S2S LRP - Letters of Recommendation

B ureau of Clinician Recruitment and Service (BCRS)

NHSC SP Online Application User Guide

BCRS Management Information System Solution (BMISS)

National Health Service Corps (NHSC)

Scholarship Program (SP)

FY 2013 Online Application User Guide

February 2013

Table of Contents

Introduction: NHSC SP Online Application User Guide 3

Section 1: BCRS Portal 4

Section 2: Create Account 5

Section 3: Logging In 7

Section 4: Forgot Your Password 8

Section 5: Home Page 10

Section 6: Assurances 13

Section 7: Eligibility 14

Section 7: General Information 16

Section 8: Background Information 18

Section 9: Degree Information 20

Section 10: Letters of Recommendation 22

Section 11: Supporting Documents 25

Section 12: Self Certification 26

Section 13: Review & Submit 27

Section 14: Submitted Landing Page 28

Section 15: Withdraw Application 29

Section 16: Editing Application (Prior to Application Deadline) 31

Section 17: Account Settings 33

Section 18: Emails 35

Section 19: Resolving Issues 38

Introduction: NHSC SP Online Application User Guide

Purpose: The NHSC SP Online Application user guide serves as the main tool for the Customer Care Center to answer applicant questions regarding issues applicants have when calling for resolution. In addition to this user guide, the Customer Care Center Analysts must be familiar with the NHSC SP Application Program & Guidance, as some of the questions will be program based and are not discussed in this user guide. The primary intent for this user guide is to focus on the functionality developed for the NHSC SP Online Application.

Roles: The application will be filled out by external users. The Customer Care Center Analysts need to understand the functionality to support external users should they encounter any problems with the application.

Precondition: Applicant has a question regarding the NHSC SP Online Application and contacts the Customer Care Center for help to resolve an issue.

Section 1: BCRS Portal

The BCRS Portal allows applicants to navigate to the NHSC SP application. Note: Applicant will skip this page if he/she links directly from the HRSA website.

Steps:

1. Applicant selects “Applying for the NHSC Scholarship Program.”

2. System displays log in page

3. Applicant can log in and begin his/her application.
   
   

Section 2: Create Account

The first action an applicant takes for the NHSC SP Online Application is to create an account.

S teps:

1. Applicant navigates to the Online Application via the weblink: https://programportal.hrsa.gov/extranet/application/nhscsp

2. Applicant selects the “Create an Account” link in the bottom left hand section of the page
   
   

Business Rules:

• If an applicant has an exisiting account for another account he/she will be able to login with those credentials

• An applicant may not create an application after the application deadline May 2, 2013

• The applicant will be prompted to fill in a series of fields in order to create an account. Once the applicant selects “Create”, the system will send an activation email to the address used to create the account. The instructions or the applicant are detailed in the email

The applicant will be prompted to fill in a series of fields in order to create an account. Once the applicant selects “Create,” the system will send an activation email to the address used to create the account. The instructions for the applicant are detailed in the email.

Steps:

1. Applicant answers each of the required fields.

2. Applicant selects to register for an account with the NHSC SP.

- Once an applicant has created an account he/she must use the same log in information if the applicant wishes to apply to any other scholarship or loan repayment programs

3. The system will prompt the user at the top of his/her screen that his/her account is created. The system also sends an activation email to the applicant’s email address.

4. The email will be from: [email protected] with a subject of “Activate your HRSA account.” The applicant will open the email and click on the activation link in the body of the email.

5. The system will re-direct the applicant to the Home page notifying him/her that his/her account is activated.

Business Rules:

• The email address provided by the applicant will serve as his/her username

• The system will not allow the applicant to use an email that is already attached to an existing participant account

• The following information will be auto-populated in the General Information section of the application

  • First Name,

  • Last Name,

  • Middle Initial

  • Title

  • Suffix

• Applicants can select the tool tip next to the Password field for details on password criteria

• An applicant must activate his/her account before he/she can log in

Section 3: Logging In

After activating an account, the applicant will be able to log in. The applicant will enter his/her email address and password used in creating his/her account. If the applicant forgets his/her password, they can reset his/her password by selecting the “Forgot your password?” link.

Steps:

1. Applicant enters his/her email address and password.

2. Applicant selects (Login) and the system brings him her to the Not Started Home page.
   
   

Business Rules:

• The applicant will be warned after his/her second failed log in attempt

• The applicant’s account will be locked after the third failed log in attempt.

