The Login Follow

Overview

The Login is a sophisticated access and user registration portal that creates a compelling entrance into all that awaits for your applicants in Terra Dotta.

This Terra Dotta login system gives the applicant user the ability to access your site.

This article discusses the following topics related to the Login:

• Access, Permissions & Settings
• Understanding the Login Process
• Creating a New User Account
• Resetting a Password
• Logging In
• Itinerary Creation
• Session Timeout
• Frequently Asked Questions

Important Considerations:

• It is not required that the Applicant Experience be enabled in order to use the Login.
• By enabling both the Applicant Experience and the Login, an applicant will experience the updated "modern" interface as they move from page to page in your Terra Dotta site. One Step Forms will still continue to appear using the classic interface when used in process map-based app cycles.  
• When "Gender" and "Date of Birth" are enabled as core data requirements (Settings > System Features > Applicants), they appear in the "Required Information" modal on the Applicant Home Page and Application Page when the Applicant Experience is enabled.
• If your institution uses a Single-Sign On (SSO) authentication, note that this is supported with the Login. After enabling the Login, the system would provide two options for users: one for applicants on campus logging in through your SSO (ex: CAS) and another for external users to access the Login. If you only have an SSO, then the Login will route applicants accordingly.  

Access, Permissions & Settings

To access the Login page, click the "Login/Register" link at the top right corner of the home page. 

By default, the Login page will use your site's primary color as the background color. 

To access a unique listing of Login feature settings and configuration options, navigate to Settings > System Features > Interface Settings. Upload desired images, customize instructions, and update button labels without having to remember text interface numbers for the options below:

Login

• This setting is what activates the Login for use on your site.
• After the Login has been enabled on your site, the option to disable the feature will be removed from Settings > System Features > Interface Settings. 

Auto-Redirect to Remote SCL Login (Secure Campus Login)

• Enable this option if you want to automatically bypass the Login page and instead redirect users to your institution's remote SCL login.
• This setting is recommended if you only want your users to be using your SCL and not your Terra Dotta login. 

Login Form Logo Image

• The maximum image width is 200px. Images larger than this will be resized.
• Here is an example of a logo image and how it appears on the login form:

Login Form Background Image

• Consider an image size of 1920x1080 (i.e. standard desktop resolution).
• Here is an example of a background image and how it appears when used with the login form:

Gender Options Lookup Table

• Select a lookup table for use with the Custom Gender Lookup Table feature.

Login Form Instructions

• Use this option to communicate with site users about how they should be navigating your site's login experience.
• HTML tags are supported.
• Here is an example of modified login form instructions and how they appear on the login modal:

New User Registration Form Instructions

• Use this option to communicate with new users who need to create an account.
• HTML tags are supported.
• Here is an example of modified new registration form instructions and how they appear to new users:

Password Reset Instructions

• These instructions appear to site users after they click on the "Forgot your password?" link.
• HTML tags are supported.
• Here is an example of modified password reset instructions and how they appear to users:

SCL Login Button Label

• For sites with the Secure Campus Login (SCL) option enabled, use this field to customize the text that instructs integrated users on how to access your site. These applicants use their institutional credentials to authenticate (i.e. log in) through your secure campus login portal.

Non-SCL Login Button Label

• Use this field to customize the text that instructs non-integrated users on how to access your site. These applicants obtain login credentials to your site by providing their name and email address.

Here is an example of how SCL and Non-SCL login button labels could appear to users:

Select Program Options Before Continuing

• Use this field to customize the instructions that appears to applicants on the "Program Options" modal. Otherwise, this default text is used.
• HTML tags are supported. 
• Here is an example of how the default program options text appear to users:

You Already Have an Active Program for This Program in the Following App Cycle(s)

• Use this field to customize the text that appears to applicants when they attempt to apply to a program for which they already have an existing application. Otherwise, this default text is used.
• HTML tags are supported. 
• Here is an example of how this field's default text appear to users:

Understanding the Login Process

The Login system for Terra Dotta enables two types of applicant users to access your site: 

• An applicant who logs in using university login credentials. (Internal user)
  • The applicant is registered at your institution, and your site is integrated with your Student Information System (SIS).
• An applicant who needs to create a user account. (External user)
  • The applicant is not registered at your institution, or your site is not integrated.

An applicant is required to log into the site in order to perform the following tasks:

• Submit a program application.
• Request information about a program.
• Request advising for a program.
• Check the status of a program application.

Creating a New User Account

Important Note: In order for the "Create Account" link to appear on the main login form without the applicant first needing to take an action such as clicking "Apply Now" for a program, the "Site Registration Option" needs to be enabled. 

This setting can be enabled under Settings > System Features > Features in the "Applicant Profiles" section.

If you do not want the "Create Account" link to appear on the main login form without the applicant first needing to take an action such as attempting to apply to a program, then you should disable the "Site Registration" option.

If your site accepts external applicants, then the login form must provide an option to create an account when that external applicant attempts to apply to a program. Consider using the "Login Form Instructions" option to clarify to internal applicants that they do not need to create an account. See question two in the "Frequently Asked Questions" section of this article for more details. 

To create a new user account, follow these steps:

1) From the Login, click the "Create Account" link. This will direct you to the User Registration Form.

2) Complete the User Registration Form.

This form is comprised of the following elements:

• Email 
• First Name
• Middle Name
• Last Name
• Phone Number (optional)
• Password
• Password Confirmation

Important Note: The password created in this step is the password that the account user will use. There is no additional step requiring a password reset. 

