Welcome to NextTier!

Your Student’s Home for College & Career Readiness;

Your Window into the Process

NextTier Education is a web and mobile app that your student will use to organize and manage her/his college and career exploration, planning, and application process. There are a lot of great resources and tools available to you and your student in NextTier.

With your parent account, you’ll have access to NextTier’s extensive database for career, college, and scholarship research. You’ll also be able to use tools to encourage and advise your student along the way.

Let’s get logged in so you can start!If you didn’t receive an email or have trouble logging in, please email .

Logging In

A NextTier account has been created for you. Once you log in, you’ll see that you are already connected your student(s). Logging in is easy, follow these steps:

  1. Look for an email from NextTier Education with the subject “Welcome to NextTier!”
  2. Read the full email and click the Set Your Password button.
  3. On the web page that opens, type a password where it says “New password” and “Confirm new password.” Your password must be at least eight characters long.
  4. Click the Reset Password button.
  5. Then, on the log in screen, enter your email and new password, and click the Log In button.

You’ll be taken to your NextTier Dashboard.

Dashboard

Once you log in you’ll be taken to your Dashboard. Your Dashboard has two primary sections My Team Members (top) and the Activity Feed (bottom).

My Team Members & Activity Feed

You’ll see that you’ve already been connected to your student(s) in My Team Members. Your student’s actions in NextTier will be displayed in your Activity Feed(the Welcome Carousel will display instead of the Activity Feed if your student does not have activity yet.)

Navigation Bar

On a computer browser you’ll also notice the navigation bar (navbar) on the left side. Click the white NextTier logo (white graduation cap) to expand the navbar and reveal the names of the various pages. On a mobile device, click the white NextTier logo to open the navbar. The navbar will help you get from page to page in NextTier.

Tasks

Click “Tasks” (clipboard icon) from the navbar to go to the Tasks Page. The Tasks Page provides your student with a series of easy-to-use checklists that guide them through each step of college and career readiness process. Here you can learn about what’s next for your student and view their progress.

Task Lists & Task CardsYou can select from several Task Lists that help you find information and upcoming requirements for different parts of the college and career readiness process.On a computer browser the different lists will be on your left. On a mobile browser click the filter icon (upside down triangle) in the upper right to select a Task List. The list of Tasks will change based on Task List you select.
NextTier’s Task Lists are:
  • All Tasks – The complete list of tasks your student will need to complete.
  • Universal Tasks – Tasks that are relevant to college and career readiness in general.
  • Counselor Tasks – Custom tasks created and assigned to your student by her/his counselor(s).
  • Survey Tasks - Interactive surveys, assigned to your student by her/his counselor.
  • Scholarship Tasks – For seniors only. When seniors add a scholarship, corresponding tasks are assigned.
  • College Specific Tasks – Tasks that pertain to the admissions process for a college.
  • Archived Tasks – Tasks from past years can be found here.

Each Task is presented on a Task Card that expands when you click it. The four key elements of a Task Card are:

  • Progress Button - The circular button on the left. If the button is blue and shows a start button, your student has not marked this Task as in progress yet. If the button is yellow and shows an ellipsis (...), your student has marked this Task as in progress. If the button is green and shows a checkmark, your student has marked this Task as complete.
  • Description – An explanation of what the Task is and important links if applicable.
  • Attachments – You or your student can attach files that are relevant to the Task. Your student and her/his counselor connections can download the file and attach a different one.
  • Notes – Write notes to add information or have conversations with your student and her/his counselor. Your student and their counselor connections can read your notes and write notes of their own.

Write a Note

  1. Click on the Universal Tasks List and review the Tasks your student needs to complete.
  2. When you find one that you are interested in, click on it to expand the Task Card.
  3. Click where you see “Leave a note for yourself and/or your team,” and type your note.
  4. Click the Add button.

Colleges

Click “Colleges” (building with columns icon) from the navbar to go to the Colleges Page. Here you can access NextTier’s database of 2- and 4- year colleges (over 2,800 colleges!).

Search, Filter, & Research

You can use the search bar and filters to find colleges. On a computer browser the search bar and filters will be on the left side. On a mobile browser click the filter icon (upside down triangle) in the upper right. The list of colleges will change based on your search and filter criteria. Clicking on a college’s name takes you to that college’s Detail Page, where you can find stats and helpful links to learn about the college.

There are three tabs at the top of the Colleges Page. Click on the tabs to see different lists.

  • All – The full, searchable/filterable list of colleges.
  • Bookmarked – The list of colleges you’ve bookmarked.
  • Recommended – The colleges you’ve recommended to your student(s).

