In order to create student accounts in bulk, you will first need to prepare a CSV file with their basic registration info and upload that CSV into Overgrad. There are a few different ways you can create the CSV:
1. Generating a file from your Student Information System: If you are generating a CSV text file by exporting data from your school or district’s Student Information System (PowerSchool, Tyler SIS, Skyward, Infinite Campus, etc.), follow these steps:
- Select the records you would like to export (i.e. all current students, 10th graders, etc.).
- Select the fields to include in your export file.
- Save the file to your hard drive in a comma-separated value (CSV) text format.
2. Manually preparing the spreadsheet: If you are preparing your text file manually using a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel or Google Docs, follow these steps:
- Create a new spreadsheet. We recommend that you download a template CSV , but you can also create the file on your own. If you are starting with a blank document, place each field in a separate column. For example, one column could be for the student’s last name, another for the student’s first name, and another for the student’s grade level.
- Place each student in his or her own row, and ensure that each required field is filled out for each student.
- 'Save as' the file to your hard drive in a comma-separated value (CSV) text format.
Below is an example CSV that shows how the first row contains the headers and each additional row contains the data each student.
Student ID | Last Name | First Name | High School | Graduation Year | |
12345678 | ckent@example.com | Kent | Clark | PHS | 2017 |
23456789 | llane@example.com | Lane | Lois | PHS | 2017 |
Required Fields
Below are the required fields that you must have for each student in your spreadsheet. If you are exporting from your SIS, these are the fields you should select for each student.
Field | Description |
High School | Name of the high school the student attends. |
Student ID | Unique, district-assigned student ID, which can contain alphanumeric characters. |
Student email address must be entered to add a student to Overgrad. If you do not have a student’s email address, then you cannot create the student account. | |
First Name | Student first name. |
Last Name | Student last name. |
Graduation Year | The year that the student is expected to graduate. The year format is yyyy. |
Optional Fields
Below are the optional fields that you can include for each student in your spreadsheet.
Field | Description |
Birth Date | Student birth date. The date format is mm-dd-yyyy |
Gender | Student gender. Students can be specified as Male and Female, M and F, or with any codes you define (ie male = 01, female = 02) |
Father's Education | Highest level of education attained by student's biological father |
Mother's Education | Highest level of education attained by student's biological mother |
First Generation | a student is considered first generation if they come from a family where their biological parents did not complete a four year degree |
Telephone | Student's primary phone number |
Race/ethnicity | Student's affiliation with a particular group based on racial, cultural, religious or other traits they have in common |
Assigned Counselor | This counselor’s information is sent to colleges with student’s application documents; each student can only have one assigned counselor and it must be an educator at the school. This field will not impact caseloads in Overgrad. |