> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.inploi.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Applications and pipeline

> How applications are structured and move through stages in Talent Bank

# Applications and pipeline

An application in Talent Bank links a candidate to a specific job. Each application carries a stage that places it in your hiring pipeline, along with any scores, interviews, and a full history of the actions taken on it.

You work with applications through the [Hiring](/studio/hiring/overview) section in Studio. This page explains the model behind those views.

## Stage groups and stages

Every application sits in two related fields: a **stage group** and a **stage**.

* **Stage group** is a fixed set of funnel milestones. It drives reporting and the pipeline's lifecycle rules, and it never changes shape.
* **Stage** is the specific step within a group. Your company owns its own list of stages, so you can tailor the columns in your pipeline to how your team works.

The stage groups are:

| Stage group     | Meaning                                              |
| --------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- |
| **Applied**     | The application has been submitted                   |
| **Shortlisted** | The candidate has been shortlisted for consideration |
| **Interviewed** | The candidate is in the interview process            |
| **Offered**     | An offer has been made                               |
| **Hired**       | The candidate has been hired                         |
| **Rejected**    | The application has been disqualified                |
| **Withdrawn**   | The candidate withdrew                               |

**Hired**, **Rejected**, and **Withdrawn** are terminal — an application in one of these groups stays there until it is reinstated.

## Actions

You change an application by taking an action on it. Each action is recorded in the application's history.

| Action                | Effect                                                                            |
| --------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Shortlist**         | Moves the application to **Shortlisted**                                          |
| **Move to interview** | Moves the application to **Interviewed**                                          |
| **Make offer**        | Moves the application to **Offered**                                              |
| **Hire**              | Moves the application to **Hired**                                                |
| **Move to stage**     | Moves the application to any stage you choose                                     |
| **Withdraw**          | Marks the application as **Withdrawn**                                            |
| **Disqualify**        | Moves the application to **Rejected** with a reason                               |
| **Reinstate**         | Clears a disqualification and moves the application back into the active pipeline |
| **Rate**              | Sets or clears a rating on the application                                        |

Disqualifying an application requires a **reason** — your company owns the list of reasons available. Reinstating moves a terminal application (rejected, withdrawn, or even hired) back into an active stage.

## Scores

Applications can carry scores recorded by inploi or by an [Automation](/studio/automations/overview). Scores come in a few types:

| Score type    | Used for                         |
| ------------- | -------------------------------- |
| **Screening** | An initial screening score       |
| **CV match**  | How well a CV matches the role   |
| **Interview** | A score from the interview stage |
| **Overall**   | A combined or summary score      |

## Where actions happen

Most actions are taken by your team in the [Hiring](/studio/hiring/candidates) views. Automations can also act on applications — for example shortlisting based on a score — and those actions appear in the same history. See [Syncing from Automations](/talent-bank/syncing-from-automations).