Immigration & Study Abroad Case Management Software

Project Overview Minnesota State is requesting proposals from qualified vendors to provide and implement a cloud‑hosted (SaaS) International Student & Scholars Services (ISSS) and Study Abroad and Away case management system/solution for Minnesota State University, Mankato. The system must centralize, facilitate, and manage immigration services and records for F‑1 international students, J‑1 exchange visitors, and students participating in study abroad and study away programs in a US Higher Education setting. The software must integrate with SEVIS daily to update all related data fields to ensure compliance of F-1 and J-1 records. We are seeking a five-year service contract which would entail and support the software program through implementation of the MinnState Systems conversion to WorkDay as its primary student information system (SIS). Minnesota State seeks a mature, fully developed product currently in use by an existing client base capable of providing references that speadk to the needs required in this RFP. The platform should have evidence of continuous operation in the United State for a period of at least five (5) years. The platform must provide configurable, role-based dashboards that allow advisors, directors, and leadership to view real-time caseload metrics, compliance status, upcoming deadlines, and application pipeline data without running manual reports. The solution must provide the flexibility to be tailored to meet the University’s specific operational needs and operate independently of Minnesota State’s internal IT resources and should not require institutional support for system hosting, maintenance, or updates. At this time, Minnesota State is not interested in supporting the development of a custom‑built or from‑scratch system; instead, the University intends to adopt a stable, configurable platform that can be adapted without custom development. Technical/Functional Requirements Minnesota State University, Mankato seeks one unified SaaS solution to manage both ISSS (F‑1/J‑1 immigration) and Study Abroad/Away case management. Consolidating these functions under a single vendor reduces operational fragmentation, improves data accuracy, strengthens compliance, and enhances the student experience. A unified system minimizes IT complexity, lowers the total cost of ownership, and provides a single integration point for ISRS and the future Workday environment. This approach supports cross‑program analytics, centralized workflows, and consistent institutional risk management for all global mobility activities. Due to the sensitive nature of immigration and education record data, vendors must demonstrate compliance with U.S. laws applicable to higher education, agree to U.S. governing law and jurisdiction, and meet data security, confidentiality, accessibility requirements and terms and conditions. The proposed immigration and study abroad case management system must meet the following technical and functional specifications: 1. Cloud-Based SaaS Solution a. The system must operate as a fully hosted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform requiring no on‑premises server infrastructure. b. The flow of data between SEVIS and the Saas must be bi-directional. The flow of data between the student records system and the SaaS must be unidirectional, from the student records system to the Saas. c. The solution should provide regular backups and assurance that data is archived and stored in a way to maintain records accuracy. 2. Support for F‑1 and J‑1 Immigration Case Management a. The system must support immigration services for F‑1 international students and J‑1 exchange visitors from the creation of the initial SEVIS record through the completion/closure of that record. b. Functionality must include case workflows, document management, alerts, compliance task tracking, immigration deadlines, and reporting. c. The platform must support embedded digital signatures for ISSS workflows – including electronic and digital signatures for I-20s and DS-2019s. 3. Study Abroad and Away Case Management a. The system must support administrative processes for students participating in study abroad and study away programs, including application management, risk management, and travel tracking. Students will need to be able to search for programs without having to log in to the site. b. The platform must provide built-in functionality that enables students to upload documents, complete and track application milestones, support embedded digital signatures for CGE workflows, review and submit surveys. c. The platform must provide built-in progress audit functionality that enables staff to track and verify student completion of required milestones such as application steps, pre-departure requirements, compliance tasks, and immigration deadlines – with visual indicators and automated notifications for incomplete items across study abroad workflows. d. The study abroad module must include embedded, dynamic cost sheets within program brochures and application workflows that allow staff to publish itemized cost breakdowns by program and term and allow students to view and reference directly within the platform, without downloading separate documents. e. The study abroad module must include embedded, real-time data analytics which can be utilized and accessed both within and outside of the platform (desirable). 4. SEVIS Batching Compatibility a. The vendor’s product must be fully compatible with SEVIS batching requirements, supporting automated and manual batch uploads and downloads. b. The vendor must demonstrate an uninterrupted track record of maintaining SEVIS batch and real-time reporting compliance through multiple SEVP system updates and federal policy changes, with institutional references that can attest to minimal compliance disruption during those transitions. 