Best Student Information System (SIS), Universities, 2024, 2025: 10 Choices and What Has Changed Since
Full Fabric is the top choice of the ten platforms here for institutions that want CRM and the student record on one system. Oracle Student and PeopleSoft Campus Solutions follow for universities already committed to Oracle ERP, with Tribal SITS third for UK institutions carrying heavy statutory returns.
The order reflects where each vendor stands now, after two years in which ownership, product names and pricing models moved across the category. Ten vendors, including the four largest enterprise suites, are assessed on the scope of the student record, regional reporting, integration options and pricing disclosure, drawing on what each company shares about its own products.
Pick |
Why it stands out |
Full Fabric |
CRM, admissions, payments and SIS on one data model |
Oracle Student and PeopleSoft |
A cloud route for PeopleSoft institutions |
Tribal SITS |
HESA, OfS, SLC and Graduate Outcomes returns |
TechnologyOne OneEducation |
Student, finance and HR in one SaaS ERP |
What Has Changed Since 2024 and 2025
Consolidation is the clearest shift. Ellucian completed its acquisition of Anthology's SIS and ERP business on 31 December 2025, adding more than 260 customers and a third SIS line, Anthology Student, alongside Banner and Colleague. Product names have moved too: Oracle's cloud SIS, launched as Oracle Student Cloud, is now presented as Oracle Student, and the former Unit4 Student Management continues as Thesis SM.
Pricing disclosure has inched forward. Classe365 introduced new pricing from 1 January 2025, its first revision since 2013, and Full Fabric publishes a flat platform fee. The enterprise suites still disclose nothing.
Analyst and industry recognition marked the period as well. IDC named Jenzabar a Leader in its 2024 North America MarketScape for higher education SIS, Gartner listed Full Fabric as a Representative Vendor in its 2025 Market Guide for Higher Education Recruitment and Admissions Platforms, and TechnologyOne carried an AWS partner of the year 2025 badge.
Regulation is the next driver in the UK. Tribal is preparing SITS customers for the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, scheduled for January 2027, which will test how well any SIS handles modular, credit-based study.
Features That Separate the Platforms
Five capabilities account for most of the difference between these products.
The first is record scope. Some systems begin at enrolment; others, such as Full Fabric, Ellucian Student and Tribal SITS, include recruitment and admissions, so applicant data flows into the student record without re-entry.
The second is statutory reporting. HESA support appears in Full Fabric, Tribal SITS and Thesis SM; FERPA is referenced in Oracle's documentation; several smaller platforms list no national framework at all.
The third is ERP reach. Workday, Oracle, Ellucian, TechnologyOne and Jenzabar bundle or pair the SIS with HR and finance. That is an advantage for whole-institution replacement and unnecessary weight for a focused school.
The fourth is integration depth: published API limits, single sign-on, CRM connectors and LMS links.
The fifth is learning outside the degree. Continuing education billing, stackable credentials and corporate group registrations increasingly separate modern platforms from older designs.
Which Institutions These Platforms Suit
Business schools, conservatoires and specialist universities with large executive education or short-course portfolios gain most from a unified CRM and SIS, which places Full Fabric at the front of their list.
Large public universities and multi-institution systems replacing student, HR and finance software at once are the natural buyers for Workday Student, Oracle Student, Ellucian and TechnologyOne OneEducation, with the choice often decided by the ERP already in place.
UK universities with demanding statutory calendars will weigh Tribal SITS and Thesis SM closely, the latter for small and mid-sized institutions. US private colleges are the core market for Jenzabar One, while smaller colleges and training providers that want visible per-student costs fit Classter and Classe365.
Institutions that operate across several countries or languages should also look at Classter, whose site runs in seven languages, and at Full Fabric, which offers phone support in the UK, the EU and the US.
Where Each Platform Stands Now
1. Full Fabric: Best Unified CRM and SIS
At a glance |
Full Fabric |
Founded |
2011 |
Platform fee |
€12,000 per year |
Certification |
ISO/IEC 27001:2022 |
Hosting |
AWS, replicated across multiple zones |
Gartner's 2025 Market Guide for Higher Education Recruitment and Admissions Platforms recognised Full Fabric as a Representative Vendor, credit earned on the admissions side of a platform that also runs the student record. One data model underpins CRM, admissions, commerce and SIS, so the same record carries a learner from enquiry to transcript and alumni status.
