220001, the second will be assigned OS220002, and so on. NOTE: You must update the prefix for each application cycle. The prefix can be changed after applicants have accessed the cycle, but changes will not be retroactive. |
| Application ID Prefix | The prefix is an alpha-numeric code assigned to the beginning of an application number. GO Smart recommends that you include the fiscal year in your prefix so that you can easily identify applications, ie GOS22. This code will be utilized as an applicant applies to the cycle, and the first application would be assigned OS220001, the second will be assigned OS220002, and so on. NOTE: You must update the prefix for each application cycle. The prefix can be changed after applicants have accessed the cycle, but changes will not be retroactive. |
| Main Contact | Designates the user responsible for managing the program. This manager’s name and email address will populate into Status and Mass Mailers by default. |
| Active Cycle Order | Determines the order in which cycles will be viewed by applicants on the applicant portal. Learn more about how to use this setting and the similar sequence setting on the Programs tab here. |
| Application per Applicant | Displays the number of applications each applicant is able to submit. If more than one application is allowed, there will be multiple links to start an application. NOTE: Contact a member of the GO Smart team if you would like to increase or decrease this number. GO Smart support can increase this number after a selection is made, but they cannot decrease the number. |
APPLICANT ACCESS & DATES
The second tab of the program cycles editor is the Applicant Access & Dates tab where you will determine who has access to the cycle and when. Applicant access to a grant cycle can be accomplished in a combination of the fields of this tab. The cycle opportunity will appear to applicants based on settings of Display and Invite-Only fields below. The ability to click START or EDIT on visible cycles is determined by Accepted Profile Type(s) and Date settings.
| Item | Description / Uses |
| Display | Determines the visibility of the cycle on your applicant’s Grant Applications & Forms tab. When set to Show, the cycle will display. When set to Hide, the applicants will not see this cycle. The only time a cycle set to Show may not display to all applicants is when there is an Invite-Only code is in place (see Invite-Only section below). If you used the system prior to 2022, this field replaced the Status field that would be set to Active or Disabled. |
| Invite Only | Selecting Yes for this field displays a new text field where you will enter a code. A cycle with the Invite-Only setting set to Yes will be hidden from applicants until they type the code (created in the Invitation Code field, see below) into the appropriate field on their Grant Applications & Forms tab. This field may not be available to you if your site has this feature turned off. If you would like to use this feature, contact a member of the GO Smart team. |
| Invitation Code | This field will only display if you both have the Invite Only setting turned on for your site and you have selected Yes to the previous Invite Only field. Whatever you type in this field will need to be provided to your appropriate applicants who should have access to this cycle. The code must be unique and can’t be used for any other cycle. |
| Accepted Profile Type(s) | If you have the Enhanced Profile setting on for your site, and applicants self-designate as Individuals or Organizations when they register, you will use this field to determine which of those two types of users can access this cycle. Selecting only one type of user will keep the other type of user from accessing this cycle and they will instead see this cycle but rather than seeing a START link, they will see text that reads “Not Eligible: This program is only open to XXX.” This field may not be available to you if your site has this feature turned off. If you would like to use this feature, contact a member of the GO Smart team. |
DATES – FORMS AND DRAFT REVIEW
Learn about the fields of this section below and in the following tutorials.
