Populi

populiweb.com
Learning Management System
Weekend Project

Run your whole college

How to Replace Populi

Overview

Populi is an all-in-one SaaS platform designed to run higher education institutions efficiently by integrating student information systems, learning management systems, billing, financial aid, admissions CRM, and reporting tools. The platform serves all stakeholders including students, faculty, staff, admissions representatives, alumni, and board members through a unified system that eliminates the need for multiple disconnected software solutions.

Features

49 features across 14 categories

Administration(5)

Advising

Run what-if scenarios to see how different courses will impact degree completion. Customizeable flags identify struggling students so you can help them get back on track.

Enrollment Agreements

Design enrollment agreements that trigger based on student registration. Require signatures before students continue.

Online Registration

Prerequisites, co-requisites, scheduling, and more. Powerful features make online registration a breeze.

Student Information System

Unified student profile across entire platform, for the entire student life-cycle. Never worry about sharing data again.

Transcripts & Degree Audit

As students take courses, Populi builds transcripts automatically. You and your students see exactly what they've taken and what remains to complete their degrees.

Also in: Notion, Airtable, Smartsheet

Admissions(4)

Application Fees

Integrated application fees allow applicants to pay prior to starting or as the final step when they are ready to submit.

In-App Question & Answer

Applicants can submit questions directly from the application and your team can use in-app messaging to follow up.

Online & Mobile Applications

Easy to design and implement online applications. Applicants can stop and continue anytime. Monitor progress and encourage completion from any device.

References

Request and receive applicant references securely. 100% online.

Alumni(1)

Alumni Relationships

Continue the relationship even after students graduate. Alumni can update their contact info and provide info on current employment.

Automation(1)

Automations

Customizable triggers so that, say, a change in status triggers an email or specified communication plan.

Also in: monday.com, Notion, Airtable

Billing(4)

Automated Student Billing

Automated student billing that is clear, so that your students know exactly what is due.

Exports for Accounting Software

Reconcile for a period and lock transactions. Run summary entries for accounting software or run exports.

Payment Plans & Mobile Payments

Make it easy to pay by offering payment plans, payments from any device, or with opt-in recurring payments automatically drafted.

Tuition and Fee Management

Tuition schedules trigger based on registraion. Fee rules trigger based on preset conditions. Invoice in bulk or individually.

Also in: Insightly, Airtable, Obsidian

Communications(3)

Email Communications

Send 50,000 emails free each month. Additional emails at 0.05¢ per recipient.

SMS, Email & Print Communications

Send personal or bulk SMS, emails or letters and connect with your leads however they prefer.

Text Messaging

Send 5,000 text messages (U.S. and Canadian carriers only) free each month. Additional text messages at 2¢ per text recipient. Additional toll-free texting numbers available for $1 per number per month.

Financial Aid(6)

Aid Packaging & Batch Disbursements

Schedule disbursements using preset timetables. Built-in Pell tables and aid origination fees. Disburse awards in batches and mark them released in COD.

FAFSA Import & Aid Application Processing

Information from the FAFSA feeds directly into profiles and aid applications. Review error codes, aid counselings, and MPNs.

Fully-Integrated Aid Processing

Process financial aid without using EdConnect or a bolt-on solution. Connect directly to DoED from a user-friendly interface.

SAIG Mailbox & COD Integration

Download documents from your SAIG mailbox, sync awards to COD and resolve responses.

SAP Reporting

Track Satisfactory Academic Progress and flag students that are in danger of losing aid eligibility.

Third-Party Aid Integration

Still need to use a third party? The financial aid API lets you connect with servicers so you can pull disbursed awards into student accounts.

Fundraising(5)

Bulk Communications: SMS, Email & Print

Maintain regular contact with your supporters using all channels. Mail merge letters and print envelopes.

Campaign Management

Set goals and create donation pages for specific fundraising projects. Create appeals and track their effectiveness.

Currency Support & Gifts-in-Kind

Accept any currency and record gifts-in-kind.

Donor CRM

Keep notes, schedule calls and follow up on to-dos on donor profiles. View annual giving and print individual and annual giving statements.

