JTG Bursary Platform — Review & Sign-off Guide

Milestone 1  ·  For Tshidi & Gomolemo  ·  Confidential
Tshidi — Department Head Gomolemo — Bursary Administrator
Progress:
Ready
JTG

Welcome, Tshidi & Gomolemo

This guide walks you through everything you need to do to review the JTG Bursary Platform and give your sign-off that it is ready for use.

You are not here to test code. You are here to confirm that the system works the way you need it to work — from the perspective of the staff who will use it every day, and the applicants who will apply through it.

What you will do

1
Set up a test bursary programme the way you would for a real launch
→
2
Walk through the system as a learner, reviewer, verifier, and sponsor to understand their experience
→
3
Confirm that everything on the sign-off checklist is working correctly
→
4
Log anything that needs attention and give written sign-off

Your accounts at a glance

AccountEmailPasswordWhen you use it
Tshidi — Super Adminsuperadmin@jtg.org.zapassword123Phase 1 account check, Phase 4 audit review, Phase 5 sign-off
Gomolemo — Programme Adminprogrammeadmin@jtg.org.zapassword123All programme setup and management — your main account
Learner — Thabo Mokoenathabo@example.compassword123Role tour: learner applying for a bursary
Learner — Lerato Dlaminilerato@example.compassword123Role tour: waitlisted learner
Reviewer — John Reviewerreviewer@jtg.org.zapassword123Role tour: scoring an application
Verif. Officer — Sarah Verifierverifier@jtg.org.zapassword123Role tour: verifying documents
Sponsor — ABC Corporationsponsor@jtg.org.zapassword123Role tour: sponsor dashboard
Always log out of one account before logging in as another. Look for the Log Out option in the top-right corner of the screen.

Your progress

Checklist items confirmed
0
Total checklist items
0
Issues logged
0
Must-fix issues
0

Your role in testing

As department head and super admin, your focus is on confirming the system is set up correctly and giving final sign-off. You are not expected to run the day-to-day testing — Gomolemo handles that. Your two hands-on moments are Phase 1 (confirming all accounts are ready) and Phase 4 (reviewing the audit trail).

Phase 1 — Confirm all accounts are ready

  1. 1
    Log in with your super admin account. Go to Admin → Users.
    ✓ You can see all the test accounts in the list — Gomolemo, the reviewer, the verification officer, the sponsor, and both learners.
  2. 2
    Check that each account shows the correct role. Gomolemo should show "programme_admin", the learner accounts should show "learner", and so on.
    ✓ All roles are correct. If any account is showing the wrong role, let the developer know before any other testing begins.
  3. 3
    Try toggling one account inactive and then immediately reactivating it. Pick a non-critical account like the reviewer.
    ✓ The status changes instantly. You can reactivate without any issue.

Phase 4 — Review the audit trail

  1. 1
    Go to Admin → Audit Log. Filter by the current date range (the past 4 days of testing).
    ✓ The audit log shows a running record of everything that happened during the testing week.
  2. 2
    Look for a few key entries to spot-check:
    • Gomolemo creating the bursary programme on Phase 1
    • Thabo's application being submitted on Phase 2
    • A document being verified on Phase 2
    • An award being accepted and a contract being signed on Phase 3
    ✓ Each entry shows the action, the account name that performed it, and the date and time. Nothing looks unexplained or out of order.

Phase 5 — Contract check and sign-off

  1. 1
    Go to Admin → Contracts. Search for "Thabo" by name.
    ✓ His signed contract appears. You can see when it was signed and download it. The version history shows it moving from "Generated" to "Signed" with timestamps.
  2. 2
    Once you are satisfied, send a written sign-off email to the developer. State that you have reviewed the system, all checklist items are confirmed, and it may proceed to go-live planning.
    ✓ Use the subject line: "JTG Bursary Platform — UAT Sign-off [date]".

Your role in testing

As bursary administrator, you are running the day-to-day workflow — the same work you will do every time a new bursary cycle opens after go-live. This is the most important part of the review. If anything in the workflow feels wrong, unclear, or more complicated than it should be, note it.