  • The applicant can select “Forgot your password?” to reset his/her account, or;

  • Contact the Customer Care Center to have his/her account unlocked

• System shall not allow user to create acount if Applicant Primary Email already exists in BMISS participant account

Section 4: Forgot Your Password

If the applicant forgets his/her password, they will have to select the (Forgot Password) link and follow these steps in order to reset it:

Steps:

1. Applicant selects (forgot your password).

2. Applicant enters his/her email address and selects (Next) (see Figure 2).

3. The Applicant answers his/her security question they selected when they created his/her account, and selects (Submit) (see Figure 3).

4. System displays confirmation and sends email to applicant (see Figure 4).

5. Applicant selects Reset Password Link from email.

6. Applicant enters new password and selects (Update Password), (see Figure 5).

N otes:

• Passwords must have a minimum length of eight characters; shall not contain slang, jargon, or personal information; shall not contain all or part of your username; and must contain: at least one English upper-case character (A-Z), at least one English lower-case character (a-z), at least one numerical digit (0-9), and at least one special character (e.g. @, !, $, %). A character may not be repeated more than once in succession.

Section 5: Home Page

The Not Started Home page is the first page the applicant sees on his/her initial log in. Once the applicant has started his/her application, his/her status will change to “In Progress” and his/her will be directed to the NHSC LRP “In Progress” Home Page when logging in.

Steps:

1. Applicant reads through the information displayed on the Home Page.
   
   

2. Applicant selects (Start My Application).

Notes:

Applicants are strongly encouraged to read the 2013 Application and Program Guidance document prior to starting his/her application:

If the applicant returns to his/her previously saved application, once he/she logs in, the applicant is directed to the Home page and the application status will now display “In Progress.” The applicant will be able to continue with his/her last saved page or jump to any completed section by selecting the blue link.

Steps:

1. Applicant reads information on status page.

2. Applicant selects to navigate to a specific section by selecting the page name hyperlinked in the table, or;

3. Applicant selects to continue his/her application from the last saved page by selecting (Continue).
   
   

Business Rules:

• System shall only link to pages that are in a “Complete” or “In Progress” status. The applicant will not be able to jump a page that is “Not Started”

• I f the applicant selects “Continue,” the system shall direct them to the last “In Progress” page. For example, if ”Eligibility” is “Complete” and General Information in “In Progress” system shall direct applicant to General Information once they log back into the application if they select ”Continue”

Section 6: Assurances

The Assurances section is the first section of the NHSC SP application. This section informs the applicant of the terms and conditions and obligations associated with an acceptance of a NHSC scholarship award. An applicant must accept all assurances to proceed to the next section.

S teps:

1. Applicant reads each of the Assurances and clicks

2. Applicant clicks

3. Applicant proceeds to next section

Business Rules:

- Applicant must accept all assurances to proceed to the next section

Section 7: Eligibility

The Eligibility page is used to ensure the applicant meets the qualification requirements to apply for an NHSC SP application. If the applicant is deemed eligible, he/she will be able to continue with the application. If an individual does not pass the initial screening portion of the online application, he/she will not be able to continue with the application.

S teps:

1. Applicant answers all required questions.

2. Applicant selects (Save & Continue) once they have answered all the required questions.

3. Applicant will be directed to General Information page, if they are eligible.

4. Applicant will be directed to the In Progress – Ineligible landing page, if found ineligible.

Business Rules:

• Select any tool tip “ ” for additional information on specific question

• If an applicant answers “Yes” to question #5, the applicant will have to answer two additional subquestions. Additionally if an applicant answers “Yes” to question #5, the applicant will be required to upload a proof of exisiting service document on the supporting document page.

• If an applicant answers “Yes” to question #8, the applicant will be required to answer an additional subquestion.

• If any of the applicants answers make the applicant ineligible, the applicant will be directed to the “Ineligible Landing Page” upon clicking Save & Continue (see screen shot on next page)

• If an applicant is directed to the “Ineligible Landing Page” the applicant may navigate back to the Eligibilty section to change his/her answers if the applicant feels he/she answered in error

  • The applicant will not know which combination of errors made him/her ineligible

Section 7: General Information

The General Information page consists of questions about the applicant’s contact and background information. Some of the information (such as First and Last Name, etc.) is pre-populated from the answers the applicant entered while creating his/her account.

Steps:

1. Applicant answers required fields.

• Required fields denoted with an asterisk (*).

