Access Groups in Inspera Assessment are fundamental for organizing users and controlling access to assessment resources. They provide a flexible system for managing users and important resources like tests, templates, and content items within a structured hierarchy. 

This article offers a comprehensive overview of what Access Groups are, details their hierarchy and associated resources, clarifies user roles and availability, and outlines their core management functionalities.

Availability and access

The Access Group interface is an on-demand feature. To activate it for your institution, please reach out to your Inspera contact or the Service Desk. Once activated, your existing Access Groups, users, content, and assessments will remain unaffected and will appear in the new interface.

Understanding Access Groups

Access Groups act as customizable containers or groups for your institution's users. Their primary purpose is to efficiently organize users and manage their access to various assessment resources. This structured approach helps streamline administration and ensures users have appropriate permissions for what they need within the platform.

Access Groups can be set up in a hierarchical system, meaning they can be main (root) Access Group or child Access Group nested within other Access Groups.

Access Group hierarchy and resources explained

To effectively use Access Group, it's helpful to understand the key terms related to their structure and what types of assets they manage:

• Root Access Group: This is the top-level Access Group within a specific branch of your hierarchy. Your Inspera Assessment environment (tenant) can have multiple Root Access Groups, each serving as the highest level in a distinct organizational branch.
  • Practical Examples: A large university might set up "Faculty of Arts," "Faculty of Science," and "Medical School" as separate Root Access Groups.
• Parent Access Group: An Access Group that sits at a higher level in the hierarchy than one or more nested Child Access Groups. A Parent Access Group related Access Groups beneath it and can pass down certain properties or permissions to its children.
  • Practical Examples: Within the "Faculty of Arts" (Root Access Group), "English Department" could be a Parent Access Group.
• Child Access Group: An Access Group that is nested directly under a Root Access Group or another Parent Access Group. Child Access Groups inherit some characteristics from their parent Access Group but can also have unique settings and assigned users. They enable detailed hierarchical structuring within the system.
  • Practical Examples: Under the "English Department" (Parent Access Group), "ENGL101_Fall2025" or "Literature_Club" could be Child Access Groups.
• Resources: These are the specific assets within Inspera Assessment that can be associated with an Access Group. Resources primarily include content items, tests, and test templates. Linking resources to Access Groups is crucial for assigning content and test data appropriately across your organization’s structure and ensuring proper access.
  • Practical Examples: A "Biology 201 Midterm Exam" (test) or a "Chapter 5 Reading Comprehension" (content item) would be examples of resources linked to an Access Group like "Biology Department."

User roles for managing Access Groups

A dedicated Access Group Admin Role has access to the new interface for Access Group management. This role provides clearer separation between general user management and Access Group-specific privileges, meaning only the Access  Admin Role can manage Access Groups through this interface.

Managing Access Groups

The Access Group Management interface provides various functionalities for organizing your users and resources. These actions are primarily performed by users with the Access Group Administrator role.

Here's an overview of the core tasks you can perform:

• Create Access Groups: Establish new Access Groups, either at the top (root) level or as sub-Access Group within an existing hierarchy.
• Manage User Assignments: Assign or remove users from existing Access Groups, individually or in bulk.
• Modify Access Group Details: Update existing Access Groups, including their names and external identifiers.
• Delete Access Groups: Remove Access Groups when they are no longer needed.
• Control Visibility: Hide or unhide Access Groups to manage their visibility.
• View Information: Access a summary of all users and resources linked to a specific Access Group, or search and download Access Group details for auditing.

(For detailed instructions on specific actions and to understand precise role permissions, refer to the "Role Description of Access Group Administrator" article and other dedicated articles on each functionality.)

API Docs

For information on available API endpoints and authentication, please refer to Inspera Open APIs.