Phase 1 — Set up the bursary programme

  1. 1
    Go to Programmes → Create New. Name it "JTG UAT Bursary 2026". Set the deadline to 3 days from today and the fund amount to R15,000. Under eligibility, restrict the programme to University of Johannesburg as the institution. (Thabo is a UJ student — he will be eligible. Lerato is at TUT — she will not be eligible. This lets us test the filter.)
    ✓ Programme saved and visible in the programme list.
  2. 2
    Create a second programme: "JTG UAT Universal 2026". No eligibility restrictions — open to everyone. Publish it.
    ✓ Both programmes are visible. You can clearly see which one has restrictions.

Phase 1 — Build the application form

  1. 1
    Open "JTG UAT Bursary 2026". Go to the Form Builder. Add these fields:
    • A text field: Motivation letter
    • A file upload field: Supporting document
    • A dropdown: Year of study
    Add a conditional rule: if the applicant selects "Postgraduate" from the Year of study dropdown, a new field called Supervisor name should appear. For any other selection, it stays hidden. Save the form and click Publish Form.
    ✓ The form is published. In the preview, the Supervisor name field appears and disappears correctly when you change the dropdown selection.
  2. 2
    Add the required document checklist: ID Document, Academic Transcript, Proof of Income. Mark all three as required.
    ✓ The document checklist shows three required items.

Phase 1 — Scoring rubric, auto-assignment, and contract template

  1. 1
    Go to Rubrics. Create a rubric with three criteria:
    • Academic merit — 40%
    • Financial need — 35%
    • Motivation — 25%
    Confirm the percentages add up to 100%.
    ✓ Rubric saved. Total shows 100%.
  2. 2
    Go to Auto-assignment rules. Create a rule: when an application moves to "Approved for review" status, automatically assign it to the reviewer account (reviewer@jtg.org.za).
    ✓ Rule saved and showing as active.
  3. 3
    Go to Contract Templates. Create a template with merge fields for the learner's name, the award amount, and the programme name. Save and preview it.
    ✓ The preview shows clearly labelled placeholders. When a contract is generated, these will be filled with real data.

Phase 2 — After document verification

Before running these steps, complete the Verification Officer role tour (Section 4.3 in the Role Tours tab). Sarah Verifier needs to verify Thabo's documents first.
  1. 1
    Go to Admin → Applications. Find Thabo's application. It should now show status "Under review" — updated automatically after Sarah verified his documents.
    ✓ Status updated automatically. You did not need to change it manually.

Phase 3 — Move to review and assign the reviewer

  1. 1
    Find Thabo's application. Change its status to "Approved for review".
    ✓ The auto-assignment rule fires. John Reviewer receives a notification. His name appears on the application as the assigned reviewer.
  2. 2
    To also test the manual assignment path: use the manual assign option on a second test application to assign the reviewer directly.
    ✓ Reviewer assigned. Notification sent.

Phase 3 — After the reviewer has scored the application

Complete the Reviewer role tour first (Role Tours tab). John Reviewer needs to score and submit before you proceed here.
  1. 1
    Open Thabo's application. You should see the reviewer's scores. Add a committee recommendation (e.g. "Recommended for award — strong academic profile").
    ✓ Recommendation saved. Scores are unchanged.
  2. 2
    Go to Admin → Shortlist. Confirm applications are ranked by weighted score. Select Thabo's application and shortlist it.
    ✓ Application moved to shortlisted. Ranking is correct.
  3. 3
    Create Award 1 for Thabo: R15,000, expiry date 3 days out.
    ✓ Thabo receives an award offer notification. The offer letter PDF is generated.
  4. 4
    Create Award 2 for Thabo (for the decline test). Add Lerato to the waitlist for Award 2.
    ✓ Award 2 created. Lerato is placed on the waitlist.

Phase 3–4 — Contracts and data requests

  1. 1
    Once Thabo has signed his contract (Learner role tour), go to Admin → Contracts. Search for Thabo.
    ✓ His signed contract appears. You can see the timestamp and download a copy. The version history shows Generated → Signed.
  2. 2
    Go to Admin → Data Subject Requests. Find Thabo's data access request and click Acknowledge.
    ✓ Thabo receives a notification. His data export is available to download from this screen.