Two optional fields may also appear on the registration form:

• Home Institution
  • This keyword search field only appears on the registration form if the core field of "Home Institution" has been enabled under Settings > System Features > Applicants. Afterwards, this field remains optional to external applicants unless the program to which they are attempting to apply requires a home institution. This configuration is made by enabling "Home Institution Required" on the "Configuration" tab of the respective program in Program Wizard. 
• Partner Institution
  • If the program has partner institutions, this box will appear.

3) After all information has been entered, click the "Register" link. This will direct you to a page where you will be asked to enter required information.

4) From the required information page, a user will be asked to input the following:

• Any applicant parameters that are configured as "Required for Profile" under Settings > Applicant Parameters. 
• Required core data requirements that have been enabled under Settings > System Features > Applicant Data Options.
• GDPR if enabled under Settings > System Features > Administrative > Consent.

5) After responses are entered, the applicant clicks "Update". This action then directs them to a program listing where they can select their desired program.

6) After locating a program and clicking "Apply Now", a "Program Options" display will appear from which the applicant will select their desired app cycle.

Click "Continue" to proceed.

Important Note: After clicking "Apply Now" for a program that allows the user to enter itinerary information (e.g. Risk Management), an applicant will be able to enter this information as well before creating their application. 

See the "Frequently Asked Questions" section of this article for more account creation questions.

Resetting a Password

 If an applicant forgets their password, they should follow these steps:

1) From the User Login Form, click on the Forgot your Password?" link. This directs you to a Password Reset form.

2) From the password reset form, enter in your email address and click "Submit".

A password reset email will be sent to the email address provided.

Logging In

Important Note: If a user experiences difficulty during the login process, a "Login Support Request Form" does not appear in the Login. Instead, offices are encouraged to make use of the following option:

• Use the "Login Form Instructions" field in Setting > System Settings > Interface Settings to make note of an email address for your users to use should they experience difficulty logging in. This field does support HTML tags.

Follow these steps to log in using the Login:

1) From the login form, select the portal account option if your site is using an SCL.

For sites not using an SCL, an applicant won't see the login button options. Instead, they will simply see the user login form.  

2) From the user login form, enter the applicable username and password. Then click "Login".

Itinerary Creation

When an applicant applies to a program for which they need to register travel and create an itinerary, the following will occur:

1. The applicant is directed to a Program Options modal after logging in. From here, the experience will vary depending on the program type being used as demonstrated in the following examples.

With Travel Registration and Incident Report program types, an applicant will not be prompted to select a term as they will automatically be routed to the active app cycle with a future deadline date that is closest to the current date. 

For Risk Management program types, an applicant will need to select their desired app cycle from the "Term" menu.

2. Next, an applicant is presented with the following message: You must add at least one itinerary to submit this form. This message is hard-coded and cannot be modified. An applicant proceeds with creating an itinerary by clicking the "+" icon. This triggers three fields to appear for location, arrival date, and departure date.

These fields must be populated with data before the applicant can access the "Continue" button and proceed with the application. 

If the applicant needs to create a second itinerary, then they would click the "+" icon again to generate a second row of fields to populate. This action would also cause the "Continue" button to become inaccessible until all three fields of the new itinerary were populated. If the applicant enters data in error and wants to start over, the option to delete an itinerary entry is available.

Important Note: When adding a location to the itinerary, the applicant must complete the field by entering information, such as the city, and then selecting the correct location from the option that the system displays. This will either be an existing location from your site or Google locations. If an applicant attempts to type in the location without making a selection from the options that appear, then the itinerary location will not be validated. This will result in the "Continue" button remaining inaccessible until action is taken on the location.

Session Timeout

Terra Dotta enforces a 60-minute session timeout on every page loaded. When a page is five minutes from expiring the session, a warning modal will appear in the middle of the page to alert the site user of this timeout. A countdown to the session expiration is provided as well as a button with which the site user can renew the 60-minute counter for that page. 

If a site user does not click the button to renew the session by the end of the countdown, they will be logged out and returned to the site home page.

Note that this 60-minute counter is specific to each tab involved in the secure session. If a site user is working in multiple tabs, then each tab will have its own countdown associated with that tab. If one of the countdowns results in a session expiring, then all open tabs are logged out from that session. 

Frequently Asked Question

1) Site Registration is not enabled on our site, and we are using the Login. What should we expect to happen when an external applicant attempts to apply to a program that is for internal applicants only?

 After an external applicant attempts to apply to a program that is for internal applicants only from the program's brochure, they will be brought to the user login page where the "Create Account" button will appear. The system will allow the applicant to create an account; however, the applicant will be blocked from applying to the program immediately afterwards. After clicking "Register" to complete the account creation process, a modal (see image) will appear informing the applicant that they are not eligible to apply. 

2) Site Registration is disabled on our site. However, the "New User? Create Account" link still appears when a student attempts to apply to a program. Why does this happen?

This is likely happening because your site has both internal and external applicant types enabled for your site. When this is true, then the "Create Account" option must appear on the login form when an applicant is attempting to do something, like create an application. This is necessary because the applicant is attempting to do something that requires them to be logged in, and the system does not know what type of user they are at that time. 

With the information above in mind, it is not possible to configure the "Create Account" link so that it never appears on the login form. 

Offices are encouraged to leverage the login form instructions to communicate with site users about how they should be navigating your site's login experience. An example is included below.