Create applicant questionnaires in Settings > Customization > Custom Forms, add questions, and assign a form to a Job for applicants to complete when they apply.
Crelate allows you to create a custom form, or questionnaire, for applicants to complete when they apply through your Job Portal. You can set up a form for each Job, or use one form (or a few forms) for every Job. To build a form, go to Settings > Customization > Custom Forms, select the plus icon to create a new form, add your questions, and then assign the form to a Job.
How do I build a form?
Go to Settings > Customization > Custom Forms. Your existing forms appear under Application Forms.
Select the plus icon to create a new form. The New Application Form editor opens.
Under Form Details, enter a Form Name. This field is required.
Under Form Template, enter a Section Header Name. Sections group related questions, such as background questions, personal questions, or work experience questions, so the form feels organized to applicants. Select New Section to add more sections.
Select New Question and type your question. You can add as many questions as you need.
Select Save when the form is complete.
Important: Do not include demographic or protected class questions in application forms. Use the EEOC features of Crelate under Compliance Settings instead. For more, see EEOC and OFCCP Compliance Tracking.
What can I set on each question?
When you type a question, you can select the type of answer and set additional options in Question Details.
Question Type: Choose the type of answer that fits your question. Short Answer is the default, and you can change it before you save. The available types are Long Answer, Rating (1 to 5), Short Answer, Yes or No, Document, Custom Picklist (Single Choice), Custom Picklist (Multiple Choice), Number, Date, and Currency.
Help Text: Add help text to display in smaller font just below the question. It guides the applicant toward the kind of answer you are looking for.
Category: Groups the question into a broad category, such as Leadership abilities, Technical Skills, or Communication Skills, that you can use across many forms. See the section on Question Categories below.
Required: Makes the question required, so applicants must answer it to complete the application.
Ask for Rating: In addition to answering the question, the applicant is asked to provide a rating of 1 to 5 stars.
Question Tags: Tags make it easier to find and reuse the question on multiple forms. Tags do not change how the form behaves.
Field Mappings: Copies the response to a field in Crelate. See the section on Field Mappings below.
💡 Pro Tip: Questions in your forms are searchable, so you can use the answers later in a search. For more, see Advanced Search. Keep that in mind as you decide which question type to use.
💡 Pro Tip: If you want applicants to provide additional documentation, such as a Cover Letter, select Document as the question type and choose which document type to map it to.
What are Question Categories?
Question Categories group your questions into broad types, such as Leadership Qualities, so you can use the same category across many forms. Categories are similar to tags, but they describe a full category of question rather than a label you create for finding questions.
How do I create a category?
Go to Settings > Customization > Picklists > Question Categories.
Select New and add your category.
How do I add a category to a question?
In the form editor, select the question.
In Question Details, select the search icon in the Category field. The Select Category window opens.
Search for the category, or select it from the list. For example, select Leadership Qualities.
Select OK.
Once a question has a category, you can filter by that category in the Add Existing Question window when you build other forms.
💡 Pro Tip: Use categories for broad types of questions that apply to many forms, such as Leadership Qualities or Technical Skills. Use tags for narrower groups, such as questions for one kind of position.
How do I reuse questions I have already created?
You can bring questions from past forms into a new form, so you do not have to rebuild them. Existing questions carry over all the formatting that was previously configured for them.
Select Add Existing Question. In the Form Template area, select Add Existing Question. A window opens with the list of questions you have used before. Search by keyword, or filter by Categories or Tags. The list shows each question’s value, tags, category, and type. Select the questions you want, and then select OK.
Type a question and choose from the suggestions. As you type a new question, Crelate shows application questions you have used before. Select one to carry it over.
Use tags. Tags let you group questions so you can find them quickly later. For example, suppose you tag your questions for a Sales Associate position with “sales.” When you create another form for Sales applications, filter by that tag in Add Existing Question to add those questions at once.
💡 Pro Tip: If you create similar forms with small differences for different Jobs, tag your common questions as you build them. Filtering by tag in Add Existing Question saves time and keeps your forms consistent.
How do I copy an applicant’s answer to a field on the Contact Record?
Use Field Mappings to copy the response to a question into a field in Crelate when the form is saved.
Select the question, and then select Field Mappings in Question Details.
Under On save of this form, find the line that says “When this question is filled out for a Contact, copy the response to the field.”
Select Select a record field..., and then choose the field that should receive the response.
To copy the response to more than one field, select Add new field mapping.
Select Save.
For more on how Field Mappings work, see Using Field Mappings.
💡 Pro Tip: Map application questions to a field on the Contact Record. The applicant’s answer then appears on the Contact Record, which makes it easier to review and to report on.
How do I edit a question?
Select the pencil icon next to the question to open the Edit Question window. You can update the question text, help text, and other settings, and then select Save. You cannot change the question type of an existing question. If you need a different type, add a new question with the type you want.
How do I add a form to a Job?
After you create your form, assign it to a specific Job.
Open the Job Record and go to the Summary tab.
In the panel on the right, select Edit or Add, and then select Application Form.
Choose the form you created.
The Job now uses that form. If you have not published the Job yet, see Publishing a Job.
What is the Default Application Form?
The Default Application Form is the form Crelate uses for all new Jobs. You set it on the Custom Forms page. The person creating a Job can always override the default and choose a different Application Form.
The default form also applies to general consideration. Any applicant who submits their resume without applying to a specific Job is presented with the form selected here.
If Require Job Submission is set to Yes in your Job Portal Settings, applicants cannot submit a General Application, so the default form is used only for new Jobs. See Job Portal Advanced Configuration Settings.
💡 Pro Tip: Choose a default form that works for most of your Jobs. You can then change the form on individual Jobs only when a role needs different questions.
What does the applicant see?
When an applicant applies, they enter their name, resume, and contact information.
They also answer the questions on the form assigned to the Job. Applicants must answer any question marked Required to apply.
To review your application form as an applicant sees it, go to https://jobs.crelate.com/portal/YOURORGNAME, replacing YOURORGNAME with your organization name.
Where do applicants’ answers appear?
Each applicant’s answers are saved to their Contact Record as an Application Form document. If any questions on the form use Field Mappings, those answers also fill in the mapped fields on the Contact Record. See How do I copy an applicant’s answer to a field on the Contact Record? above.
Can I use Application Forms on Indeed?
Yes. When Match Application Form to Indeed Screener is turned on in Job Board Publishing, the Application Form on a Job is used as Indeed’s screener questions. See Can Application Forms be used for Indeed Postings?
Key takeaway
Create Application Forms under Settings > Customization > Custom Forms, add sections and questions, and use Field Mappings to copy answers to fields on the Contact Record. To use a form on a Job, open the Job Record and select Application Form from the Edit or Add menu on the Summary tab. The Default Application Form is used for new Jobs and General Applications. Applicants’ answers are saved to their Contact Record, and forms can also be used as Indeed screener questions. Do not include demographic or protected class questions, and use the EEOC features under Compliance Settings instead.
What's Next?
Check out how Field Mappings can work for you and learn more about how you may use the same principle in Application Forms in your Activity Forms.