Set up, configure, assign, and manage Scorecards for applicant evaluation in Thalamus.
1. What are Scorecards?
Scorecards are structured evaluation forms used to score applicants during application review and interviews. Each Scorecard contains a set of questions delivered to reviewers automatically, allowing your team to evaluate applicants consistently and collect results directly in Core and Cortex.
Programs can create as many Scorecards as needed and assign them to specific reviewers or applicants.
There are three components to the scoring setup:
Scorecards: structured forms with one or more questions, delivered to reviewers for each applicant
Questions: the individual items reviewers respond to. Each question can be assigned a response type, point value, reviewer notes, and an optional Competency layer. See Section 3 for more details on Competencies
Scoring Aggregation: the configuration that controls how individual reviewer scores combine into a program-level result
2. Before starting
When navigating to the Scorecards section for the first time in a season, Thalamus presents a Getting Started screen that guides setup based on the program's history.
New programs: first-time setup
Programs that have not used Scorecards before will be guided through setup:
Decide whether to use Competencies (optional)
Build Scorecards using the Scorecard Builder
Configure Scoring Aggregation once Scorecards are ready
Returning programs: existing scorecards
Programs that used Scorecards in a prior season will see their existing Scorecards on the Getting Started screen. From here, programs can:
Continue using existing Scorecards without any changes
Review and edit Scorecards before scoring begins for the new season
Add Competencies (optional) for the new season, even if they were not used before
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Note: All Scorecards, Competency associations, and Scoring Aggregation settings from the previous season are carried over automatically. A returning program may delete existing Scorecards and Competencies to start as if this was their first-time setup. Scorecards carried over from a previous season become editable again at the start of each new season, up until they are first used to evaluate an applicant. |
3. Setting up Competencies (optional)
Competencies are optional. Programs can build and use Scorecards without them. Competencies are recommended when a program wants to:
Organize Scorecard questions under named evaluation categories (for example, Communication, Professionalism)
Aggregate scores at the Competency level rather than at the Scorecard level
| Note: Competencies cannot be added to Scorecards after a Scorecard has been used to evaluate an applicant. |
Create a Competency
Navigate to the Scorecards section and select Getting Started
Choose to set up Competencies when prompted
Enter a name and short description for each Competency
Select Save
Associating Competencies with Questions
When adding a Question to a Scorecard, the question can be linked to one of the program's Competencies.
| Note: If a scored question on a Scorecard is assigned to a Competency, all scored questions on that Scorecard must be assigned to a Competency. |
4. Building Scorecards
The Scorecard Builder allows programs to create and configure each Scorecard. Scorecards can be built in a few minutes and previewed before use.
Create a new Scorecard
From the Scorecards section, select + Create scorecard
Enter a name for the Scorecard
Choose Where this scorecard is used: Core or Cortex
Choose the Question scoring method: Average or Sum
Add Questions (see below)
Select Preview to verify how the Scorecard will appear to reviewers
Select Save or Save and close
Add Questions
Select Add question for each item to include on the Scorecard. Each question requires:
Question text: the prompt the reviewer will see
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Response type:
Score - a numeric score within a range you define
Likert - a numeric score within a range you define, shown to reviewers as scale labels
Levels - scored levels with titles and descriptions, supporting in-between responses
Dropdown - one score option chosen from a list
Yes / No - yes or no question, with scores you define for each answer
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Free Text - written feedback.
Note: Free Text questions are not scored and cannot be linked to a Competency.
Each Question also supports the following optional settings:
Enable Notes: allow reviewers to add notes when answering the question
Custom point values: assign specific numeric values to answer choices
Competency (optional): link the question to a Competency, if applicable
“Unable to Assess” option: allows a reviewer to exclude the question from score calculations when the criterion cannot be evaluated for a given applicant
The Scorecard Builder also displays:
The number of questions on each Scorecard
How many applicants have been evaluated with it
Which Thalamus product it is used in
Which scores it contributes to
Preview and save a Scorecard
Select Preview to verify how the Scorecard will appear to reviewers, then select Save or Save and close.
5. Managing Scorecards
Edit a Scorecard
Scorecards can be edited before they are used for the first time to evaluate any applicant. Once a Scorecard has been used for scoring, it is locked to preserve data integrity.
Delete a Scorecard
- From the Scorecards section, locate the Scorecard to delete
- Select the delete icon on the Scorecard row
- A Delete scorecard? confirmation window will appear
- Review the warning and select Delete scorecard to confirm
6. Assigning Scorecards
Once Scorecards are built, they can be assigned from the Assignments tab.
Assign a specific Scorecard to a reviewer
Go to the Assignments tab
Select the applicant to assign
Choose the reviewer and the specific Scorecard to assign to them
Assign multiple Scorecards to the same reviewer
More than one Scorecard can be assigned to a reviewer for the same applicant. Both Scorecards will appear in the reviewer's score drawer.
Allow reviewers to choose their Scorecard
If a reviewer is assigned to an applicant without a specific Scorecard selected, the reviewer can choose from any Scorecard the program has set up at the time of scoring.
7. Scoring Aggregation
Scoring Aggregation determines how Scorecard and Competency results combine into three program-level scores: Cortex Application Score, Core Interview Score, and Overall Score.
Configure a program-level score
Navigate to the Scoring aggregation page
Select Configure or Edit next to Cortex Application Score, Core Interview Score, and Overall Score
Choose whether to calculate the score from Scorecards or Competencies
Select which Scorecards or Competencies should contribute
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Choose how the selected inputs should combine: Average or Sum
Average means each selected input contributes equally unless custom weights are applied.
Sum means all selected inputs are added together.
If using Average, set a weight for each selected input so that weights total 100%
Select Save
Competency-based aggregation
When Competencies are configured, any program-level score (Cortex Application Score, Core Interview Score, or Overall Score) can be calculated from Competency-level scores instead of Scorecard-level scores.
Calculating a score from Competencies requires that:
Competencies are configured for the program
Every scored question on each Scorecard contributing to that score is linked to a Competency.
Attempting to save without meeting both conditions will display a validation message.
Reviewer / interviewer weighting
By default, all reviewers and interviewers contribute equally when scores are averaged. Custom weights can be assigned to each reviewers' or interviewers' scores.
To adjust reviewer or interviewer weighting:
Select Scoring Aggregation in the Scoring menu
Locate Reviewer/interviewer weighting
Adjust an individual reviewer's or interviewer's influence
Select Save
| Note: Reviewer / interviewer weighting applies across all program Scorecards and score types, including the Overall Score. |
Exporting score data
Score data can be exported at any time. Each export includes the question, its associated Scorecard, the assigned reviewer / interviewer, and the reviewer / interviewer's response for each item. Exports can be filtered by reviewer or Scorecard.
For additional questions or support, please contact our team by submitting a ticket here or by clicking the teal "Help" button in the lower right-hand corner of any page of our website.