OpenApply offers a Public API for schools to access their data and files securely. Whether you have a dedicated programming team (or more likely, a talented one-man-band!) in house or are using third parties to help develop your infrastructure, you can integrate with OpenApply through the Public API.
Faria Education Group offer support for the Public API from directly within the Settings of your OpenApply account under: Settings > Develop > Public API or API Documentation
In addition to a full suite of public APIs, we also offer support articles demonstrating how to use them to achieve frequently requested tasks.
Below are a few examples of instructions.
Exploring Faria Education Group APIs: Integrations Portal
Faria Education Group offers robust APIs for OpenApply, ManageBac and SchoolsBuddy, supporting a range of integration and automation needs. Faria now recommends starting with the Integrations Portal for a streamlined, browser-based experience - including live endpoint testing with your own credentials.
Integrations Portal: The Recommended Approach
The Integrations Portal is designed for interactive API exploration and live testing, directly in your browser.
Key Benefits:
- No software installation: Everything runs in your browser.
- Live “Test it” button: Instantly try out API endpoints and see real responses.
- Secure credential management: Authenticate using your own API keys or OAuth credentials.
- Immediate feedback: Troubleshoot and understand API behavior in real time.
How to Get Started:
- Visit the Integrations Portal.
- Select your product (OpenApply, ManageBac, SchoolsBuddy).
- Browse the API documentation and choose an endpoint.
- Click the “Test it” button.
- Enter your authentication credentials (see below for setup).
- Fill in required parameters and submit the request.
- View the live response directly in the portal.
Authentication Setup:
-
OpenApply v3:
- Go to OpenApply > Integrations > Public API.
- Enable the public API and add a new OAuth application to generate your Client ID and Secret.
- OpenApply v3 API Authentication Guide
-
ManageBac+ v2:
- Go to ManageBac > Settings > Integrations > API Access.
- Generate or retrieve your API Key.
- ManageBac+ v2 API Authentication Guide
-
SchoolsBuddy:
- Go to SchoolsBuddy > Settings > Api Manger > Click "Add"
- Generate your Client ID and Secret
-
SchoolsBuddy API Authentication Guide
How to retrieve student-linked files from OpenApply via API
Problem: OpenApply is used as the entry point in the admissions process, where parents upload passport photos, and other details. You would like to be able to store those assets in another system, or perhaps upload them into your school's SIS or MIS platform.
Solution: OpenApply has an exporting feature that will allow you to do a wholesale export of all files, but if you looking for an automated process, you can use the APIs to achieve this.
Notes:
- API access enabled in OpenApply (admin permissions required)
- OAuth 2.0 Client ID and Secret generated in OpenApply:
- Familiarity with API requests and authentication
Steps Involved:
- We support using the API to get all student information, including filtering, and retrieving updates since the last call. This student information includes a secret link to PDF files submitted to application form.
- You can then securely download these assets, save to disk, or upload to the target platform.
Retrieve Student Files via API
To export files for a specific student:
GET /api/v3/students/{id}/files- Replace
{id}with the student's OpenApply database ID. - Use the
since_dateparameter to fetch only files updated since your last export.
Example:
curl -X GET "https://api.openapply.com/api/v3/students/12345/files?since_date=2026-01-01" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN"
The response includes metadata and secure URLs for each file, which you can download and process as needed.
Automate and Schedule Exports
- Use the
since_dateparameter to fetch only new or updated files. - Schedule your integration to run at regular intervals (e.g., nightly) to keep your target system up to date.
- Store API credentials securely and rotate them as needed.
How to download custom fields and search by custom fields
Problem: With OpenApply, schools can create an unlimited amount of custom fields that can be populated with valuable data. While OpenApply also supports extensive exporting features, in order to automate processes, how to use the API to help manage our data workflows?
Solution: This article shows how to find information in custom fields using the OpenApply API with v3 authentication. The students endpoint includes all the custom fields and their values, if they are present for that student. In addition, you can use a search endpoint to retrieve the students whose custom values match a string.