Documents · Stage requirements
Student document management software: every file in before the application moves
Xale is student document management software built into a study abroad CRM. Every passport scan, marksheet, SOP, LOR, financial document and test score report sits on the student’s record, shared by every university application. Stage requirements stop a student moving on until the named documents are uploaded, and a checklist shows counsellors what is still missing.
Updated · By the Xale team
The problem
Why applications stall on paperwork
Every study-abroad file needs the same pack: passport, marksheets, SOP, LORs, financials and an English test score. Most teams collect it over WhatsApp and email, and gaps surface only when a university portal or visa file asks.
The file is somewhere
A passport scan in one counsellor’s WhatsApp, marksheets in someone’s email, the SOP draft on a laptop. When that counsellor is on leave or leaves, the file goes with them.
Nobody knows what’s still pending
Is the LOR in? Which test score is the latest? Counsellors ask students again for things they already sent, and managers can’t see which students are waiting on paperwork.
Applications move on anyway
A student is marked ready with the financials missing, the processor bounces the file back, and the intake deadline gets closer.
Document collection CRM
One document vault per student, shared by every application
In Xale the student is the lead and each university application is its own deal, as on the study abroad CRM pipeline. Documents belong to the student, so a passport uploaded once serves every application.
One record per student
Every attachment is saved on the student (lead) record. Upload while working on a university application and the file still lands on the student, so every application shares one set.
Folders you name
Create nested folders such as Academics, Financials or Visa, rename them and move files between them. Empty folders can be deleted.
Work files and payment receipts
Each file is labelled as a work file or a payment receipt, and the Attachments tab filters by label. A payment on an application can link its receipt.
Upload, shrink, replace
Upload PDFs, JPG and PNG images, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, CSV and text files up to 5 MB. Oversized photos and PDFs can be shrunk automatically first. Rename, replace or delete any file.
Download everything as one ZIP
Download a single file, or all of a student’s files as one ZIP, either keeping your folder structure or flat.
Every change on the timeline
Uploads, renames, replacements and deletions are recorded on the student’s activity timeline, with who did it and when.
Counsellors can also upload, organise, rename, move and download files from the Xale Android app. Files shared in a student’s internal team chat stay in that thread and don’t appear in the Attachments tab.
CRM document requirements
A document checklist per stage that holds the line
Attach requirements to any stage or status. A student can’t be moved there until each one is met, whether the move comes from the student, one of their applications, a bulk stage update or a change-stage automation. In bulk updates, each blocked student is listed with the reason. Note and follow-up requirements apply only to moves a person makes.
| You can require | What Xale checks before the move |
|---|---|
| Document | A file with exactly that name is on the student record. A rule on an application also accepts the student’s own file. |
| Field or custom field | A standard lead field or a custom field (for example intake or an English test score) has a value. |
| Course or university | A course, university or other catalogue item is attached. |
| Role or user | Someone in a given role is actively assigned, or a specific person is assigned to the student or application. |
| Track | The student carries a given track. |
| Number of applications | The student has at least a set number of applications. |
| Move note | The move comes with a note, or one was written since the last status change. Exact-status rules only. |
| Follow-up | A person scheduled a follow-up since the last status change. Exact-status rules only. |
Blocking or info-only
Blocking requirement
The move is stopped and the user sees your error message until the requirement is met. When the only thing missing is a note or a follow-up, the web app asks for it in a popup and then completes the move.
Info-only checklist item
For documents only. The item shows in the student’s checklist with an Info badge so counsellors know to collect it, but it never stops a move. Useful for documents some universities waive.
From this status onward, or only on this status
From this status onward
Required to reach the status or anything after it. A forward move checks every status it skips, so jumping two stages doesn’t dodge a rule. Moving backwards checks only the status you land on.
Only on this exact status
Checked only when a student lands on exactly that status, in either direction, including rollbacks. Later statuses don’t inherit it. Note and follow-up requirements always work this way.
