OpenApply

What OpenApply does

OpenApply is a SaaS-based school admissions management and CRM platform that originated in 2013 to serve international K-12 schools and has since expanded to independent schools, new schools, school groups, and the Greater China market. Operated by ManageBac LLC within the Faria education group (alongside sister products ManageBac+, SchoolsBuddy, Pamoja Education, and Atlas), the platform unifies online application management, prospect communication, re-enrolment processing, fee management, alumni engagement, and a built-in CRM module on a web-based stack hosted on AWS, with dedicated Beijing servers for mainland China accounts to satisfy local data residency requirements.

The product integrates with 15+ school information systems (PowerSchool, iSAMS), payment providers (Stripe, PayPal, Alipay, WeChat Pay, CMB), and marketing automation (Finalsite), and offers modular capabilities including the IDAT standardized admissions test with a 3D-avatar interview component, an AI-powered email editor, conversational AI analytics, and AI-powered AssessPrep for IB MYP and DP. OpenApply monetizes through annual per-student subscriptions invoiced to schools (free for families), with multi-year contracts offering 5-10% discounts, 4-6 week implementations, and a sales-led enterprise go-to-market supplemented by conferences, webinars, and content assets such as the International Admissions Bulletin and ROI calculator. The platform serves 800+ schools across 80+ countries and holds ISO/IEC 27001, GDPR, and Chinese Cybersecurity Law compliance certifications.

Name

OpenApply

Legal name

ManageBac LLC

Website

https://openapply.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Short description

OpenApply is a SaaS admissions management and CRM platform serving 800+ international, independent, and school-group customers across 80+ countries, operated by ManageBac LLC within the Faria education group as the enrollment layer of its multi-product suite.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Annual School Subscription: OpenApply is provided as an annual subscription service to schools. Schools are invoiced annually based on their renewal month, with 30-day payment terms. The subscription is priced based on the number of enrolled students, subject to minimum student count requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

OpenApply is a web-based school admissions management system and CRM platform, delivered as annual SaaS subscriptions to international, independent, new and grouped schools. The platform centralises online application processing, prospect communication, re-enrolment, fee management and alumni engagement, and integrates with IDAT admissions testing and the broader Faria Suite of education products. Schools are invoiced annually based on enrolled student count with multi-year discounts available.

Product overview

OpenApply is a unified school admissions management system and CRM platform offered by Faria, operating as the admissions and enrollment component of the Faria Suite of education technology products. The core OpenApply platform integrates natively with sister products ManageBac+ (learning management), SchoolsBuddy (school-to-home operations), Pamoja Education (online IB courses), and Atlas (curriculum planning). OpenApply itself encompasses the core admissions system plus modular capabilities including a built-in CRM module, IDAT admissions testing integration, an International Admissions Bulletin publication, an Admissions Benchmarking Tool, and an ROI Calculator. The platform targets international schools, independent schools, new schools, school groups, and the Greater China market with tailored solutions. Schools can purchase individual services or bundle them across the Faria Suite.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• IDAT (International Diagnostic and Admissions Test): A revolutionary global test for students of all ages, designed for international school admissions testing with curriculum-agnostic assessments covering English, Mathematics, Global Knowledge, and Character evaluation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Schools using OpenApply CRM convert enquiries to enrolments 68% faster than schools not using these features
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration18 records

AI capability8 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FinalsitecoreTechnology or IntegrationSchool marketing automation integration combining inbound marketing tools with streamlined online admissions office. Data from enquiries and applicants in OpenApply flows into Finalsite for use with Messages and Automated Email Workflows. Enables targeted outreach based on funnel stage, year level, location and content engagement.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment integration partner accepting online payments of application and admissions fees in over 110 different currencies.
• PayPalcoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment integration for accepting online admissions fee payments globally.
• AlipaycoreTechnology or IntegrationLocal payment integration for the Chinese market enabling parents to pay application and admissions fees.
• WeChat PaycoreTechnology or IntegrationLocal payment integration for the Chinese market enabling parents to pay via WeChat.
• PowerSchoolcoreTechnology or IntegrationMIS/SIS integration partner for data synchronization with school management systems.
• iSAMScoreTechnology or IntegrationMIS/SIS integration partner for data synchronization with school management systems.
• ManageBac+coreTechnology or IntegrationSeamless Single Sign-On integration with sister product ManageBac+, the all-in-one learning platform for multi-curricula schools. Both part of the Faria Suite.
• IDAT (International Diagnostic and Admissions Test)coreTechnology or IntegrationIntegrated admissions testing allowing applicants to register for IDAT and view results directly within the application checklist. IDAT tests English, Mathematics, Global Knowledge, and Character assessment.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)coreTechnology or IntegrationCloud hosting infrastructure. Global accounts hosted on AWS Montreal, China accounts on dedicated Beijing servers.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Finalsite: School marketing automation and communications platform with deep admissions workflow overlap; integrated bidirectionally with OpenApply and competes for the same international school admissions budget.
• Veracross: Independent/private school platform combining SIS, admissions and CRM; directly comparable to OpenApply's combined admissions/CRM/advancement offering for international and independent schools.
• iSAMS: SIS/MIS purpose-built for international schools covering admissions, academic and pastoral workflows; competes head-on with OpenApply in IB and British-curriculum schools while also integrating bidirectionally.
• SchoolAdmin (Blackbaud): Admissions and enrollment platform for K-12 schools; part of Blackbaud's K-12 suite, competing directly against OpenApply's admissions CRM value proposition.
• Gradelink: Independent school administration and SIS with admissions workflows; competes for the same independent/private school buyers with comparable features.
• SchoolMint: School enrollment and family engagement platform with school-choice lottery roots; overlaps with OpenApply on admissions workflows and parent communication.

Broad incumbents

• PowerSchool: Broad K-12 SIS/MIS incumbent with a native enrollment and admissions module; competes with OpenApply as a platform alternative for international schools while also serving as an integration partner via PowerSchool.
• FACTS (FACTS/Renweb): Large K-12 school management suite with built-in admissions, enrollment and development modules; competes indirectly in the international and independent school admissions segment.
• Blackbaud K-12 (OnSuite / mySchool): Larger education and nonprofit software incumbent with SIS, enrollment and advancement products; competes at the broader platform level for international and independent school IT budgets.

Emerging players

• Skolaro: Cloud school management suite popular in international and IB schools in the Middle East and Asia; emerging competitor in the same niche as OpenApply with overlapping admissions features.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/openapplyteam
• Facebookfacebook.com/OpenApplyTeam
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/openapply

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OpenApply