5. Compatibility with Enterprise Systems (ISRS and Workday) a. The system must integrate with: i. Minnesota State’s current student records system (ISRS) ii. The future enterprise system (Workday) once implemented b. Integrations must support secure data exchange (e.g., demographics, enrollment, registration, holds, status, etc.). 6. Data Security Documentation a. The vendor must be able to provide a copy of a complete HECVAT 4.x (Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit) and/or a SOC 2 Type II report demonstrating their data security practices. b. Provide evidence of protection against ransomware, malware, and other malicious software and hardware threats in an increased environment of data breaches and security concerns. 4. 7. Single Sign-On (SSO) Integration a. The solution must integrate with Minnesota State Mankato’s Single Sign‑On (SSO) authentication service using either Azure Active Directory or OpenID . 8. No‑Code Customization Tools a. The platform must provide tools that allow non‑programmers to build and modify forms, questionnaires, workflows, and business rules without requiring coding. 9. Cross‑Platform and Cross‑Browser Compatibility a. The solution must be accessible and fully functional on all major operating systems and browsers, including: i. Windows, macOS, iOS, Android ii. Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge b. A mobile‑friendly or mobile‑responsive interface is required to support a self-serve portal experience for students. 10. Subdomain registration a. Subdomain registration cannot require Minnesota State University, Mankato to modify the campus CAA records for parent domain mnsu.edu, due to our security policy. Minnesota State University, Mankato can coordinate with the vendor to issue their own vendor Certificate Authority signed certificate, with CAA records in place under the vendor’s own domain. 11. Email authentication a. The solution must leverage either OAuth authentication or DKIM/SPF records for email authentication when sending emails on behalf of an @mnsu.edu address. 12. Accessibility Compliance a. The solution must comply with current national accessibility standards, including WCAG 2.1 and Section 508, to ensure usability for individuals with disabilities. Selection Process The selection process includes: IT Solutions Architect, Dean of Global Education, Director of Kearney International Center, Director of Center for Global Engagement, Director of International Recruitment and Communication. This group will evaluate the proposals and make the final decision. Evaluation Factors The following factors and their identified weight will be used to evaluate the responses: Minnesota State Terms and Conditions Adherence to Minnesota Sate Terms and Conditions 5% Work Plan A description of the deliverables to be provided by the vendor along with a detailed work plan that identifies the major tasks to be accomplished. 25% Price/Value Price (or price in relation to level of service provided) 30% Qualifications of Respondent and its personnel Qualifications of Vendor and its personnel. 20% Completeness, thoroughness and detail of the response Completeness, thoroughness and detail of the response as reflected by the proposal's discussions and coverage of all elements. 15% Accessibility A completed response to the linked Voluntary Product/Service Accessibility Template(s)®(VPAT) for all software, hardware, and websites as applicable (guidance available in the ‘Products’ tab). The response must contain adequate information to evaluate the responsiveness to the accessibility standards (e.g., a completed VPAT or equivalent). 5% Total: 100 Selection and Implementation Timeline Thursday April 16, 2026 Publishes RFP notice on MinnState.edu/Vendors webpage Tuesday, April 28, 2026; 2:00 PM CT Deadline for Vendors to submit clarifying questions on the RFP Q&A Board. Tuesday, May 5, 2026 Deadline to publish responses to RFP questions on the RFP Q&A Board. Thursday, May 14, 2026; 2:00 PM CT Deadline for RFP proposal submissions May-June, 2026 Vendor(s) selected and notified Minnesota State reserves the right to name a date which all responding Respondents will be invited to present demonstrations or participate in an interview. Minnesota State does not agree to reach a decision by any certain date although it is hoped the evaluation and selection will be completed by the contract terms date identified. Contract Terms Minnesota State desires to enter into a contract with the successful Vendor(s) effective November 1, 2026 to allow for any phasing in, testing, data migration, etc., that may be needed. Estimated phase-in timeline: November 1-7, introductions, data and IT teams connections; Nov 7-30, necessary IT and data integrations, Dec 1-15, data transfer, testing, and functionality checks; Dec. 15-31, final updates, edits, and adjustments based on testing and rollout phase with final rollout and standard services to be effective January 1, 2027 or on the date the last recognized signature is obtained, whichever occurs later. The length of such contract(s) will be [5] five years. If Minnesota State and Vendor are unable to negotiate and sign a contract by September 30, 2026, then Minnesota State reserves the right to seek an alternative Vendor(s). Inquiries and Submission Instructions Minnesota State accepts all questions and bid submissions exclusively through Minnesota State's e-procurement system. Hard copy submissions, emails, or submissions through any other medium will not be considered. Each Respondent is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its questions and bids by the RFx date and time deadlines. Failure to meet the deadlines shall be grounds for rejection.