| Item | Description / Uses |
| Open Application | The date and time on which your visible cycle application will be available, and the appropriate applicants will be able to click a START link. |
| Application Deadline | The date and time at which your applicants will no longer be able to submit the application. |
| Offer Intent to Apply | If set to Yes, your applicants will begin with the Intent to Apply page you create at Grant Editor > Cycle Pages. You will only see this field if your site has the Intent to Apply setting turned on. |
| Intent to Apply Deadline | When Offer Intent to Apply is set to Yes, this is the date and time at which your applicants will no longer be able to submit their Intent to Apply. Applicants who have not begun their Intent to Apply before this date will not be able to begin the application even if the Application Deadline is in the future. |
| Offer Draft Review | If set to Yes, your applicants will be able to submit a draft version of their application prior to submitting their final version. |
| Draft Review Deadline | When Offer Draft Review is set to Yes, this is the date and time at which your applicants will no longer be able to submit a draft version of their application. If the Application Deadline is in the future, they will still be able to begin or submit a final version of their application. |
| Offer Interim Report | If set to Yes, your applicants will have access to the interim report content you create at Grant Editor > Cycle Pages when they are placed in the Funded status. You will only see this field if your site has the Interim Report setting turned on. |
| Open Interim Report | When Offer Interim Report is set to Yes, this is the date and time on which your interim report will be available via a START link within in the same cycle box as their application (and optional intent to apply). |
| Interim Report Deadline | When Offer Interim Report is set to Yes, this is the date and time at which applicants will no longer be able to submit their interim report. |
| Offer Final Report | If set to Yes, your applicants will have access to the final report content you create at Grant Editor > Cycle Pages when they are placed in the Funded status if no Interim Report exists or the Interim Report Approved status if an interim report exists. |
| Open Final Report | When Offer Final Report is set to Yes, this is the date and time on which your final report will be available via a START link within in the same cycle box as their application (and optional intent to apply and interim report). |
| Final Report Deadline | When Offer Final Report is set to Yes, this is the date and time at which applicants will no longer be able to submit their final report. |
ADDITIONAL TEXT
The third tab of the program cycles editor is the Additional Text tab where you will create additional text that applicants will see just before they begin an application cycle, just before they submit forms, and just after they submit forms. Learn more about these fields below. Note that submission text is optional and will display on the submission page before the applicant submits the Intent to Apply, Draft, Application, Interim Report, and/or Final Report. Confirmation text is required. Whatever you type in these fields should be a short message to your applicants confirming their submission and it will appear after the applicant submits the Intent to Apply, Draft, Application, Interim Report, and/or Final Report. This text appears only once after applicants confirm the submission of their form. We recommend creating an auto-confirmation email (status mailer) with more detailed information that the applicant can return to in their inbox.
| Item | Description / Uses |
| Program Description | This is the first of two text areas that appear with your grant cycle before an applicant clicks START to begin the application or optional Intent to Apply. We recommend using this space to offer a short description of the grant opportunity so that applicants can determine if it is an appropriate application for them. If you leave this text field blank, neither the header nor field will display to applicants. If this space is too limited for guidelines or more detailed information, use the CKEditor Link tool to link to link applicants to more in depth resources. |
| Program Message | This is the second of two text areas that appear with your grant cycle before an applicant clicks START to begin the application or optional Intent to Apply. We recommend using this space to offer any additional notes about the logistics of the application, whether it’s a timeline of the entire grant cycle, information about how the applications are paneled, or contact information for support. If you leave this text field blank, neither the header nor field will display to applicants. If this space is too limited for your intended message, use the CKEditor Link tool to link to link applicants to more in depth resources. |
| Submission Text Fields | Each form of the grant cycle (application, intent to apply, draft review, interim report, and/or final report) will contain a Submission page that is created by the system. When applicants reach this page, they are met with a “Save and Keep Working” button, a “Save and Submit” button, and any language you include in these text fields to offer any additional directives before an applicant submits the corresponding form. NOTE: If your cycle includes a Draft Review session, both draft review and application submission text will display on the submission page as well as an additional “Save and Submit Draft” button. |
| Confirmation Text Fields | After an applicant submits any form of the grant cycle (application, intent to apply, draft review, interim report, and/or final report) they will be left on a blank page with only the GO Smart navigation bar displayed. As such, we recommend that you always include something in these text fields if your cycle includes this form or draft review. Whatever you type in these fields will appear a single time after the applicant confirms their submission. As such, we recommend something simple and vague such as “Thank you for submitting your XX.” |
CLONE TOOLS
After you have completed the successful build of a cycle, we recommend that you use the clone tools to create your next cycle of the same program, or a similar cycle of a new program. Learn more about cloning to create a new cycle here and more about cloning to create a new program here. If you have the optional Multi-year setting turned on, you may also see a tool in this space that allows you to clone the structure and applicant data to create a continuation of the same application for multi-year grants. Speak to a GO Smart team member if you’re not sure how the multi-year tool would work for you.