Phase 4 — Deadline reminders

  1. 1
    Ask the developer to briefly adjust the programme deadline to tomorrow. Then ask them to trigger the deadline reminder process.
    ✓ Reminder emails are sent to the correct applicants. Running the process a second time does not send duplicate emails.
What to look for: Does the application journey feel clear and straightforward? Is it obvious what the learner needs to do at each step?

Log in and look around

  1. 1
    Log in as Thabo. Look at the learner dashboard. What is the first thing a learner sees?
    ✓ The dashboard is clear. There is a logical next step visible — not a confusing list of options.
  2. 2
    Go to Programmes. Confirm "JTG UAT Bursary 2026" is visible in the listing.
    ✓ Programme visible with name, deadline, and fund amount displayed clearly.

Apply for the bursary

  1. 1
    Click Apply. On the Year of study dropdown, select Undergraduate. Confirm the Supervisor name field is not visible.
    ✓ Supervisor name field is hidden.
  2. 2
    Change Year of study to Postgraduate. Confirm the Supervisor name field now appears.
    ✓ Field appears immediately. The conditional logic is working.
  3. 3
    Fill in the rest of the form and click Save as Draft. Log out. Log back in and open the draft.
    ✓ All answers are still there after logging out and back in.
  4. 4
    Submit the application.
    ✓ A confirmation message appears. Thabo receives a submission confirmation email.

Upload documents

  1. 1
    Go to Documents. Upload any PDF for each of the three required document types: ID Document, Academic Transcript, and Proof of Income.
    ✓ All three appear in the list as "Pending verification". The checklist shows 3/3 submitted.

Accept the award and sign the contract (return to this account on Phase 3)

Return to this account on Phase 3, after Gomolemo has created the award offers.
  1. 1
    Go to My Awards. Check the award offer for R15,000.
    ✓ Award offer is visible with the correct amount and expiry date.
  2. 2
    Download the offer letter PDF. Open it.
    ✓ The letter shows Thabo's real name and R15,000. No placeholder text like {learner_name} is visible.
  3. 3
    Click Accept award on Award 1.
    ✓ Status changes to Accepted. A contract appears in My Contracts. Thabo receives a confirmation email.
  4. 4
    Click Decline award on Award 2.
    ✓ Status changes to Declined. This triggers Lerato's promotion from the waitlist.
  5. 5
    Go to My Contracts. Open and sign the contract.
    ✓ The contract shows Thabo's name and the correct amount. After signing, the status shows "Signed" with a timestamp.
  6. 6
    Go to Privacy / Data Rights. Click "Request my data".
    ✓ A reference number appears confirming the request was submitted.
What to look for: Does the eligibility filter work? Does a waitlisted applicant get notified when they are promoted?

Eligibility check

  1. 1
    Log in as Lerato. Go to Programmes.
    ✓ "JTG UAT Bursary 2026" should NOT be visible — or if it is visible, clicking Apply shows a clear message saying she is ineligible. "JTG UAT Universal 2026" should be visible.
    ⚠ If Lerato can apply to the restricted programme without any restriction message, log it as an issue.

Waitlist promotion (return here on Phase 3 after Thabo declines)

  1. 1
    After Thabo has declined Award 2, come back to Lerato's account. Check My Applications.
    ✓ Lerato's status has updated — she has been promoted from the waitlist. She can see an award offer is now available.
What to look for: Is it clear which documents are waiting for review? Is the verify/reject process easy to use?
Run this tour after Thabo has uploaded all three documents in the Learner tour above.

Verify documents

  1. 1
    Log in as Sarah Verifier. Go to the verification dashboard.
    ✓ Thabo's application appears with three documents pending review.
  2. 2
    Open Thabo's application. Verify each of the three documents one by one.
    ✓ Each document is marked Verified. Once all three are done, Thabo's application status automatically moves to "Under review" — no manual trigger needed.
  3. 3
    To see the rejection path: if a second test application is available, reject one document on it. Write a short reason (e.g. "File is unreadable — please re-upload a clear scan").
    ✓ The rejection reason is saved. The learner will be able to read it in their portal.
What to look for: Is the conflict of interest process clear? Is the scoring rubric intuitive? What does a reviewer experience?
Run this tour after Gomolemo has moved Thabo's application to "Approved for review" (Gomolemo's Phase 3 steps).

