Frequently Asked Questions on Integrating TouchNet Solutions with SIS Systems

Integration is the bridge that lets student and payment data flow back and forth as your campus Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system and Student Information System (SIS) link seamlessly to and from TouchNet solutions.

A stable, well-built integration with TouchNet is important because without that bridge your payments and credentials processes will not work as effectively. A robust integration has other benefits, including the ability to collect useful data, add new security measures, connect to new hardware, communicate with users and staff, and more.

Every integration is different, but the following are some of the most frequently asked questions on how TouchNet solutions and SIS systems integrate.

Which SIS systems does TouchNet integrate with?

• Anthology Student
• Ellucian Advance
• Ellucian Banner 
• Ellucian Colleague
• Ellucian CRM Recruit
• Ellucian Elevate
• Ellucian PowerCampus
• Ellucian Quercus
• Oracle Peoplesoft Campus Solutions
• Oracle Student Cloud (Future)
• Workday Student

Does TouchNet integrate with cloud-based and SaaS SIS solutions?

Yes, TouchNet integrates with SaaS SIS, including Banner SaaS, Colleague SaaS, Workday Student, Anthology Student and, coming soon, Oracle Student Cloud. As our SIS partners continue to innovate and evolve their solutions, we develop integrations to continue to provide the seamless experience between TouchNet solutions and SIS providers that colleges and universities expect.

What solutions and services do TouchNet integrations support?

TouchNet advanced software integrations support campuswide payments and ID management solutions. Beyond payments and campus IDs, we also support the following:

• Backend operations
• Billing – student and sponsored payments
• AR management
• GL management
• Consent manager (agreements management)
• Student deposits (hold code management)
• Student experience tailored to populations (undergraduate, graduate, international, and more)
• Alerts and notifications of important activity

Do payment transactions integrate in “real-time”?

Yes, real-time integration with TouchNet solutions works to query and update your institution's systems. Whether your SIS is on-premise or in the cloud, TouchNet provides an integration to your SIS that creates real-time communication on payment transactions.

What happens to our payments if the transaction fails? If our system is temporarily down?

Failed transactions trigger alerts to staff designated to receive them. If your institution’s SIS is down, or if the integration is down, TouchNet will take the payment, try to repost, and send an alert if it did not post.

Which payment hardware brands does TouchNet integrate with? Can we use our existing hardware to integrate with TouchNet software?

TouchNet is an open platform that integrates with a variety of non-proprietary hardware providers.

How can I take advantage of single sign-on (SSO)? What are the options for SSO?

If you would like your students to have a seamless login experience from your portal into Bill+Payment, a single sign-on protocol and provider that is integrated with your student portal is required.

Each institution is responsible for setting up and integrating their preferred SSO provider with their campus portal. Some supported SSO protocols that TouchNet can work with include SAML2 and CAS (3.0 - 5.0). Supported identity providers include EIS (Ethos), Okta, QuickLaunch, ADFS, Shibboleth, Azure (list is not all inclusive), and Auth0.

Further requirements may vary based on SIS, but TouchNet Staff will work through the specifics to establish a SSO.

What if I have more questions about integrating with a SIS?

Please contact us to speak with our experts about connecting campus systems and solutions. With decades of experience in the higher education industry, TouchNet has extensive knowledge of how colleges and universities work and how advanced technological solutions can simplify business and operations processes on campus.