Online & Mobile Donations

Make it easy for your supporters to donate wherever they are, from any device. Custom donation pages can be embedded on any site. Let your donors set up recurring monthly gifts via credit card or electronic check.

Infrastructure(2)

Data Transfer

Transfer 200 GB of data (file downloads, media streaming, etc.) free each month. Additional data transfer at 15¢ per GB per month.

File Storage

Store up to 2,000 GB of files (documents, pictures, audio, video, etc.) free each month. Additional storage available at 10¢ per GB per month.

Integration(4)

LTI

Learning Tools Interoperability integration.

SSO (Single Sign-On)

Integrate with your school's systems using SSO.

Web API

Integrate with your school's systems with a powerful API.

Webhooks

Connect systems using webhooks for real-time data synchronization.

Learning(6)

Assignment Submission

Students get secure electronic assignment submission. Faculty get an integrated interface for grading, rubrics, and feedback.

File Management & Video Hosting

Upload files, video, and audio and use them in assignments, lessons, tests, and discussions. Content streaming is optimized for students' devices and locations.

Learning Management System (LMS)

Full-featured Learning Management System integrated with SIS so you don't have to worry about syncing enrollment and grades.

Online Tests & Discussion

Build, administer, and grade tests and quizzes. Save hours of busywork with automated grading for tests and discussions.

Proctoring & Plagiarism Checker

Help students stay responsible with verified proctoring for online tests and plagiarism checks for all kinds of assignments.

Video Conferencing

Stream live video lectures with Zoom and BigBlueButton and save recordings to the cloud for students to access at any time.

Recruitment(2)

CRM

Get information, answer questions, and follow up with inquiries by text, email, or print. Dashboards, task lists, and simple reports keep your team focused on promising leads.

Inquiry Forms

Accept inquiries from your website or social media and follow up using a web interface. Customizable CSS to match your site.

Reporting(4)

Aging Report

Keep tabs on receivables with a built in aging report that tracks invoices that are 30-60-90-120-121+ days overdue.

Application Reporting

Customizeable and save-able reports so that your can keep your team focused on the task at hand.

IPEDS Reporting

Create any kind of custom report you want. Standard reports like IPEDS? We built those in for you.

Pipeline Reporting

See exactly where your leads are at and help them advance. Study your pipeline to improve your process.

Support(2)

Implementation & Data Migration

Implementation, data migration, and training included.

Unlimited Support

From training to technical support to everyday how-tos, customer service is included free for everyone who uses Populi.

Pricing

Standard

$199/mo + $9/mo per billable student
  • All-in-one solution
  • Access for all staff, faculty, and students
  • Implementation, data migration, and training
  • Terrific customer support and every software update
  • File storage (2,000 GB/month free)
  • Text messaging (5,000 texts/month free)
  • Video streaming
  • Unified system
  • Recruit module
  • Admit module
  • Teach module
  • Administer module
  • Aid module
  • Account module
  • Advance module
  • Connect module

Cost Calculator

Keep Paying Populi

Monthly$199/mo
Yearly$2.4k/yr
5-Year Total$11.9k

Build It Yourself

Est. Build Time~4 hrs
Hosting$20/mo
DifficultyVery Easy

Total Cost Comparison

1 YearSave $2.1k
SaaS
$2.4k
DIY
$240
3 YearsSave $6.4k
SaaS
$7.2k
DIY
$720
5 YearsSave $10.7k
SaaS
$11.9k
DIY
$1.2k

DIY hosting estimate based on Vercel + Supabase free/pro tiers (~$20/mo). Build time estimated from 49 features at very easy complexity.

Build vs Buy

Should you build a Populi alternative or buy the subscription? Estimate based on 49 features.

Buy Populi

Monthly cost$1,990/mo
3-year total$71,640
Time to deployDays

Build Your Own

Better Value
Development cost$24,000
Maintenance$360/mo
3-year total$36,960
Dev time~2 months

Building could save ~$34,680 over 3 years.

Estimates based on 49 features and a BuildScore of 5/5. Actual costs vary.

Integrations

8 known integrations

BigBlueButtonCOD (Common Origination and Disbursement)Department of Education (DoED)FAFSAPayment ProcessorsPlagiarism Detection ToolsSAIG MailboxZoom