University Forms Solutions
Boise State is committed to supporting an Information Technology (IT) environment that is accessible to all, and in particular to people with disabilities.
Regardless of the solution used, all forms published on the university’s website must meet accessibility compliance requirements per University Policy 8140: Information Technology Accessibility.
If you have any questions about the accessibility of your forms, please contact OITAccessibility@BoiseState.
Form Security
- Please review details about Information Security prior to developing web forms.
- Do not provide the ability to upload Microsoft Excel documents through your forms. Excel documents can harbor malware and viruses within macros.
Forms and Web Accessibility
Forms intended for use on university websites must be accessible for people of all abilities in compliance with University Policy 8140.
Choose the University Forms Platform That’s Right for You
| Feature | Gravity Forms | Google Forms | ServiceNow | Smartsheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Access | No authentication required | May restrict authentication to a single Boise State domain (employees or students) | Forms can be made available to specific individuals or groups on the support portal. | Authentication required for administering forms, optional for completing forms |
| Form Development | Functional user or WordPress Support | Functional user | OIT Customer Care | Functional user |
| Workflow | Not available | Not available | Available | Available |
| Approvals | Not available | Not available | Available | Available |
| Complexity | Simple to moderate | Simple | Simple to complex | Simple to complex |
| Security | Submissions stored in WordPress; available to WordPress admins | Submissions stored in individual or team G Suite account. | Submissions and attachments are stored securely in ServiceNow. | Submissions stored in Smartsheet |
| Form Storage/ Retrieval | Forms stored by title and searchable by keywords | Forms stored and searchable through Google Drive | Form data is converted into a Service Request and is searchable by the submitter and those with a ServiceNow license. | Forms stored by title and searchable by keywords. |
| Reporting | Limited | Basic; results are stored in a Google Sheet | Robust. Currently not available to end users. | Limited |
| Form Status Dashboard for Requested Employee Submitted Forms | None | None | Status is available to the form submitter on the support portal. | Available to form submitter if shared by the sheet administrator |
| Payment Integration | None | None | None | None |
| Other Integrations | WordPress | Integrations are not supported by OIT. Functional users may leverage Google APIs to provide additional functionality. | Can be integrated with PeopleSoft or other software solutions with API capabilities. | None |
| Can be embedded or displayed on boisestate.edu WordPress sites. | Yes | No. If a Google Form is required, link to the separate Google Form page. | Can be done using iFrames | Yes (though accessibility compliance is required per University Policy 8140) |
| Data Storage / Retrieval | Data stored in WordPress. | Data stored in Google Sheet. | Data stored in SaaS database. | Spreadsheets |
| Support | Fully supported by OIT | Fully supported by OIT | Fully supported by OIT | Supported online through Smartsheet |
| Online Resources | Boise State Webguide | Google Workplace Learning Center | ServiceNow website | Smartsheet Website |
| Cost / Licensing | None | None | $475.20 per named user. $110.88 per approve license. | $350 per year per individual; free access to view/edit sheets. |