The SIS module covers course and calendar management, grades, re-registration, transcripts, diplomas, stacked learner management and a learner hub, and it supports HESA reporting. Data is encrypted at rest and in transit over TLS 1.2 or higher, and the platform is GDPR compliant.
Usage pricing applies to Commerce, Admissions and the SIS on top of the platform fee, with implementation billed separately. The company's own comparison describes it as less suited to very large universities needing deep legacy ERP replacement, and it has no finance or HR modules.
2. Oracle Student and PeopleSoft Campus Solutions: Best for Oracle ERP Institutions
At a glance |
Oracle |
Cloud SIS |
Oracle Student |
Legacy SIS |
PeopleSoft Campus Solutions 9.2 |
Financial aid |
Oracle Student Financial Planning |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Oracle Student Management's curriculum registry models variable course lengths, grade and credit types, and credentials, with structured learning paths for majors, minors and certificates. Automated communications and academic plan templates support advising.
PeopleSoft Campus Solutions 9.2 continues on premises or hosted, and Oracle's blueprint connects it to the cloud financial aid application before a full move to Oracle Student. Oracle's most detailed public product documents date from 2022, and their language, including FERPA references, is US-oriented.
Dynamic entities let consortia, multi-institution degrees and exchanges be configured without reimplementation, which matters for university systems spanning several campuses. Pricing is not disclosed.
3. Tribal SITS: Best for UK Compliance Workloads
At a glance |
Tribal SITS |
Home market |
UK universities |
Statutory coverage |
HESA, OfS, SLC and Graduate Outcomes |
Apprenticeships |
ILR submission to placements |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Retention tooling is a substantial part of SITS. Engagement tracking, absence management and an extenuating circumstances workflow running from request to appeal sit alongside the registry functions.
Tribal states that SITS is trusted by over 60% of UK universities. Grade point averages can run alongside traditional methods, and global payments let students pay in their own currency. Independent higher education institutions are steered to Tribal's EBS product.
Student finance runs from fees to debt management, including bursaries, scholarships and fee discounts, while Clearing on the Web supports the admissions peak.
4. TechnologyOne OneEducation: Best for Whole-Institution SaaS ERP
At a glance |
TechnologyOne OneEducation |
Category |
SaaS ERP for education |
Regions |
UK, Australia, New Zealand |
Listed on |
ASX (TNE) |
Starting price |
Not listed |
The 26B release added Guide for students to the DxP Student portal, and an agentic AI layer called Plus now spans the suite. Student management runs on a single data model with financials, HR, payroll and supply chain.
Victoria University is a named customer. The SaaS+ fee bundles implementation, support and upgrades. TechnologyOne describes OneEducation as an ERP suite, so buyers seeking a standalone SIS will find more than they need.
Curriculum management arrived through the CourseLoop acquisition, and timetabling, exam management and resource booking round out academic operations. Standard support is included in the SaaS fee, with premium options at extra cost.
5. Workday Student: Best for Workday HCM Customers
At a glance |
Workday Student |
Platform |
Shared with HCM, Financial Management, Adaptive Planning |
Regional pages |
ANZ, Canada, US |
Developer tools |
Workday Extend |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Student Financials sits on the same unified data as Workday's finance and planning applications, which allows tuition and budget analysis without reconciliation between systems. Advising adds AI academic planning and at-risk insights.
Federation University and Carthage College are among named users. Workday's Canada page carries a forward-looking notice that unreleased features may not arrive as described, and HESA and IPEDS go unmentioned on the overview pages.
Workday Extend and a partner Marketplace allow custom applications, while embedded analytics combine student, finance and people data in one view.
6. Jenzabar One: Best for US Private Colleges
At a glance |
Jenzabar One |
Components |
Student, Financial Aid, Finance, HCM |
Deployment |
Cloud |
Base |
Boston |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Data analytics and automated workflows run across Jenzabar's ecosystem of cloud ERP, SIS and point solutions, which share a single system of record. Advancement and online learning are covered alongside the core student and finance functions.
