A Canvas user may be assigned to one of nine different course roles. Below is a summary of each role that is available in Canvas. Some roles flow directly from Peoplesoft and others are generated manually in Canvas.
Note: Roles from individual campus instances that are not replicated in Canvas are librarian, ABET, content developer, UMKC-Guest, builder, teacher+sections. Course coordinator and observer MUST flow from PeopleSoft (myZou, MyView, etc.) rather than instructors or Academic Technology being able to add them via the Canvas Request System. This is due to FERPA issues that were discovered with these roles. Individuals needing to be given these roles must now pass FERPA first.
For Registrar courses:
- All roles except Student and Guest require a passing FERPA score.
- All roles except Student, Course Coordinator, Observer, Guest, and Grader can add Zoom meetings to a Canvas course site.
- Users must be added to PeopleSoft via your course scheduler or Registrar's Office.
For Organization, Development and Non-credit courses:
- All roles may be added using the Canvas Request System.
Automatically assigned Canvas roles from Peoplesoft for a live course with student enrollments
|
Canvas Role
|
Peoplesoft
Role
|
Capabilities
|
|
Teacher
|
Instructor
Secondary Instructor
Graduate Instructor
Course Director
|
Has full course capabilities.
Cannot add/remove people except in Organization, non-credit, or Development sites.
Cannot add LTIs (Learning Tools Interoperability).
Assigns a % teacher in MyVita
Fed from PeopleSoft.
|
|
TA
|
Teaching Assistant (MU, UMKC, MST)
Graduate Teaching Assistant (UMSL)
|
Has full course capabilities except it cannot manage enrollments, publish the site, or add LTIs (Learning Tools Interoperability).
Does not assign a % teacher in MyVita.
Fed from PeopleSoft.
|
|
Student
|
Student
|
Can view course content and fully participate in the course.
Fed from PeopleSoft.
|
|
TA (UMKC)
Teacher (UMSL)
Grader (MS&T)
|
Admin
|
Mapped to different roles at different campuses.
|
| Grader |
Grader (MU
& UMSL) |
Can view and grade all assessments. Grader can view Discussions but cannot edit course content or send messages.
Fed from PeopleSoft. |
| Learning Assistant |
|
Primarily for librarians to assist with students/courses.
Must flow from PeopleSoft for UMSL, UMKC, and MU. Role has no access to Grades but requires FERPA. Rolla cannot use this role. Should not be added via the Canvas Request System.
|
| Course Coordinator |
|
Department admins/assistants that help instructors with course setup. Requires FERPA. Can view and edit course content but cannot see grades or students.
Fed from PeopleSoft. |
|
Observer
|
|
Can view course content; except the discussion board. Requires FERPA.
Fed from PeopleSoft, but Rolla does not have or use this role in PeopleSoft.
|
| Designer |
|
Can view and edit course content, view and post to discussions, and view grades. Designer can view the People page. Designer cannot manage enrollments, change grades, or send messages to users.
Used by Instructional Designers ONLY. |
| FacPeer |
|
For Faculty Peer Reviewer. FERPA Required.
Fed from PeopleSoft but only for UMSL. |
Administrator Access
To increase efficiency and improve customer service, limited administrator access can be granted to an individual to support users and sites in Canvas for their functional unit (division, department, college/school). UM system requires that individuals must demonstrate proficiency in utilizing elevated privileges in Canvas and that certain rules, standards and guidelines are followed.
Users must have successfully completed the following training prior to receiving elevated access in Canvas:
After finishing the required training complete the online request form.
Learn more about taking the FERPA quiz.
Canvas campus and vendor resources