Exempt chosen roles from a requirement, for example a processing team moving an application past a counsellor-facing gate. New roles are covered automatically; automations are never role-exempt. Role exceptions are the newest part of this release, so check with us that they are on your workspace. Required follow-ups are explained on the follow-up management page, and one student, four teams shows where document requirements sit in each team’s hand-off.
Example
A sample study abroad document checklist for the UK, Germany and Canada
How one consultancy might set up document rules on the default pipeline (Inquiry, Qualify, Application, Deposit, Visa, Enrolled). It is an example to adapt, not a list Xale ships, and it is not visa advice.
| Document | UK | Germany | Canada | Suggested rule in Xale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passport | Needed | Needed | Needed | Document · Blocking · from Application onward |
| Academic transcripts and marksheets | Needed | Needed, often as certified copies | Needed | Document · Blocking · from Application onward |
| English test score report | Usually, unless the university waives it | For English-taught programmes; German-taught ones need German proof | Usually | Document · Blocking, or Info where waivers are common |
| SOP or motivation letter | Usually | Usually | Often, with a study plan | Document · Blocking · from Application onward |
| Letters of recommendation and CV | Often | Often | Often | Document · Info-only checklist item |
| Offer or admission | CAS from the university | University admission letter | Letter of acceptance from a designated learning institution | Document · Blocking · from Visa onward |
| Proof of funds | Tuition and living costs, held for the period UKVI requires | Proof of financial resources, commonly a blocked account | Proof of financial support as IRCC asks | Document · Blocking · from Visa onward |
| Destination-specific extras | TB test certificate for listed countries (India is listed); ATAS for some subjects | APS certificate for applicants from India; health insurance | Provincial or territorial attestation letter if the programme needs one; medical exam if asked | Document · Blocking · only on a country-specific visa status |
Requirements vary by university, course and nationality and change often, so confirm each document with the university and official guidance from UKVI, the German mission or IRCC. Xale doesn’t ship country-specific visa workflows. New study-abroad workspaces start with Documents Pending and Document Collection statuses, and you choose which documents to require.
Application document tracking
Counsellors see what’s missing, managers see where it’s stuck
A checklist in every student’s Attachments tab
Each required document is listed with its stage, a Blocking badge (or an Info badge for info-only items) and uploaded or not uploaded. The Upload button names the file after the requirement, so it counts straight away.
Red stars on required fields
Fields, custom fields and course or university links that a current or later stage requires carry a red star in the lead drawer and in Add Lead, so counsellors fill them before the move.
Documents pending report
Reports, Admissions, Documents shows how many students are missing a required file, by stage (hover a stage for the document names) and by owner, within each viewer’s own visibility.
Deadlines tied to statuses
Set status-to-status deadlines with warning days, say from Offers Received to Deposit Submitted. They close themselves when the student reaches the target status, so only real risks stay open.
An automation can also send a student’s uploaded document inside an approved WhatsApp template through Wati, Gallabox or UrbanChat; see WhatsApp CRM for education. Admissions reporting from offer to enrolment is covered in CRM reports and analytics.
Comparison
Spreadsheets and WhatsApp vs Xale
| What you need | Spreadsheets and WhatsApp | Xale |
|---|---|---|
| Where files live | WhatsApp chats, personal email, laptops and shared drives | One record per student, in folders, shared by every application |
| Knowing what’s missing | Ask the counsellor or check a spreadsheet column | A checklist on every student and a missing-documents report by stage and owner |
| Stopping an incomplete file | Depends on someone remembering | A requirement blocks the stage move, whether it comes from the student, an application, a bulk update or a change-stage automation |
| Counsellor changes or leaves | Files stay on their phone | Files stay on the student record for whoever picks it up |
| Who changed what | No record | Every upload, replacement and deletion on the activity timeline |
| Deadlines | Personal calendar reminders | Status-to-status deadlines with warning days that close themselves |
Uploads and storage
How uploads are handled
Short-lived upload links
Web uploads go straight to storage through a signed link that expires after five minutes. Xale then checks the file is in your workspace’s folder, exists and is within the size limit, and removes it if it’s too big. Android uploads pass through the Xale API with the same 5 MB limit.