2. Applicant selects (Save & Continue) once he/she have answered all the required fields.

3. Applicant will be directed Background Information page upon selecting continue if all required fields are entered.

Business Rules:

• The following fields are populated from answers from the create account process

  • First Name

  • Last Name

  • Middle Initial

  • Title

  • Suffix

• If another country besides the U.S. is selected the State/Province/Region will default to a text field

• An error message will display and the applicant will not be allowed to continue if the applicant enters a SSN that is tied to another participant portal account

  • Error message will request for the applicant to login with existing participant portal account

B usiness Rules (cont.):

• An applicant will receive an error message and will not be allowed to continue if a current participant is applying and the SSN does not match the SSN in the participant record

  • Error message will request for the applicant to edit SSN or contact Customer Care Center to update participant record.

• An applicant can edit SSN and reenter numbers

• System shall allow applicant to continue if SSN exists within another application for a different program in the current cycle and applicant is using the existing account information

• Note: If applicant modifies the SSN number in one application, it will automatically update the SSN for all other applications in the same cycle

• System shall display error message and not allow applicant to continue if logged in with participant portal information and SSN entered does not match

  • Display error message that SSN does not match existing portal account: edit SSN or contact Customer Care Center to update participant record

Note: To expidete resolving an issue the Customer Care Center should provide the error code listed in the error message when entering a log.

Section 8: Background Information

The Background Information section captures specific information about the applicant including education information, demographic information and emergency contact information.

Steps:

1. Applicant answers required fields.

2. User selects (Save & Continue) once they have answered all the required fields.

3. Applicant is taken to the Degree Information.

Business Rules:

• Required fields are denoted with an asterisk.

• The applicant is not required to answer demographic information

• The applicants birth date must be prior to application cycle start date

Section 9: Degree Information

The Degree Information page collects information about the school the applicant is attending for which the applicant is requesting scholarship and other information regarding the applicant’s education.

S teps:

1. Applicant answers required fields.

• Required fields denoted with an asterisk (*).

2. Applicant will click and be directed to the Letters of Recommendation section

B usiness Rules:

• The applicant can enter up to 3 decimal places for his/her GPA

• If the applicant checks “Non-Standard GPA” the applicant can enter an alphanumeric GPA

• The school list will be populated based on responses to discipline, degree and state.

* If an applicant changes his/her discipline, he/she will have to re-enter his/her school information

• If an applicant’s school is not listed in the search results, the applicant can select “Other”

* The applicant will enter the school name and school city in the text fields that appear

* When the applicant selects Save & Continue an email will be sent to program with the applicants; First & Last name, email address, discipline, degree, school name, school city & school state. Program will review the accreditation of the school and follow up with the applicant offline

• If an applicant selects “Other” as a school, his/her status will be updated to “In Progress- school not found”

* The applicant may continue with the application as program researches his/her school

* An applicant may not submit his/her application if the Degree Information section is in the “In Progress- School not Found” status.

• If an applicants school is accredited it will be added to the BMISS system and the applicant must go back to the Degree Information section to choose that school

• If an applicants school is not valid the applicant will be made ineligible and can not continue with the application

• School start dates must be between July 1^st and September 30^th.

• School end dates must be on or before June 30^th for each school year.

• An applicant must request funding for the first year they are applying.

• Applicants must request funding for consequitve years.

Section 10: Letters of Recommendation

An applicant must have two letters of recommendation in order to apply for the NHSC SP program. The first letters should be from a faculty advisor, department chair or faculty member in the program the applicant is in who can speak to his/her qualifications. The second letter should be from an individual who is familiar with the applicants professional, community, and/or civic activities, especially those related to underserved communities.

S teps:

1. Applicant will enter the first and last name and email for each recommender

2. The applicant will click for each recommender

3. Applicant will and proceed to the supporting documents section

Business Rules:

• Once an applicant kicks-off a request for a recommendation, the recommender will receive an email containing a link to upload the document.

• When the recommender clicks the link in the email he/she will be directed to the letter of recommendation upload page (see screenshot on next page)

• An applicant will have the ability to cancel a request.

• An applicant must have two recommendations in order to be able to submit his/her application

• An applicant may re-send the email for an existing request

• An applicant may not view the letter of recommendation

• An error message will display if an applicant tries to initate a Letter of Recommendation request using his/her primary or alternate email address

Recommender Page (Academic)

A copy of the email that a requestor will receive once the applicant initiates the request.

