Start a Clever Integration

by Jordan Clark

What does Clever do?

Clever is designed to help developers sync rosters from a school's student information system (SIS). Clever accomplishes this by working with schools to connect a school’s SIS to Clever's database. This allows developers to obtain roster information directly from Clever, rather than having to import data from different SISs.

Clever allows application partners to gather roster information from the school's SIS. This allows developers to pre-provision accounts for students and teachers before they login, as well as maintain an updated listing of courses and rosters.

In addition to the rostering functions, Clever provides schools a method of logging into Clever-integrated applications using a single account via SSO. Students and teachers may log into these applications via a button on the edtech company’s application or website; or through a link to the app on the user's Clever portal.

Graphical links that will automatically log a user into an applications with Clever can be found in the Clever Library. Teachers and admins can find applications in the Library and add the apps to the school’s Clever portal.

Where do users sign in?

Clever offers edtech developers to log in users by using the user’s Clever credentials. This can be implemented in 2 ways.

  1. A Clever login button on the website or application, which will log a user into the app;
  2. Clever’s instant login – a user signs into Clever and then clicks on a link to the application displayed on the user’s Clever homescreen. Once clicked the button then logs the user in.

Application partners can also list apps in the Clever Library – where teachers can find and add the app's Clever instant login button to students' Clever portals. Teachers who find apps in the Clever Library may not need administrative approval to use the application.

What is Clever’s pricing structure?

Clever can be expensive to integrate. Pricing for access to Clever's roster data starts at $18/school/month, with a minimum of a 50 school commitment. This means someone looking to get these integration functions are looking at spending a minimum of $10,800 per year for Clever's roster data. Additionally, some apps may only need roster data for a few classes at a school who use the app. Since Clever charges per school campus (not district), an edtech company could pay for the same level of users at a school even if it is rostering data for only one teacher.

Furthermore, Clever does not handle requests beyond logging in users and providing roster and course data. There are no options to enable features such as grade passback or assignment creation. These functions are only possibly through integration with a school's LMS, which Clever does not support.

Learn More about Integrations Like Clever

Here are other articles we’ve written on integrations like Clever to help you on your journey:

Rostering Students and Teachers in your App: What Are Your Options?
Understanding ClassLink: OneRoster, Roster Server, and Launchpad
What is OneRoster?
What’s the Difference Between an SIS and LMS
How does Clever compare to Edlink

If you're looking for a partner to guide you through developing integrations like Clever, then let us introduce ourselves. We're Edlink!

Introducing Edlink
Our Mission at Edlink
What is the Edlink Unified API?