--- title: "Does a student see a \"reply\" button in CM for an email I send them? How to use Comments" description: "Transforming Communication: The Assignment Workflow vs. Traditional Email Replies" --- [Skip to content](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/does-a-student-see-a-reply-button-in-cm-for-an-email-i-send-them#main-content) English Show submenu for translations [![CounselMore College Planning Software Knowledge Base](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/logos/CMLogo_CCS_wide_trans-w2000-1.gif?width=1116&height=125&name=CMLogo_CCS_wide_trans-w2000-1.gif)](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/?hsLang=en) Open main navigation Close main navigation - English Show submenu for translations Select below, or search by topic - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. [Knowledge Base : CounselMore Support](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/?hsLang=en) 2. [CLIENT MANAGEMENT](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/client-management?hsLang=en) 3. [Clients - Assignments tab](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/client-management?hsLang=en#clients-assignments-tab) # Does a student see a "reply" button in CM for an email I send them? How to use Comments ## Transforming Communication: Don't email \> Send Assignments... The Assignment Workflow vs. Traditional Email Replies In CounselMore, Assignments serve as the primary communication and service delivery workflow tool connecting counselors and students. By moving away from traditional back-and-forth emails, Assignments facilitate an efficient service delivery process, drive student engagement that is focused on task completion (away from *what if* questions), track progress associated to calls to action assignments, and ensure alignment with their goals and the counselors ability to serve all student equitably, all within a cohesive and organized framework.   **Best Practice:** College Counseling is a busy and repetitive service. Counselors can often forget what they have covered already from one meeting to the next...this is why Counselor reply on AI note takers or time-consuming meeting notes but those tools do not convey the Counselor's service process consistently nor do they establish measurements of services rendered. Most importantly, meeting notes and spurious emails waste precious time. The process steps of College Readiness never change - only the interpretation of each step *(how preparation will pertain to a specific student's need is nuanced but the actual readiness remains unchanged)* **Best Practice:** Collect questions sent to the Counselor via email or text or chat \> answer those questions live at the top of the next meeting. Collect questions sent to the Counselor via email or text or chat \> and apply the question and answer to the respective **Routine Assignment** that defines the preparation, expectation and answers the client's question. Steering both Student and Parent back to the original Routine Assignment resources the Counselor has already created.  **Example:** The Counselor initiates the Routine Assignment on Letters of recommendation. The clients have received the Assignment Summary email.  The Counselor receives and email from the client "How do I request a LOR?" The Counselor takes the question and adds it to the existing Routine Assignment in the Assignments tab. The Counselor then clicks Menu button \> Send email. A new Assignment Summary email is sent to the student with the Letters of Recommendation assignment moved to the top. The Counselor has now responded without re-writing instructions and the Student has been steered back to existing resources. #### **How To Use Assignment Comments** #### **Counselor’s POV** - Counselor **creates and sends Assignments** via the CounselMore platform. ![createass](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/createass.png?width=670&height=291&name=createass.png) - These Assignments are goal-oriented tasks (e.g., write an essay, complete a form, schedule a meeting). ![emailasssum](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/emailasssum.png?width=670&height=298&name=emailasssum.png) - The system sends the Assignment to the student as an **email notification containing a link to the portal**. This email is not a reply thread and is used only to notify the student of Assignment activity. #### **Student’s POV** 1. **Receives Assignment Email** - The student receives an email with details and links. ![assemail](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/assemail.png?width=670&height=384&name=assemail.png) ![asssummary](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/asssummary.png?width=670&height=293&name=asssummary.png) 2. **Takes Action in Portal** - The student clicks the link and is taken to their portal where they see the Assignment. - Instead of replying via email, the student engages **directly with the Assignment**. ![studentcomment](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/studentcomment.png?width=670&height=298&name=studentcomment.png)   - If the student has comments or questions, they can **leave a comment on the Assignment itself** - These comments are part of the Assignment thread and are not email replies.   #### **Notifications** - When a **student comments on an Assignment**, the Counselor receives a notification. ![studentcommentnotif](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/studentcommentnotif.png?width=670&height=293&name=studentcommentnotif.png) - When a **Counselor replies or adds a comment**, the student receives a notification. ![ccommentreply](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ccommentreply.png?width=670&height=327&name=ccommentreply.png) ![ccommentnotif](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ccommentnotif.png?width=670&height=267&name=ccommentnotif.png) This ensures both parties stay aligned within the Assignment workflow without relying on email replies. ### **Important: Changing a Student’s Primary Email Address** - If you **update a student’s primary email** in CM: - Previous email threads sent to the former Student email address will not work - Replies from the old email will **not appear** in the Messaging tab. - [ACCOUNT SET UP](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/account-set-up?hsLang=en#main-content) - [New Account - SELF GUIDED SET UP](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/account-set-up?hsLang=en#new-account-self-guided-set-up) - [New Account - FREE LIVE TRAINING](https://helpdesk.counselmore.com/account-set-up?hsLang=en#new-account-free-live-training) - 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