This is where the non-academic recommendor will upload the letter of recommendation.

Recommender Page (Academic)

A copy of the email that a requestor will receive once the applicant initiates the request.

This is where the non-academic recommendor will upload the letter of recommendation.

Section 11: Supporting Documents

The Supporting Documents page allows the applicant to upload his/her required documents. Please note that some of the documents displayed on the Supporting Documents page dynamically appear based some of the answers provided on the online application.

Steps:

1. Applicant selects the document he/she would like to upload.

Browse

2. Applicant selects (Browse) to find the document they will upload.

3. Applicant selects (Upload) when appropriate document is selected.

4. Applicant repeats these steps for all of the required documents.

5. Applicant clicks (Save and Continue).

6. Applicant is directed to the Self Certification Page.

Business Rules:

• All applicants are required to upload the documents displayed on the screen shot

• If an applicant responded yes to having an existing service obligation he/she will have to upload the “Existing Service Obligation/Uniformed Service Member” document

• Templates are located above the upload documents table

• Applicants are encouraged to upload PDF documents

• System shall allow applicant to upload document size up to 5 MB

• Applicants have the ability to upload an additional supporting document. This document is optional.

Section 12: Self Certification

The Self Certification page allows the applicant to certify that his/her has read and agreed to the terms and agreements displayed on the page. The applicant must agree to all certifications in order to continue.

S teps:

1. Applicant reads each certification.

2. Applicant indicates that he/she agree by selecting the checkbox.

3. Applicant selects (Save and Continue).

Notes:

• System shall require that the applicant has responded to each certification question to be able to proceed

• System will clear Self Certification page if the applicant proceeds to Review and Submit paged but then navigates to another section of the application

Section 13: Review & Submit

The Review & Submit page is the last page of the application that contains a table with each section and its corresponding status. All sections must be complete in order for the applicant to be able to submit the application. The applicant can select the top navigation menu or a page name link in the table to view that section.

Steps:

1. Applicant reviews the application.

2. The Applicant enters his/her password.

3. Applicant selects (Submit).

Business Rules:

• System shall not allow application to be submitted after the application deadline 05/02/2013

• All page statuses except for review and submit must be complete for applicant to submit his/her application.

• Applicant must enter in his/her correct password in order to submit their application.

• System shall direct user to landing page with links to uploaded documents and copy of application

• Upon submission the system will validate the applicants SSN to ensure the following is still true:

• There is no duplicate SSN for the same program and cycle

• SSN is not associated on the black list

• SSN is not associated with participant that is defaulted or waiver

• If applicant has existing service, that the obligation end date is in the past (obligation end date must be before submission date)

Section 14: Submitted Landing Page

After the applicant submits his/her NHSC SP application, he/she will be directed to the Submitted landing page and the overall application status will change to either “Submitted”.” If any of the responses on the online application deem an applicant ineligible, the status upon submission will be “Submitted – Ineligible.” If the responses submitted deem the applicant eligible the application status will be “Submitted.” On the Submitted landing page the applicant will have the ability to edit or withdraw his/her application. The applicant will have the ability to edit his/her application until the end of the application deadline. The applicant may withdraw his/her application at any time in the process.

Business Rules:

• An applicant can navigate to the Submitted landing page by clicking the “Home” button

Section 15: Withdraw Application

An applicant has the option to withdraw his/her application after submission.. The applicant may resubmit the current application by using the Undo Withdrawl button. However, the applicant must resubmit his/her application by the application deadline to be considered for an award.

S teps:

1. From the Submitted landing page an applicant will click the (Withdraw) button.

2. The applicant will be directed to the “Withdraw Application screen for confirmation.

3. T he applicant clicks (Withdraw) and is directed to the Submitted Home page (see screenshot on next page)

• Note: The applicant’s status will be updated to “Withdrawn”

4. On the Submitted landing page the applicant may undo his/her withdrawal by clicking (Undo Withdrawl), if the application deadline has not passed.

5. If the applicant clicks (Undo Withdrawl), he/she will be directed to the In Progress Landing Page (see screenshot on next page)

6. The applicant may make any changes to his/her application at this point, prior to the application deadline.

7. If the applicant makes changes to his/her application he/she must complete the Self-Certification section and the re-sign his/her application on the Review & Submit page in order to re-submit his/her application

Business Rules:

• The ability to withdraw an application will be disabled when the applicant is sent a COI

• If an applicant wishes to re-submit his/her application he/she must resubmit by the application deadline

Section 16: Editing Application (Prior to Application Deadline)

I f an applicant would like to edit his/her application after submission, he/she may do so prior to the application deadline. If an applicant edits his/her application, the applicant must re-submit his/her application by the application deadline. If the applicant does not resubmit his/her application, the applicant will not be considered for an NSHC SP award.

