Candidate Data Fields

Why It Matters

Every role is different, and generic application forms leave gaps. Candidate data fields let you attach structured, queryable data to each application — salary expectations, availability, location preferences, custom scores, or anything else your team tracks. When AI extraction is enabled, Kit reads the candidate’s cover letter and resume to fill these fields automatically, cutting manual data entry across hundreds of applications.

What Are Candidate Data Fields

Each job posting has its own set of data field definitions (also called metafield definitions). A field definition specifies:

• Label — what the field is called in the UI
• Key — a stable identifier used in automations and exports
• Field type — the shape of the data (text, number, date, etc.)
• Visibility — who can see the field (everyone or managers only)
• AI extraction — whether Kit should attempt to populate the field from uploaded documents

Fields live on the job posting, not on the application form itself. Candidates never see them — they are internal data captured by your team or extracted by AI.

Field Types

Kit supports nine field types. Choose the one that best fits the data you want to capture.

Type	Description	Good For
text	Single-line free text	Salary expectation, source, location
textarea	Multi-line free text	Interview notes, recruiter observations
number	Numeric value	Years of experience, test score
date	Calendar date	Availability date, offer expiry
select	Single choice from a predefined list	Stage fit, department match
boolean	Yes / No toggle	Has work permit, references provided
url	Web address	Portfolio link, LinkedIn, GitHub
rating	Integer score up to a configured max (default 5)	Culture fit, technical skill rating
tags	Multiple values from a predefined list	Skills confirmed, interview panel

Adding Fields

Navigate to a job posting and open the Data Fields tab. Click Add Field to open the field form.

Form Field	Required	Notes
Label	Yes	Shown in the UI. Generates the key automatically if left blank first.
Key	Yes	Lowercase snake_case. Auto-generated from the label — see Field Keys.
Field Type	Yes	Choose from the nine types above.
Placeholder	No	Hint text shown when the field is empty.
Required	No	Marks the field as required for completeness tracking.
Managers only	No	Hides the field from non-manager team members.
AI extraction	No	Enables automatic population from uploaded documents. Requires an AI prompt.

Fields are ordered. Drag to reorder them after creation.

Default Fields

When you add your first field, Kit offers four commonly used defaults as a starting point. These come pre-configured with AI extraction enabled and sensible prompts.

Key	Label	Type	AI Prompt
salary_expectation	Salary Expectation	text	Extracts expected salary, compensation range, or rate
availability	Availability / Start Date	text	Extracts start date or notice period
source	Source / Referral	text	No AI extraction — filled in manually
location_preference	Location Preference	text	Extracts location, city, country, or remote preference

These defaults are a template, not a requirement. Edit, remove, or skip them as needed.

Select and Tags Options

When the field type is select or tags, a Choices textarea appears. Enter one option per line (or comma-separated). These become the allowed values for the field.

Senior
Mid-level
Junior

For select, the candidate record stores one choice. For tags, it stores an array — multiple choices can apply to a single application.

You can update the choices list after fields are created. Existing values on applications are preserved even if a choice is removed from the list.

Visibility Controls

Each field has a visibility setting that controls which team members can see it.

Visibility	Who Can See
everyone (default)	All team members with access to the job posting
managers_only	Admins and team members designated as hiring managers for the job

Use managers_only for sensitive fields like salary expectations or compensation-related notes that you don’t want shared with every interviewer.

The Managers only checkbox on the field form sets this visibility. Fields are visible to everyone by default.

Field Keys

The key is a stable, lowercase identifier for the field. It is used in data exports, process template automations, and AI extraction schemas.

Rules for valid keys:

• Must start with a lowercase letter (a-z)
• Can contain lowercase letters, digits, and underscores (a-z, 0-9, _)
• Must be unique within the job posting
• Maximum 50 characters

Kit generates a key automatically from the label when you type it. For example, the label “Salary Expectation” produces the key salary_expectation. You can override it manually before saving. Once saved, the key cannot be changed — other systems may reference it.

If a label starts with a digit (e.g., “3D experience”), the generated key is prefixed with f_ to satisfy the leading-letter rule: f_3d_experience.

Process Template Integration

When you define candidate data fields on a job posting that was created from a Process Template, those fields apply only to that job. To standardize fields across all jobs using a template, add the field definitions to the template itself — new job postings created from the template will inherit them.

AI-extractable fields automatically participate in the document ingestion pipeline. When a candidate uploads a resume or cover letter during an Application Form stage, Kit runs all enabled extraction prompts in a single pass and populates the matching fields on the application.

Quick Checklist

• Open the job posting and navigate to Data Fields
• Add fields relevant to this role (or insert defaults as a starting point)
• Set the field type to match the shape of data you want (select, rating, tags, etc.)
• Add choices for select and tags fields
• Enable AI extraction on fields that can be inferred from cover letters or resumes, and write a clear extraction prompt
• Mark sensitive fields (e.g., salary) as Managers only
• Verify the auto-generated key is readable and meaningful before saving
• If you want these fields on all future jobs, add them to your Process Template instead