Lesson 1.2: Your Digital Workspace Tour
Duration: 15 minutes
💡 Key Takeaway: Everything you need is in the system. Once you know where things are, your job becomes simple.
🎯 By the end of this lesson, you’ll know:
- How to navigate the platform confidently
- Where to find everything you need daily
- The key features you’ll use most
- How to access the mobile app
Platform Overview
Our student management system is your central hub. Think of it as mission control – everything runs through here.
🏠 The Home Dashboard
This is what you see when you log in. It’s designed to show you what needs attention TODAY.
Dashboard Sections (Top to Bottom)
Action Required
Red alerts that need immediate attention – compliance issues, system errors, urgent escalations
Tasks Due Today
Applications to process, inquiries to respond to, follow-ups scheduled for today
Recent Activity
CoE issued, payments received, student responses, system updates
Your Performance
Applications processed this week, average response time, tasks completed
Most Used Functions
Buttons for: New Inquiry, Search Student, Templates, Reports
💡 Pro Tip: Check your dashboard first thing each morning and before leaving each day. It tells you what needs doing.
Main Navigation Menu
The left-hand menu is your navigation. Here’s what each section contains:
📊 Dashboard
Your home screen – start here every day
👥 Students
Contains:
- All Students (searchable database)
- Current Students
- Prospective Students
- Graduated Students
- Withdrawn Students
You’ll use this to: Search for students, view profiles, update details, check enrollment status
📧 Inquiries
Contains:
- New Inquiries (unassigned)
- My Inquiries (assigned to you)
- All Inquiries
- Templates Library
You’ll use this to: Respond to student questions, access email templates, track inquiry conversations
📝 Applications
Contains:
- New Applications (need processing)
- In Progress
- Approved
- Awaiting Student Response
- Rejected/Withdrawn
You’ll use this to: Process applications, check documents, generate offer letters
🎓 Enrollments
Contains:
- Pending Enrollment
- Active Enrollments
- CoE Management
- Deferred/Suspended
You’ll use this to: Process enrollments, generate CoEs, manage student status changes
🏢 Agents
Contains:
- Agent Directory
- Agent Applications
- Agent Communications
- Agent Performance
You’ll use this to: Manage agent relationships, process agent-submitted applications
📈 Reports
Contains:
- Pre-built Reports
- Attendance Reports
- Compliance Reports
- Custom Report Builder
You’ll use this to: Run attendance reports, check application statistics, export data
⚙️ Settings & Help
Contains:
- My Profile
- Notification Preferences
- Help Center
- Video Tutorials
- Contact Support
You’ll use this to: Update your details, customize notifications, access help resources
Key Features You’ll Use Daily
🔍 Smart Search
Located in the top navigation bar – always visible
You can search by:
- Student name (first or last)
- Student ID number
- Email address
- Passport number
- Course name
- Agent name
💡 Shortcut: Press Ctrl+K (or Cmd+K on Mac) to instantly activate search from anywhere
📋 Templates Library
Access from: Inquiries → Templates OR any email/communication screen
Template Categories:
Applications
Enrollment
Follow-ups
Compliance
Agents
⭐ Remember: You should NEVER write an email from scratch. There’s a template for every situation!
🔔 Notification Center
Bell icon in top-right corner – shows real-time updates
You’ll receive notifications for:
- New inquiry assigned to you
- Application ready for processing
- Student response received
- CoE issued successfully
- System alerts or errors
- Tasks coming due soon
- Escalation responses
✓ Tip: Customize what notifications you receive in Settings → Notification Preferences
📎 Document Manager
Accessible from any student profile
Automatically organizes:
- Passport & ID documents
- Academic transcripts & certificates
- English test results
- OSHC documentation
- Written agreements (signed)
- CoE documents
- Correspondence history
📌 Note: All documents are automatically categorized and timestamped. You just upload – the system does the organizing!
⚡ Quick Actions Button
Floating button (bottom-right corner) – shortcuts to common tasks
Click for instant access to:
- New Inquiry
- Search Student
- Process Application
- Generate Report
- Access Templates
- Contact Support
Mobile App Basics
📱 The Mobile Experience
Our mobile app lets you work on the go. Available for iOS and Android.
What You Can Do on Mobile:
| ✅ | View dashboard and notifications |
| ✅ | Search and view student profiles |
| ✅ | Respond to inquiries using templates |
| ✅ | Check application status |
| ✅ | Upload documents (take photos) |
| ✅ | Create tasks and reminders |
| ❌ | Process full applications (use desktop) |
| ❌ | Generate CoEs (use desktop) |
📥 Download: Search for “[Your Institution Name] Student System” in your app store, or ask your supervisor for the download link.
Navigation Tips & Shortcuts
⚡ Keyboard Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl/Cmd + K | Open search |
| Ctrl/Cmd + H | Go to dashboard |
| Ctrl/Cmd + T | Open templates |
| Ctrl/Cmd + N | New inquiry |
| Ctrl/Cmd + / | Show all shortcuts |
🎯 Workflow Efficiency Tips
- Bookmark your most-used pages – The browser bookmark bar is your friend
- Use multiple tabs – Open student profile in one, templates in another
- Set up dual monitors if possible – Student info on one, work area on other
- Check dashboard 3 times daily – Morning, midday, before leaving
- Clear notifications regularly – Mark as read or action them
- Learn 3 keyboard shortcuts per week – You’ll be flying by month-end
Practice Exercise: Navigation Challenge
🎮 Try This Now:
Open the system and practice finding these items. Time yourself!
- Navigate to your dashboard
- Use search to find a student (any student)
- Open the Templates library
- Find the “General Course Information” template
- Return to dashboard using keyboard shortcut
- Check your notification center
- Navigate to Applications → New Applications
- Find the Quick Actions button
- Open Settings and find Notification Preferences
- Return to dashboard
✓ Goal: Complete all 10 steps in under 3 minutes. If you can do this, you’ve got navigation mastered!
🎓 Key Takeaways
- Dashboard is your daily starting point – check it morning and evening
- Everything has a logical place in the left navigation menu
- Smart search (Ctrl/Cmd+K) is your fastest way to find anything
- Templates library eliminates writing from scratch
- Mobile app is great for checking on the go, but complex tasks need desktop
- Keyboard shortcuts save hours over time – learn them gradually
🎯 Next Step: In the next lesson, you’ll learn exactly who to ask when you need help and how to escalate issues properly. But first, spend 10-15 minutes clicking around the system. Explore freely – you can’t break anything!
✓ Lesson Complete! Next: Getting Help & Escalation