Jenzabar describes its system as the industry's most selected ERP, and Rogue Community College is a named customer. UK and European statutory reporting is not mentioned.
The company cites more than 40 years in the sector, and Jenzabar Communications adds omnichannel messaging for student outreach.
7. Classe365: Best for Small Institutions Wanting Visible Costs
At a glance |
Classe365 |
Pricing basis |
Core student numbers plus add-on activations |
Enterprise tier |
Above 1,000 students |
Renewal discount |
10% on annual plans |
API |
Public documentation |
Degree audit is one of the more advanced features in a product that also covers student records, enrolments, attendance and report cards. Parent and student portals extend access beyond staff.
Add-on modules carry unlimited student use, and not-for-profit customers above a spending threshold receive a 15% discount. No national higher education reporting is listed.
A fees and finance module with online payments handles collections, and LMS and CRM modules can be added as the institution grows.
8. Ellucian: Best for Large North American Institutions
At a glance |
Ellucian |
Product lines |
Banner, Colleague and Anthology Student |
Customers |
About 3,000 in 50 countries |
Same platform |
Ellucian HCM, Ellucian Finance |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Ellucian's platform layer is extensive: Ellucian Experience as a central workspace, reporting and analytics, process automation, Ethos data orchestration and document management. A published partner catalogue extends it further.
Fast Company named Ellucian a Most Innovative Company. The cost of breadth is overlap, as three SIS lines now coexist without a published convergence plan.
Student aid processing and AI scholarship matching remain core strengths for North American buyers, and Ellucian says it serves 74% of HBCUs.
9. Classter: Best for Mixed Education Groups
At a glance |
Classter |
Charging basis |
Per active student and module |
Integrations |
40+ with open API |
Audiences |
K12, higher education, training |
Starting price |
Core at €8.50 per active student (published example) |
Classter reports a 98% user satisfaction rating and carried 2025 badges including Software Advice best customer support and GetApp best functionality. Support runs through a Freshdesk portal and knowledge base.
Modules span admissions, academics and LMS, billing, HR and a mobile app. National higher education reporting is not mentioned, and the product serves schools as much as colleges.
The website is available in English, Italian, Greek, French, German, Spanish and Arabic, which suits groups operating across several countries.
10. Thesis SM: Best for Smaller UK and Canadian Institutions
At a glance |
Thesis SM |
Formerly |
Unit4 Student Management |
Markets |
UK and Canada |
Implementation |
12 to 24 months |
Starting price |
Not listed |
Thesis carries a long product lineage, including the CAMS, QL and EMS student systems. Thesis SM supports HESA, ILR and UKVI requirements in the UK and T2202 tax forms in Canada.
Open APIs and full CSV export give institutions control of their data. US buyers are pointed to a different product, Thesis Elements.
According to its G-Cloud listing, the APIs can create, read, update and delete almost all entities, authenticated through OAuth or username and password. Thesis says most other systems take 30 months to implement.
Side-by-Side Summary
Platform |
Best for |
Starting price |
Coverage |
Full Fabric |
Unified CRM and SIS |
€12,000 per year platform fee |
UK, EU and US support lines |
Oracle Student and PeopleSoft |
Oracle ERP institutions |
Not listed |
Not listed |
Tribal SITS |
UK compliance workloads |
Not listed |
UK only |
TechnologyOne OneEducation |
Whole-institution SaaS ERP |
Not listed |
Australia, New Zealand, UK |
Workday Student |
Workday HCM customers |
Not listed |
ANZ, Canada, US |
Jenzabar One |
US private colleges |
Not listed |
US |
Classe365 |
Small institutions |
Modular, by students and add-ons |
Not listed |
Ellucian |
Large North American institutions |
Not listed |
Five regional sites |
Classter |
Mixed education groups |
Per active student, by module |
Site in seven languages |
Thesis SM |
Smaller UK and Canadian institutions |
Not listed |
UK and Canada |