Job Application Manager – WordPress Plugin

Version: 1.0.0
Requires WordPress: 5.8+
Requires PHP: 7.4+
Compatible with: Hello Elementor theme, Elementor page builder

Overview

A fully self-contained WordPress plugin that lets users submit job applications via a styled frontend form. All submissions are stored as a custom post type in the WordPress backend, with email notifications, status tracking, and CSV export.

Installation

1. Upload the plugin folder
   Copy the entire job-application-manager/ folder into your WordPress plugins directory:

   wp-content/plugins/job-application-manager/

2. Activate the plugin
   Go to WordPress Admin → Plugins → Installed Plugins and activate Job Application Manager.

3. Configure email settings
   Go to Job Applications → Settings and set:

   • Admin recipient email
   • Admin email subject line
   • Applicant confirmation subject line

Usage

Embedding the Form

Use the shortcode on any WordPress page or inside an Elementor Shortcode widget:

[job_application_form]

With a pre-filled job title:

[job_application_form job_listing="Senior Registered Nurse" title="Apply – Senior Registered Nurse"]

Shortcode attributes:

Inside Elementor

1. Edit your page with Elementor
2. Search for the Shortcode widget
3. Paste [job_application_form] into the widget
4. Save and preview — the form inherits your theme's container width

Admin Features

Viewing Applications

Go to Job Applications in the WordPress admin sidebar. You'll see:

• Applicant name, email, phone
• Regulatory body
• Position applied for
• Status badge (Pending / Reviewed / Accepted / Rejected)
• Submission date

Filter applications by status using the dropdown above the list.

Viewing an Individual Application

Click any application to open its detail view. You'll see three meta boxes:

Changing Application Status

In the Application Status sidebar meta box, select a status and click Update:

• Pending
• Reviewed
• Accepted
• Rejected

Exporting to CSV

Click Export as CSV button on the applications list page, or go to Job Applications → Settings → Download CSV Export.

The CSV includes all text fields plus direct URLs to uploaded documents.

Form Fields

Security

• Nonce verification on every form submission
• Honeypot field for basic spam protection
• MIME type validation using finfo – files must be genuine PDFs (not just renamed)
• File size enforcement (10MB per file)
• Extension check (.pdf only)
• All inputs are sanitized (sanitize_text_field, sanitize_email, absint)
• All outputs are escaped (esc_html, esc_attr, esc_url)
• File uploads stored in /wp-content/uploads/job-applications/

Email Notifications

On each successful submission:

1. Admin notification – sent to the configured admin email with full applicant details and links to uploaded documents, plus a link to the application in the backend.

2. Applicant confirmation – sent to the applicant's email with a summary of their submission.

Both emails use WordPress wp_mail() and are fully compatible with SMTP plugins (WP Mail SMTP, FluentSMTP, Postman, etc.).

Plugin Folder Structure

job-application-manager/
├── job-application-manager.php      ← Main plugin file
├── README.md
│
├── includes/
│   ├── class-jam-post-type.php      ← Custom post type & meta registration
│   ├── class-jam-form-handler.php   ← AJAX handler: validation, upload, save
│   ├── class-jam-email.php          ← Admin & applicant email notifications
│   ├── class-jam-shortcode.php      ← [job_application_form] shortcode
│   └── class-jam-export.php         ← CSV export
│
├── admin/
│   ├── class-jam-admin.php          ← Admin list columns, meta boxes, filters
│   ├── class-jam-settings.php       ← Settings page
│   └── views/
│       ├── meta-box-details.php     ← Application details meta box view
│       ├── meta-box-status.php      ← Status sidebar view
│       └── meta-box-docs.php        ← Documents meta box view
│
├── frontend/
│   ├── class-jam-frontend.php       ← Enqueue frontend assets
│   └── views/
│       └── form.php                 ← HTML form template
│
└── assets/
    ├── css/
    │   ├── frontend.css             ← Form styles (Manrope + Inter, #2e4592)
    │   └── admin.css                ← Admin styles
    └── js/
        └── frontend.js              ← AJAX submit, file validation, drag-and-drop

Compatibility

Extending the Plugin

Adding More Regulatory Bodies

Open includes/class-jam-post-type.php and edit the get_regulatory_bodies() method:

public static function get_regulatory_bodies() {
    return [ 'NCK', 'COC', 'KMLTTB', 'PPB', 'KASNEB', 'HRIMB', 'YOUR_BODY' ];
}

Customising Email Templates

Edit includes/class-jam-email.php. The email templates use plain inline-CSS HTML for maximum mail client compatibility.

Customising the Form

Edit frontend/views/form.php. All field wrappers use the class jam-field-group. Add new sections following the existing pattern with the .jam-section wrapper.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Where are uploaded files stored?
A: In /wp-content/uploads/job-applications/. They are also registered in the WordPress Media Library and attached to the application post.

Q: Can I use this with Contact Form 7 or WPForms installed?
A: Yes. This plugin is completely independent and does not conflict with other form plugins.

Q: Why do I need to install the plugin manually?
A: This plugin is not in the WordPress.org plugin directory. Upload it via Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin, or via FTP/SFTP.

Q: How do I enable SMTP for email delivery?
A: Install any SMTP plugin (e.g. WP Mail SMTP). This plugin uses the standard wp_mail() function which SMTP plugins automatically override.