Developer Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some of the most common questions regarding iCIMS web services capabilities. Please refer to the answers below if you are in need of assistance.

I am interested in integrating with iCIMS. How do I get started?

Please see the Integrating with iCIMS: Getting Started page.

What is GZIP?

GZIP is a compression language for the purpose of minimizing the size of data transfer between systems.

Why is my payload blank/ Why do I have strange characters in my outbound payload from iCIMS?

All iCIMS outbound messages are in GZIP format.  To read the payload the body of the message needs to be decompressed.

How do I decompress the body of my payload?

This depends on the library that is being used.  We recommend referencing JSON.org for a library of commands specific to your coding language.

How can I update a field group entry like a specific background check results or assessment results?

All field group entries return an entry ID in the response.  This entry ID can then be used to PATCH the prior submission.

How can I get access to a specific customer?

Client ID’s will be communicated at the time of the live integration project.  This information is also included in the payload of the outbound iCIMS messages.

What is the authorization header?

The authorization header contains the base64 encoded user credentials provided by the production integrations team.

Why is it important to utilize iCIMS standard field framework?

In order to create a repeatable and scalable integration iCIMS strongly suggests using our standard field framework to allow multi-tenancy.  All iCIMS standard fields have the same integration ID’s across all clients.

Does iCIMS support other languages such as HR-XML?

No.  iCIMS suggests conversion software to make the integration work with our JSON API.

How can I customize my organizations attributes for the mutual clients?

iCIMS standard list editor fields have the ability to add, delete, and rename drop-down options for al list editor fields.  This customization can be added by our production integrations team.

How can I manually test API calls?

iCIMS suggests using the Google Chrome Advanced REST Client plugin.  This client allows an easy to use API to test iCIMS inbound messaging.  

How do I make a call?

To make a call you must first make sure that you have communicated the IP addresses that you will be accessing the API with to your iCIMS associate.  iCIMS should then communicate back user credentials to allow inbound access to make calls.  These credentials can be added to the Google Chrome Advanced Rest Client plugin via basic authorization.  A sample call would look similar to the following:

https://api.icims.com/customers/1769/jobs/1707/?fields=bgcpackagetype

Please reference the specific integration page for more details.

How do I capture all posted Job details for a specific iCIMS client?

iCIMS provides a sitemap that exposes all posted job details.  This information can be captured from a client URL similar to (https://jobs-preview5test.icims.com/sitemap.xml)

Does iCIMS institute any rate limitations?

Yes.  See the Licenses page for information.

I cannot make patch calls using my HTTP library. Is there a workaround?

You can override the method using a GET argument or a header:

GET /resource?_method=POST

or

> POST /books
> X-HTTP-Method-Override : PATCH