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Nextal Help

Candidate statuses

Where to find it
Configuration → ATS settings → Candidate → Statuses tab
Who can use it
Administrators with settings access
Direct URL
https://app.nextal.com/conf/admin/settings/ats/candidateSettings

Candidate statuses are the labels that describe where a candidate stands in your overall talent pipeline — independent of any specific job opening. A candidate might be “Active”, “In process”, “Hired”, or “Blacklisted”. Your organization decides what labels make sense; this page is where you define, rename, and manage them.

The Statuses tab. Each row shows the status order, its name, its status (Active/Inactive), and an action to edit it.

How statuses are used

A candidate status appears on the candidate profile and in the candidate list. Recruiters set a status manually when updating a candidate’s standing. Statuses also appear as filter options in the candidate list view, making it easy to find everyone who is currently active, on hold, or no longer available.

Statuses are separate from application stages. An application stage tracks the candidate’s progress through a specific job (screening → interview → offer). A candidate status describes the candidate’s overall relationship with your organization.

Adding a status

  1. Go to Configuration → ATS settings → Candidate and open the Statuses tab.
  2. Click Add new value.
  3. Set the Active toggle.
  4. Choose a Color — six choices are available: grey, blue, green, cyan, orange, and red.
  5. If your account supports more than one language, select the Language and enter the Label for each language.
  6. Click Save.

Editing and reordering

Click the edit action on any status to change its label or color, or to toggle it Active/Inactive. Use the ▲▼ arrows to reorder the list — the order here controls the order statuses appear in dropdown menus throughout the ATS.

Activating and deactivating

Toggle the Active switch in the edit panel to deactivate a status. Inactive statuses no longer appear as options when recruiters update a candidate, but existing candidates that held the status keep it displayed on their profile until a recruiter changes it. This lets you retire outdated labels gracefully.

There is no delete action for statuses — a status can only be deactivated or reordered.

Tips

  • Keep the list to ten statuses or fewer. A long dropdown is harder to use and harder to report on meaningfully.
  • Use colors consistently. Assign green to positive states (hired, active) and neutral tones to holds and closures — so a quick scan of the candidate list communicates the pipeline health at a glance.
  • Align status names with how your team talks. If everyone says “on hold” rather than “paused”, use that exact phrasing in the status label.
  • Review statuses quarterly. Business needs change; a status added for a one-off project can confuse the list for years if it is never retired.