Enable Multiple Submissions Per Profile in a Submission Portal

This article is considered appropriate for administrators or workspace users with an advanced level of knowledge about submission portals. If you are a beginner or intermediate user, we recommend reading the following articles first:

• Submission Portal Key Concepts: Beginner
• Submission Portal Key Concepts: Intermediate

For more information about suggested learning paths, see Introduction to Submission Portals: START HERE.

Contents

• Overview
• The Purpose of Enabling Multiple Submissions per Profile
• Where to Find the Setting to Allow Multiple Submissions
• Enabling Multiple Submissions per Profile
• Changing the Maximum Number of Submissions per Profile
• Submission Portal Experience

Overview

A program may need to allow multiple submissions from the same portal user/Profile record.  As a default setting, Zengine is set up to allow a portal user to create and submit only one application package in the same submission portal.  However, an administrator can enable multiple submissions and set the maximum number of submissions per portal user/Profile.  This article provides a walkthrough of these settings. 

The Purpose of Enabling Multiple Submissions per Profile

Once a program has undergone its first full cycle in Zengine, many new program administrators are faced with the question of how to manage the next cycle. 

Some programs will elect to create a new set of forms and a new submission portal for each application cycle in the same workspace. This can be a bit more work to set up, but is useful for keeping applicant data from each cycle separate.

Other programs, however, may decide to use the same submission portal and set of forms and combine the data from different cycles, with the option to allow previously rejected applicants to apply again. Alternatively, perhaps the submission portal is not meant for applications, but rather project proposals from county governments for the same pool of state or federal funds; in that type of case, the same submission portal and forms would continue to be used as well. 

For programs permitting each user/Profile to complete multiple submissions in a submission portal, the feature must be turned on. This feature cannot be turned off once enabled.

--- IMPORTANT ---

When enabling multiple submissions per user/Profile in the same submission portal, there is no way to restrict multiple submissions to certain time periods. Portal users can either submit multiple application packages, or they cannot; there is no way to restrict multiple submissions to one per year, or other time period.

Where to Find the Setting to Allow Multiple Submissions

In the Submission Portal Settings, the setting to allow for multiple submissions from each profile can be found on the Homepage Settings screen. 

To find the setting:

1. Logged into a program as an administrator, navigate to the Settings & Tools section by selecting the cog wheel icon in the top navigation bar.
2. Select the Submission Portal tile from the Plugin Settings section.
3. Select the Edit button to the appropriate submission portal.

4. Select the link for Homepage in the Portal Sections pane on the left side of the screen. 

5. The section to configure submissions is shown in the highlighted section of the image and is found by scrolling down to the bottom of the page.

Enabling Multiple Submissions Per Profile

Before enabling multiple submissions per profile, make sure that the relationship between the program’s Profile form and Primary form is set to one-to-many. This must be done before multiple submissions will function properly, even if the Submission Portal setting is enabled.  

To activate multiple submissions after navigating to the Homepage Settings page:

1. Select the box next to Yes, I will need multiple submissions.

2. A confirmation popup window appears asking to confirm, and reminding that it cannot be turned off once enabled.

3. Select the Continue button to confirm.

4. To save the changes made on this screen, select the blue Save all settings button in the lower right corner of the screen.

5. The submission portal now actively accepts multiple submissions from each profile.

Important notes about this feature:

1. Once this feature is turned on for a submission portal, it cannot be reversed. The only way to disable this feature is to create a new submission portal and start over.
2. Multiple submissions cannot be managed within a specific time frame. For example, a program cannot allow multiple submissions in the same portal, but restrict applicants to one submission per year. If the feature is enabled, portal users will be able to submit multiple submissions at any time.
3. To successfully allow multiple submissions from the same portal user/Profile record, not only must this feature be enabled in the submission portal, but the relationship between the Profile form and the Primary form must be set to one-to-many. 

Changing the Maximum Number of Submissions per Profile

After multiple submissions per profile has been enabled, an administrator can set the maximum number of submissions permitted per profile.  

To set the maximum:

1. From the Submission Portal Homepage screen, either:

A. Select the number in the Submission Limit box, and enter a new number

B. OR hover over the Submission Limit box and use the up and down arrows to set the maximum number of submissions.

2. To save the changes made on this screen, select the blue Save all settings button in the lower right corner of the screen.

Please note that the default number of multiple submissions is 75 and the maximum allowed number of submissions per submission portal is 200.

Submission Portal Experience

Once multiple submissions have been enabled and the relationship between the program’s Profile form and Primary form is set to one-to-many, the portal user will see an option to create another submission (application package) in the Submission Card Section on the Homepage in the submission portal. 

Selecting + Add Another will create a new application package, allowing the portal user to complete and submit additional applications up to the designated limit.