Admin — Projects
The Projects section provides comprehensive tools for managing project categories and completion workflows. This feature enables administrators to organize projects effectively and gather meaningful data through customizable completion forms.
Overview
The Projects module consists of two main components designed to streamline project management and data collection:
Why Project Management Matters
Effective project management is crucial for: - Organized Learning: Categorizing projects helps students and mentors find relevant opportunities - Data Collection: Standardized completion forms ensure consistent project outcomes - Quality Assurance: Custom questions allow for targeted feedback and assessment - Progress Tracking: Structured completion processes provide clear project status
Core Components
1. Categories Management
Create and manage custom project categories with specific completion requirements
2. Project Completion Forms
Design standardized forms that teams must complete when finishing their projects
Categories Management
Creating Project Categories
Categories help organize projects into meaningful groups and enable category-specific evaluation criteria.
Required Information:
- Category ID: Unique identifier (e.g., "startup", "research", "industry")
- Category Name: Display name (e.g., "Start-Up", "Research Project", "Industry Partnership")
- Description: Brief explanation of the project category type
- Color: Visual identifier using hex color codes (e.g., #186444)
Category Features:
- Fully Customizable: Create categories that match your institution's project types
- Editable: Modify categories after creation as needs evolve
- Color Coding: Visual organization through custom color schemes
- Specific Questions: Each category can have unique completion form questions
Benefits of Categorization
- Targeted Evaluation: Different project types require different assessment criteria
- Improved Organization: Students and mentors can easily find relevant project opportunities
- Flexible Framework: Adapt to various academic disciplines and project methodologies
- Streamlined Management: Coordinators can better track projects by type
Completion Forms Management
The completion forms system standardizes how teams document their project outcomes and ensures consistent data collection across all projects.
Form Structure
Basic Questions (Universal)
These questions appear on ALL project completion forms, regardless of category:
Auto-Filled Fields (populated from database):
- Team ID
- Team Name
- Participants
- Project Category
- Mentor Name
- Mentor Email
Custom Basic Questions: Add additional questions that apply to all projects
Category-Specific Questions
These questions only appear for projects of a specific category. Each category can have its own unique set of questions relevant to that project type.
Question Types Available
Administrators can create various types of questions using the following field types:
- Short Answer: Brief text responses
- Paragraph: Longer text responses
- Number: Numeric input
- Email: Email address validation
- URL: Website link validation
- Phone: Phone number input
- Date: Date picker
- Time: Time selection
- Date & Time: Combined date and time picker
- Dropdown: Single selection from predefined options
- Multiple Choice: Single selection from radio buttons
- Checkboxes: Multiple selections allowed
- Rating (1-5): Numerical rating scale
- File Upload: Document or media file submission
Form Configuration
Creating Questions
For each question, administrators can specify: - Question Label: The main question text - Field Type: Choose from available question types - Placeholder Text: Optional helpful text for users - Required Field: Checkbox to make questions mandatory - Field Description: Optional help text to guide responses
Question Management
- Add Questions: Create new basic or category-specific questions
- Edit Questions: Modify existing questions as needed
- Remove Questions: Delete unnecessary questions
- Required/Optional: Toggle whether responses are mandatory
Workflow Integration
Project Completion Process
- Project Work: Teams complete their assigned projects throughout the session
- Form Submission: When ready to finish, teams access and complete the relevant completion form
- Coordinator Review: Coordinators review submitted forms and project outcomes
- Final Assessment: Completion forms contribute to overall project evaluation
Administrative Benefits
- Standardized Data: Consistent information collection across all projects
- Category Flexibility: Different evaluation criteria for different project types
- Quality Control: Ensure teams provide comprehensive project documentation
- Coordinator Support: Structured data for coordinator review and assessment
Best Practices
Category Design
- Clear Naming: Use descriptive category names that teams will understand
- Logical Organization: Create categories that reflect actual project types in your curriculum
- Color Coordination: Use distinct colors for easy visual identification
- Comprehensive Descriptions: Help teams choose the right category for their projects
Form Design
- Essential Questions: Focus on information that's truly necessary for evaluation
- Clear Instructions: Use descriptive labels and helpful placeholder text
- Balanced Requirements: Mix required and optional questions appropriately
- Category Relevance: Ensure category-specific questions are truly unique to that project type
Data Quality
- Regular Review: Periodically assess whether questions are providing useful information
- Coordinator Feedback: Gather input from coordinators about form effectiveness
- Continuous Improvement: Refine categories and questions based on usage patterns
This system ensures comprehensive project documentation while providing flexibility for different project types and evaluation needs.
Last updated: 2025-11-06