Nothing overwritten by accident
Every upload gets its own timestamped storage name, so a same-named file never overwrites another.
Workspace isolation
Documents belong to your workspace like every other Xale record, and uploads outside your workspace’s folder are refused.
Limits
What Xale’s document management doesn’t do yet
- Files open from a direct link, not an expiring download link, so anyone with a file’s link can open it. Share links with care.
- The role editor’s per-stage Documents switches (upload, view, download, delete) aren’t enforced yet.
- Replacing a file deletes the old version. There is no version history.
- Moving a student to Trash deletes their documents and folders, and restoring the student doesn’t bring them back.
- Requirements are checked on stage and status moves, not when a lead is created or imported.
- No OCR, document verification, expiry tracking or e-signatures. A document requirement checks the file’s name, not its contents.
- Students can’t upload their own documents through a portal yet.
- The Android app can’t delete files, show the checklist or answer a note or follow-up requirement.
- The Documents pending report also counts info-only items, ignores role exceptions and exact-status rules, and doesn’t open the lead list yet.
Frequently asked questions
Student document management: common questions
What is student document management software?
Software that keeps each student’s application documents in one place, shows what is still missing and stops an incomplete file moving on. In Xale it is part of the CRM: documents sit on the student record, and stage requirements decide what must be uploaded before a student progresses.
Can Xale stop a student moving to Application until the passport and SOP are uploaded?
Yes. Add a document requirement for Passport and another for SOP to the Application stage. Moving the student, or any of their applications, to that status or past it is blocked until files with those names are on the record.
What is the difference between a blocking requirement and an info-only item?
A blocking requirement stops the move and shows your error message until it is met. An info-only item appears in the student’s document checklist with an Info badge but never stops a move. Info-only is available for documents only.
Does each university application keep its own documents?
No. All files are saved on the student record and shared by every application, so a passport uploaded once serves every university. You can upload from an application, and a document requirement on an application accepts the student’s file.
What file types and sizes can we upload?
PDFs, JPG and PNG images, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, CSV and text files, up to 5 MB each. The web app offers to shrink a larger photo or PDF before uploading (a shrunk PDF’s text is no longer selectable). Other files over 5 MB are rejected.
How do managers see which students are missing documents?
Reports, Admissions, Documents shows how many students are in a stage with document requirements and are missing a required file, counted by stage and by owner. Each person’s counts cover only the students they can see in the app.
Can counsellors manage documents from the mobile app?
On Android, yes: the Xale app’s Attachment tab can upload, create folders, rename, move, open and download. It can’t delete documents, show the checklist or answer a note or follow-up requirement.
Does Xale verify documents or track expiry dates?
No. Xale doesn’t read or verify document contents, track passport or test-score expiry, or collect e-signatures. A document requirement checks that a correctly named file is on the record. For time limits, use status-to-status deadlines.
How are uploaded documents stored?
Uploads from the web app go through a signed link that expires after five minutes, and Xale checks the file landed in your workspace’s folder. Files then open from a direct link rather than an expiring download link, and per-role document permissions aren’t enforced yet, so share file links with care.
Related guides
- University application tracking CRMEach application on its own stage, while documents stay on the student.
- CRM with internal team chatDiscuss each student and application in its own thread, not in staff WhatsApp groups.
- Study abroad CRM softwareA ready pipeline, with one deal per university application.
- Follow-up management CRMEach role on a lead or deal keeps its own follow-up, with due reminders.
- CRM reports and analytics for education teamsAdmissions reports from offer to enrolment, deal by deal.
- Multi-branch CRM with role-based accessRoles, branches and stage-level permissions for larger teams.
- Lead management software for education teamsCapture, assign and work every enquiry from one list.
Stop chasing the same documents twice.
Keep every student’s files on one record and let each stage say what it needs before a student moves on.