Steps:

1. The applicant clicks Edit Application

2. The applicant will be directed to the In Progress landing page (see screenshot on next page).

3. The applicant can navigate to any section to make the necessary edits.

4. Once the applicant has made his/her edits, the applicant must click Save & Continue at the bottom of the page where edits were made in order to save the edits.

5. Once all edits are made and saved the applicant will navigate to the Self- Certification page.

6. Applicant indicates that he/she agrees to all the certifications by selecting the checkbox.

7. Applicant selects (Save and Continue).

8. Applicant is directed to the Review and Submit page.

9. Applicant reviews the application.

10. The Applicant enters his/her password.

11. Applicant selects (Submit) and is directed to the Submitted landing page.

B usiness Rules:

• The applicant will not be able to edit his/her application after the application cycle closes

• An applicant must resubmit his/her application by the application deadline, if he/she wants to be considered for a NHSC SP award

• The applicant will be directed to the In Progress landing page when selecting “Edit”

• All business rules apply on each of the applicantion pages, upon editing the application

Section 17: Account Settings

If the applicant has not yet submitted his/her application, the applicant can change his/her password, email and security question on the Account Setting page In ddition, the applicant will be able to see his/her application ID.

S teps to reset password:

1. Applicant creates new password.

2. Applicant confirms new password.

3. Applicant enters current password.

4. Applicant clicks (Change Password)

5. System displays confirmation that password has been successfully updated.

Steps to change email:

1. Applicant enters a new email address.

2. Applicant confirms the new email address.

3. Applicant enters current email address.

4. Applicant enters current password.

5. Applicant clicks (Change Email)

6. A verification email will be sent to the new email address.

7. Applicant clicks on link in the email to verify his/her new email address.

Business Rules:

• System shall add validation that username/email address is not in use by another account when changing.

• System shall provide functionality for applicant to change security question and answer.

• System shall require applicant to log out and log back in upon changing their username/email or password

Section 18: Emails

There are several emails that are sent out during the application process:

1) When applicant creates an account, the applicant receives the following activation email

2) When applicant requests confirmation, the recommender receives the following email request

3) When recommender uploads a letter of recommendation, the applicant receives the following email

Section 19: Resolving Issues

Please use the following instructions to resolve any iquires a NHSC SP applicant might have:

1. For Technical Issues:

Production Support Process:

• When a technical issue is encountered, e.g. Applicant cannot upload his/her Resume, the Customer Care Center should log the issue in the BMISS Issue Tracker. The NHSC SP Application BMISS HyperCare team will monitor the BMISS Issue Tracker to define and resolve the issue. Once the issue is resolved, the Hpercare team will notify the Customer Care Center Analyst of the resolution.

Capturing Issues:

• It is important to capture and log as much detail as possible. The BMISS HyperCare Support Team will need enough information to recreate the issue in order to solve the problem. Applicant details should include the following:

  • Applicant information: Full name, last four of SSN, email, phone number

  • The exact NHSC SP Online Application screen the applicant was on when the issue occurred (screenshot if applicable)

  • The Web Browser the applicant was using (e.g. Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.)

  • The frequency of the issue (e.g. always, sometimes, etc.)

2. For Program Related Issues:

Division Support Process:

• If an applicant has a program question, the Customer Care Center will try to answer the problem by referring to the Application and Program Guidance. If the Customer Care Center is unable to answer the question then the Applicant’s question and information are recorded and the Customer Care Center contacts the appropriate DNHSC Analyst. DNHSC answers the question and the Customer Care Center responds back to the Applicant.

Online Application Technical Issues Email:

• BMISS HyperCare Support Contact: Ashley Carothers- [email protected] or Christopher Galipo- [email protected]

Capturing Applicant Information:

• The following applicant information should be captured with as much detail of the issue as possible:

  • First and Last Name

  • Email Address

  • Phone Number

  • Last four digits of SSN

  • Section of Online Application the user was on when they encountered the problem

  • Detailed summary of the problem

  • Supporting Document (If applicable)

P ROPERTY OF HRSA | BCRS

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