Score the application

  1. 1
    Log in as John Reviewer. Look at the reviewer dashboard.
    ✓ Thabo's application appears in the review queue. There is a conflict of interest declaration banner prominently displayed.
  2. 2
    Declare no conflict of interest on Thabo's application.
    ✓ The declaration is recorded. The scoring screen unlocks.
  3. 3
    Enter scores for each rubric criterion: Academic merit, Financial need, Motivation. Watch the weighted total update as you type.
    ✓ The weighted total updates automatically. The calculation is correct.
  4. 4
    Click Submit scores.
    ✓ Scores are locked. The edit option is no longer available — scores cannot be changed once submitted.

Conflict of interest path

  1. 1
    On the second test application, declare a conflict of interest.
    ✓ The application disappears from the active review queue. The programme admin will see it flagged for reassignment.
What to look for: What does a funder see? Is their view appropriate — useful information without exposing private applicant data?
Run this tour after awards have been created on Phase 3.

Explore the sponsor view

  1. 1
    Log in as ABC Corporation. Look at the dashboard.
    ✓ The programme dashboard shows "JTG UAT Bursary 2026" with application counts and a funding summary. The information is high-level and clear.
  2. 2
    Click into an application to see the detail view.
    ✓ You can see a summary. Private personal information — like the learner's ID number or detailed financial records — is not visible here.
  3. 3
    Check the awards section.
    ✓ Awards are listed with the correct statuses: offered, accepted, declined.
  4. 4
    In the browser address bar, type /admin/dashboard and press Enter.
    ✓ Access is denied. You are redirected to the sponsor area. The sponsor cannot reach the admin section.
    ⚠ If the admin page loads for the sponsor account, log this as a must-fix issue.

Tick each item as you confirm it during testing. All items must be ticked (or marked N/A with a reason) before sign-off can be given. Use the Notes column for any observations.

Confirmed
0
Total items
0

Registration & Access

0/4 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Sends an email verification link when a new account is registered.
Requires email verification before a new account can be used.
Assigns each user to the correct part of the system based on their role.
Prevents a user from accessing a portal they are not supposed to see.

Programme Setup

0/7 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Allows a programme to be created with a name, deadline, fund amount, and eligibility criteria.
Shows the restricted programme only to eligible learners — ineligible learners cannot see or apply.
Shows a universal (open) programme to all learners regardless of their profile.
Saves the application form with conditional field logic (a field appearing only when a specific answer is chosen).
Allows a scoring rubric to be created with weighted criteria summing to 100%.
Automatically assigns the correct reviewer when an application reaches "Approved for review" status.
Saves a contract template with correctly labelled merge fields.

Applications

0/5 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Allows a learner to save an application as a draft and resume it — including after logging out and back in.
Sends a confirmation email to the learner when their application is submitted.
Allows a learner to upload all three required documents.
Shows the learner clearly which documents have been submitted and which are outstanding.
Sends the learner a notification when their application status changes.

Document Verification

0/4 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Shows the verification officer a queue of applications waiting for document review.
Allows a document to be marked as verified.
Allows a document to be rejected with a written reason that the learner can see.
Automatically moves an application to "Under review" once all three documents are verified, without the admin manually triggering it.

Review & Awards

0/8 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Requires a conflict of interest declaration before a reviewer can score an application.
Calculates the weighted score automatically as the reviewer enters scores.
Prevents a reviewer from changing their scores after submission.
Ranks shortlisted applications by their weighted score.
Sends the learner a notification when they receive an award offer.
Generates the offer letter PDF with the learner's real details — no placeholder text.
Allows a learner to accept an award and generates a contract with correct details.
Automatically promotes the next person from the waitlist when an award is declined.