Recommend a College

  1. On the All Tab, use the search bar to find a college.
  2. Click on a college’s name to go to its Detail Page and do further research. Scroll through the page to review the information and click on the links to find even more.
  3. If you’re satisfied, scroll back to the top and click the Recommend button. A window will pop-up, and the name of your student(s) will appear; click on her/his name to recommend the college.

Your student will need to accept the recommendation.

Scholarships

Click “Scholarships” (dollar sign icon) from the navbar to go to the Scholarships Page. Here, you can access and explore NextTier’s scholarship database -- comprised of over 20,000 scholarships.

Search, Filter, & Research

You can use the search bar and filters to find scholarships. On a computer browser the search bar and filters will be on the left side. On a mobile browser click the filter icon (upside down triangle) in the upper right. The list of scholarships will change based on your search and filter criteria. Click on a scholarship’s name to reveal more information and a link to the scholarship’s application.

There are two tabs at the top of the Scholarships Page. Click on the tabs to see different lists.

  • All – The full, searchable/filterable list of scholarships (more than 20,000 listed).
  • Bookmarked – The list of scholarships you’ve bookmarked.

Recommend a Scholarship

  1. From the All Tab, use the search bar or filters to find scholarships you’re interested in.
  2. Click on a scholarship’s name in the results list to expand the Scholarship Card. Click on the General, Academic, Demographic, and Contact Tabs to learn more about the scholarship.
  3. Click on the View Application button at the bottom of the Scholarship Card to go to the scholarship application website.
  4. If you’re satisfied, click the plus icon in the top right of the Scholarship Card to recommend the scholarship to you student(s). In the pop-up, click the name of the student you’d like to recommend the scholarship to.

TIP: Checking “None” in the Institutions Filterwithin the Academic Filter Category means that scholarships you find will be broadly applicable - not solely usable at specific colleges.Also, make sure to try both keyword searches and filters to find the most results.

Careers

Click “Careers” (briefcase icon) from the navbar to go to the Careers Page. NextTier’s Careers Page lists over 1,000 career options associated with nearly 60,000 job titles.

Search, Filter, & Research

You can use the search bar and filters to find career options for your student. On a computer browser the search bar and filters will be on the left side. On a mobile browser click the filter icon (upside down triangle) in the upper right. The list of careers will change based on your search and filter criteria. Click on a career’s name to go to the Career Detail Page and learn more about the career.

There are two tabs at the top of the Careers Page. Click on the tabs to see different lists.

  • All – The full, searchable/filterable list of careers.
  • Bookmarked – The list of careers you’ve bookmarked.

Bookmark Careers

  1. From the All Tab, use the search bar or filters to find careers you’re interested in.
  2. Click on a career’s name in the results list to go to the career’s Detail Page. Review the information on the five tabs (Overview, Tasks & Activities, Knowledge & Skills, Styles & Values, Wages & Employment).
  3. If you’re satisfied, click bookmark icon in the top right of the Career Detail Page to add the career to your Bookmarked List. Come back to the career to discuss it with your student later.

Messaging

Communication is really important as your student prepares for life after high school. NextTier makes it easy to communicate with your student with messaging.

Message Your Student

  1. Open NextTier’s Messaging Panel by clicking “Messaging” (chat bubble icon) from the navbar. The Messaging Panel will slide out from the right side.
  2. Click into the the search bar at the top of the Messaging Panel and type your student’s name (as it appears in My Team Members). Then, click on her/his name in the search results.
  3. Type your message where it says “New message” (bottom of the panel) and press enter (keyboard) or the paper airplane icon (mobile web).
  4. Click outside of the Messaging Panel to exit messaging mode.

Profile

Click the profile icon (group of three blue silhouettes) at the very bottom of the navbar to go to your Profile Page. Here, you can add alternate contact information, adjust your notification settings, and change your password.

One IMPORTANT NOTE, is that if you wish to change the primary email address in the Contact Information Section you should let your student’s school know. Your student’s school and NextTier work together to set up student and parent accounts and connections. Changing your email address here may affect your account and connection with your student.

You may add alternate contact information, change your password, and update your notification settings.

Change Your Password

  1. Click on the Change Password Section.
  2. Where it says “Current Password” type the password you used to sign in.
  3. Type a new password where it says “New Password” and “Confirm New Password.” Your password must be at least eight characters long.
  4. Click the Update button.

Add Your Personal Email

To receive email notifications to your personal email address, add an alternate email address.

  1. Click on the Contact Information Section.
  2. Under “Alternate Contact Information,” make sure that Contact Type shows “Email.” If it doesn’t show “Email,” click on the selector arrow and choose “Email.”
  3. Enter your personal email and click the Update button.

Set Your Notification Preferences

Make sure you are receiving the notifications you want.

  1. Click on the Notification Settings Section.
  2. If a notification type’s icon is colored in blue, it is on. If it is grey, it is off.
  3. Click the icons to set your notification preferences.