User types
A look at the default groups and 3 user types on Synap
Creating user groups is an essential part of managing your Synap platform. In general your user groups will closely reflect the content you're assigning to that group. For example a specific exam on a certain day will have its own user group and so will an assignment. User groups will also dictate what type a user is
🧠 Note: On Synap, it is membership to a group that decides what content a user gets
Head over to the groups via the Users icon on the main menu. From the users page you'll be able to see, search and filter all of your user groups. The first 4 groups are fixed, these are the default user groups on Synap.
- Default groups have a 🔒 padlock icon
- Hover over 👁 eye icon to see which group moderates another
The All Users group is where every single portal user (regardless of type) will be added by default. We recommend you don't use this group to assign content unless you have something you want everyone to see.
🚨 Removing a user from the All Users group will delete their account.

Identify default groups, and view moderators on users page
There are 3 types of users on Synap and each has its own default group.
- 1.Admins - highest level of access
- 2.Educators
- 3.Students - lowest level of access
Users will inherit the permissions of the highest group they are in, so an admin will remain an admin if they are also in educator or student groups. See below for details about what each user type can do.
Admins have full access to do anything on the portal, there is nothing above admins.
✅ Admins can:
- Add and remove users
- Create and delete content
- Change the look and feel of the portal
- Manage billing
- Create and manage custom attributes
We recommend you keep the overall number of admins low. You cannot remove admins from the default admin group. If you need to delete admins please contact your account manager for help.
Educators are essentially managers / teachers. Its an educators responsibility to keep an eye on students. Educators moderate select groups of students and can see their progress.
✅ Educators can:
- View progress and access for groups that they are moderating
- Add, invite and remove users from groups
- Read / update custom attributes on users that are in groups they are moderating
- Access reporting and exports
❌ Educators cannot:
- Manage global settings
- Access billing
- Create or curate content
- Create groups
- Create custom attributes
🧠 Note: New educators do not go into the default educator group when they've been invited to a custom educator group, it is the only default group with this behaviour
Students are who the platform is for, these are your end users. They don't have access to the same dashboard as an admin or educator. Their portal is set up to show them content and materials. You can customise different pages for different user types and set a student home page, go to Settings > Pages > Students.
✅ Students can:
- View their own progress and results
- Edit their email / account information
- View and edit attributes if they've been given write access to
- Engage with content that they have access to
❌ Students cannot:
- Create content
- Manage their access to content
- Access reporting or exports
- View other student progress (other than anonymised cohort data)
Last modified 1yr ago