> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.deandesk.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# System emails
> Review and customize the automatic emails DeanDesk sends on your school's behalf.
**School-level feature** — managed within your school portal at `yourschool.deandesk.com`. Only administrators can access the System Email Library.
System emails are the automatic emails DeanDesk sends on your school's behalf — application confirmations, booking reminders, purchase receipts, course welcome emails, and more. You don't send these yourself; DeanDesk sends them when the matching event happens. The **System Email Library** lets you review every one of them and customize the wording to match your school's voice.
System emails are different from the emails you compose in the [Communications Hub](/communication/emails). The Communications Hub is for outreach you write and send yourself; the System Email Library controls the automatic emails DeanDesk sends for you.
## Opening the System Email Library
Go to **Admin Dashboard → Communications → System Email Library**. The library lists every automatic email, grouped by category:
| Category | Examples |
| ------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Admissions** | Application Submission Confirmation, Application Status Update, Applicant Approval Welcome, Fee Waiver Decision |
| **Bookings** | Booking Confirmed, Booking Cancelled, Session Reminders for clients and providers |
| **Courses** | Course Welcome Email, Course Announcement, New Course Material, Assignment Due Reminder |
| **Payments & Donations** | Invoice Payment Request, Purchase Confirmation, Donation Confirmation |
| **Payroll** | Payroll Records Export |
Each email shows one of two badges:
* **Default** — the email uses DeanDesk's standard wording.
* **Customized** — your school has edited the email. The badge also shows when it was last updated.
A few automatic emails — such as institution account emails and membership purchase confirmations — are managed by DeanDesk platform-wide and don't appear in your school's library.
## Editing an email
Click any email in the library to open its editor. Each email is made up of a subject line and a series of sections shown in the order they appear in the sent email.
### Subject and text sections
The **Subject** field and each text section can be edited freely. Text sections use a rich text editor with formatting options (headings, bold, italic, underline, color, lists, links, and images).
Each section shows a badge indicating where its current content comes from:
* **Inherited** or **Default** — the content comes from DeanDesk's standard wording.
* **Platform** — DeanDesk has adjusted the default wording for all schools.
* **Customized** — your school has edited this section.
Once you edit a section, a **Revert** button appears next to it so you can restore that section's inherited content without affecting the rest of the email.
### Placeholders
Placeholders insert recipient- or event-specific information at send time — for example `{{firstName}}`, `{{courseTitle}}`, or `{{schoolName}}`. The available placeholders for the email you're editing appear as chips at the top of the editor; hover one to see what it represents and a sample value.
To insert a placeholder, click into the subject or the text section where you want it, then click the placeholder chip. It's inserted at your cursor position.
Each email has its own set of placeholders. Only the chips shown at the top of the editor will be replaced with real values — a placeholder typed from a different email won't work.
### Locked sections
Some sections are marked with a lock icon and a **Generated automatically** badge — for example a booking details card or an itemized receipt. These are built by DeanDesk from live data and cannot be edited or removed. The editor shows a preview of each locked section so you can see how it fits between your text. Sections marked **Only included when applicable** appear in the sent email only when relevant (for example, a cancellation note only when a booking is cancelled).
## Previewing and testing
Before saving, use the buttons at the bottom of the editor:
* **Preview** — renders the full email with sample data, including your unsaved edits, so you can see exactly what recipients will get.
* **Send test to me** — sends the email to your own inbox using sample data.
## Saving and reverting
* Click **Save** to apply your changes. From that point on, DeanDesk uses your customized wording whenever it sends this email.
* Click **Revert** on an individual subject or section to restore just that part.
* Click **Reset to school default** to remove all of your school's customizations for the email and restore the standard content. You'll be asked to confirm — this cannot be undone.
## How defaults are layered
Every system email has standard content maintained by DeanDesk. DeanDesk may refine this platform-wide wording over time, and emails you haven't customized pick up those improvements automatically. When you customize a subject or section, your school's version takes precedence for that part only — everything you leave untouched continues to follow the platform default.
Some emails have their own, more specific customization: a course's own welcome message and an admissions status's custom email template both take precedence over the library version. In those cases, the System Email Library provides the fallback used when no specific message is set.
## Next steps
Compose and send your own emails to students, parents, and contacts.
Configure application statuses and their notification emails.