Contracts, POPIA & Audit

0/6 confirmed
✓The system correctly…Notes
Generates a signed contract with the learner's name, amount, and programme name correctly filled in.
Records the date and time when a contract is signed.
Allows the admin to search for a contract by learner name in the contract repository.
Processes a data access request (POPIA) and allows the data export to be downloaded.
Sends deadline reminder emails without sending duplicates to the same recipient.
Records all significant actions in the audit log with the correct user and timestamp.

Issues Log

Use this to note anything that doesn't look right. You don't need to be technical — just describe what you were doing and what you saw. The developer will review everything logged here.

Issues logged
0
Must fix before go-live
0
Should improve
0
Fixed
0

Must fix before go-live — something is wrong or showing incorrect information  ·  Should improve — it works but could be clearer  ·  Minor — cosmetic only (spelling, layout)

# Phase What I was doing What happened / what looked wrong How serious? Status
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Phase 1 — Set up the bursary programme
Phase 1
~5 min
Developer confirms all accounts are ready and the system is accessible.
(~15 min)
Tshidi — Admin account check. Confirm all accounts are visible and correctly set up.
(~30 min)
Gomolemo — Set up both programmes, build the form, configure the rubric, auto-assignment, document checklist, and contract template.
Both programmes published. Form, rubric, and auto-assignment all active before moving to Phase 2.
Phase 2 — Learner applications and document verification
Phase 2
~15–25 min
Learner tour Part 1 — Log in as Thabo. Apply for the bursary, save and resume draft, submit, upload three documents.
(~20 min)
Waitlisted Learner tour — Log in as Lerato. Confirm the eligibility filter is working.
(~15 min)
Verification Officer tour — Log in as Sarah Verifier. Verify all three of Thabo's documents.
(~15 min)
Gomolemo — Confirm application status updated automatically after verification.
All documents verified. Application at "Under review". Eligibility filter confirmed.
Phase 3 — Review, awards, and contract signing
Phase 3
~15 min
Gomolemo — Move Thabo's application to "Approved for review". Confirm auto-assignment fires.
(~15 min)
Reviewer tour — Log in as John Reviewer. Declare no conflict. Score the application. Lock and submit.
(~20 min)
Gomolemo — Add committee recommendation, shortlist, create Award 1 and Award 2, place Lerato on waitlist.
(~15 min)
Learner tour Part 2 — Log in as Thabo. Accept Award 1, sign contract, decline Award 2. Check Lerato's account for waitlist promotion.
(~20 min)
Sponsor tour — Log in as ABC Corporation. Check the dashboard, application view, and access control.
Phase 4 — Closing steps and issue review
Phase 4
~15 min
Gomolemo — Acknowledge Thabo's data access request. Test deadline reminders with the developer.
(~15 min)
Tshidi — Review the audit trail. Check the contract repository.
Review the Issues Log together. Decide what must be fixed before go-live, what can wait, and what is minor. Share the list with the developer.
Phase 5 — Final check and sign-off
Phase 5
--
Developer resolves must-fix issues. Re-run only the affected steps to confirm fixes.
Tshidi — Complete the sign-off checklist. Send written sign-off email to the developer.
Note
Minor issues and "should improve" items do not block sign-off. The only requirement is zero outstanding must-fix issues.

Your overall assessment

Answer these questions after completing the walkthrough and role tours.

QuestionYour answer
Does the application journey feel clear and straightforward from the learner's perspective?
Is the programme admin workflow efficient enough for daily use by the bursary team?
Are emails and notifications sending correctly and worded appropriately?
Is there anything in the system that would confuse a staff member or applicant without training?
Any features you expected to see that are missing or not working as expected?

Sign-off declaration

Complete this when all must-fix issues are resolved and all checklist items are ticked.

SystemJTG Bursary Platform — Milestone 1
UAT completed
Outstanding issues (if any)

Tshidi — Department Head
Signature & date
Gomolemo — Bursary Administrator
Signature & date

Email sign-off is perfectly acceptable. Send to the developer with subject line: "JTG Bursary Platform — UAT Sign-off [date]".