> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.bizaxl.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Timetabling

> How to schedule every class - which student group meets in which room, with which instructor, at what time - and view the complete class calendar.

Timetabling is where you build the class schedule for the entire term. Each entry on the timetable is a Course Schedule record - one per class session. Once the schedule is built, instructors know their teaching load, students know when and where to go, and the attendance tool knows which sessions to track.

***

## Who Does This

| Task                                    | Who Does It                                   |
| --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| Building the class timetable            | Academic Administrator                        |
| Using the Course Scheduling Tool (bulk) | Academic Administrator                        |
| Viewing the class calendar              | Academic Administrator / Instructor / Student |
| Editing individual sessions             | Academic Administrator                        |

***

## What a Course Schedule Is

A Course Schedule record is a single class session on the timetable. It specifies:

* Which **Student Group** is attending
* Which **Course** is being taught
* Which **Instructor** is teaching
* Which **Room** it is in
* The **date, start time, and end time**

All Course Schedule records together form the visual class calendar.

***

## Before You Start

Before building the timetable:

* **Student Groups** must exist (one per class/section)
* **Instructors** must have records in the system
* **Rooms** must be set up (Education workspace → Setup card → Room)
* **Courses** must be linked to programmes

***

## How to Build the Timetable

### Option 1 - Course Scheduling Tool (Recommended for New Terms)

The Course Scheduling Tool generates an entire term's schedule in one operation:

1. Go to **Education workspace → Tools card → Course Scheduling Tool** (or click the shortcut at the top of the workspace)
2. Select the **Academic Year** and **Academic Term**
3. Select the **Student Group** (or all groups)
4. Configure the schedule parameters - days, times, room allocation
5. Click **Schedule Courses**
6. The system creates Course Schedule records for each session

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintlify.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/bizaxloptimizationsllp/images/placeholder-course-scheduling-tool.png" alt="Course Scheduling Tool showing dropdowns for Academic Year, Term, and Student Group, with day and time selectors for each course and a Schedule Courses button" />
</Frame>

### Option 2 - Create Individual Sessions Manually

For adding extra sessions or making specific changes:

1. Go to **Education workspace → Academics card → Course Schedule**
2. Click **New**
3. Fill in all the fields (see Field Guide below)
4. Click **Save**

***

## Field Guide - Course Schedule

| Field             | Required | Purpose                                                                |
| ----------------- | -------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Student Group** | Yes      | Which class this session is for                                        |
| **Course**        | Yes      | Which subject is being taught                                          |
| **Instructor**    | No       | Who is teaching the session                                            |
| **Room**          | No       | Which room the class is in                                             |
| **Schedule Date** | Yes      | The date of this session                                               |
| **From Time**     | Yes      | Session start time                                                     |
| **To Time**       | Yes      | Session end time                                                       |
| **Title**         | No       | A display name for the session (e.g. "Business Statistics – Tutorial") |

***

## Viewing the Class Calendar

The Calendar view is the most useful way to review the timetable at a glance:

1. Go to **Education workspace → Academics card → Course Schedule**
2. In the list toolbar, click the **Calendar icon** (top-right area, next to the List icon)
3. The calendar appears with colour-coded sessions

**Navigating the calendar:**

* Switch between **Day**, **Week**, and **Month** views using the buttons in the top-right
* Click any session block to open and edit the Course Schedule record
* Use the sidebar filters to show only sessions for a specific **Instructor** or **Student Group**

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintlify.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/bizaxloptimizationsllp/images/placeholder-course-schedule-calendar-view.png" alt="Course Schedule in calendar view showing a weekly grid with colour-coded class sessions for different student groups, with a Day/Week/Month switcher at the top" />
</Frame>

***

## Rooms

Rooms represent your physical teaching spaces - lecture halls, labs, seminar rooms. Setting up room records allows the system to show which room each class is in and helps identify scheduling conflicts.

**To create a Room:**

1. Go to **Education workspace → Setup card → Room**
2. Click **New**
3. Enter the **Room Name** (e.g. "Lecture Hall A", "Computer Lab 2")
4. Set the **Room Capacity** (optional)
5. Click **Save**

***

## Instructor Records

An Instructor record links a person to their teaching duties. You need Instructor records before you can assign someone to Course Schedules.

**To create an Instructor:**

1. Go to **Education workspace → Setup card → Instructor**
2. Click **New**
3. Link to an existing Employee record (if the instructor is on staff) or enter the instructor's details
4. Click **Save**

***

## Spotting Scheduling Conflicts

A conflict occurs when the same room or instructor is scheduled for two different sessions at the same time. To check:

1. Open the Course Schedule calendar
2. Look for sessions in the same time slot
3. Filter by Room or Instructor to isolate potential conflicts
4. Edit any overlapping sessions to resolve the conflict

The system does not automatically block double-bookings - you need to check the calendar manually.

***

## Best Practices

**Build the full-term schedule before the first week of classes.** Students and instructors need to see the schedule before term starts. Building it session-by-session during the term creates confusion and gaps.

**Use the Course Scheduling Tool for the first time.** Manually creating hundreds of individual sessions is very slow. Use the tool to generate the baseline schedule, then make individual edits for exceptions.

**Set up all rooms and instructors before scheduling.** The Course Scheduling Tool requires both rooms and instructor records to exist. Trying to schedule without them means leaving those fields blank and going back to fill them in later.

**Check the calendar after bulk scheduling.** The tool generates sessions efficiently, but always review the calendar to confirm there are no obvious errors (sessions outside teaching hours, wrong rooms, etc.).

***

## Troubleshooting

**Sessions are not appearing in the calendar:** Make sure the Course Schedule records are saved with valid Schedule Dates. Sessions without dates or with past dates may not display in the default calendar view.

**Instructor is not selectable in the Course Schedule:** The person must have an Instructor record (not just an Employee record). Create an Instructor record from the Setup card.

**Calendar shows sessions from the wrong year:** Use the Academic Year filter in the Course Schedule list view to confirm which year's sessions are being shown.

***

## Related Pages

* [Academic Calendar](/education/academic-management/academic-calendar) - Academic Year and Term must exist before scheduling
* [Student Groups](/education/student-management/student-groups) - groups must exist before you can schedule their classes
* [Marking Attendance](/education/attendance/marking-attendance) - attendance is taken against scheduled sessions
* [Workspaces & Navigation](/education/navigation) - the Course Scheduling Tool shortcut at the top of the workspace