| Access | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bandwidth | Low demand on internet connections. | |
| Privacy | Verified by UBC’s Privacy Impact Assessment process. |
What will I use it for?
Your instructor may have you use Canvas to do any of the following:
- Read course content
- Watch and attend lectures
- Submit assignments
- Participate in discussion boards
- Collaborate in groups
- Take quizzes and exams
- View your grades
A note about Canvas
By default, student access to most courses in Canvas will start at the beginning of the term and end eight weeks after the last day of class—although instructors may choose an earlier start and end date. After this date, access to course materials will no longer be available. Please check the UBC Academic Calendar for the exact term start and finish dates.
This tool guide was last reviewed in December 2023.
What do I need to use Canvas?
A supported web browser
Canvas runs in your web browser and supports using Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari. For which versions work, check the Canvas supported browser page. Canvas will not work with Internet Explorer.
For the best experience with a screen reader, use a combination of Firefox or Chrome and JAWS (Windows) / NVDA (Windows) or Voiceover (Mac and iOS mobile) / Talkback (Android Mobile).
Tips
- You will log in to Canvas at canvas.ubc.ca using your UBC CWL (Campus-Wide Login). If you don’t have one, please sign up for a UBC CWL first.
- You can also access Canvas on your mobile device using the Canvas Student app. Use the app for anything except quizzes and exams. The small screen size does not fit the quiz layout very well.
How do I use Canvas?
All courses at UBC have a matching Canvas course created at the beginning of term, and you are automatically added to any courses that you are enrolled in.
Click any bar below to find instructions and tips for using Canvas.
Access your Canvas courses
- Log in to Canvas and you will see your Canvas Dashboard. From the Dashboard, the Global Navigation (the menu in navy blue) is on the left. Below the Dashboard announcements, you'll see a course card for each course that you are enrolled in.
- Access a course from the Canvas Dashboard by clicking its course card.
- Once you enter the course, you will see the Course Navigation on the left (to the right of the Global Navigation), with a list of links specific to that course. Click any link to visit that section.
Tips
- To make sure you are viewing all your Canvas courses, click "Courses" in the Global Navigation, then click "All Courses" at the top. If you cannot find your course after doing this, check that your instructor has published the course.
- You can download course content for offline viewing, if your instructor enables it. Click "Account" in the Global Navigation, then click "Settings". Click “Download Course Content” on the right-hand side to see which courses are available.
Set your Canvas name and pronoun
Your Canvas name is set by the preferred name you have on record with UBC's Student Services Centre. You can change your personal information on record at UBC, and this change will also update your name in Canvas.
If you are a student who is an active UBC staff member, you will also need to change your name on Workday, as your Workday name will set your Canvas name during your employment period:
- Log in to the Workday system, click your profile, and click View Profile.
- Click Personal in the left-hand sidebar and edit your "Preferred Name" to update your name.
- If you do not see "Personal" in the left-hand sidebar, scroll down and click More to expand the sidebar options.
- Log in to Canvas with your UBC CWL.
- Click Account in the left-most Global Navigation and select Settings.
- Click Edit Settings, which may appear on the right-hand side or at the bottom, depending on the size of your screen.
- Choose your pronouns from the drop-down list.
- Click Update Settings.
View Canvas course announcements
Your instructor may use announcements in your course to communicate changes, upcoming events, and other important information intended for everyone in the course.
- Log in to Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click Announcements in the Course Navigation.
- On the Announcements page, newer announcements will appear at the top and older announcements will appear at the bottom of the page. Click any announcement title for more information or to leave a reply.
- To receive notifications of announcements outside of Canvas, make sure that the email you use in Canvas is up to date:
- Click Account in the left-most Global Navigation and select Settings.
- On the settings page, use the list on the right to add a new email address or change which email is your default (the "starred" one).
- You may get an email at the new address about the change; make sure to click the confirmation link that it contains.
Tips
- You can use multiple emails for Canvas notifications. You can then receive notifications in both inboxes. However, the one that you "star" will be the default email address for everything, so make sure it's an address that you regularly check
Communicate with Canvas Inbox
You can communicate with your instructor, teaching assistants, and other students in your class using the Canvas Inbox. The Inbox is like a personal email tool within Canvas.
- Log in to Canvas with your UBC CWL.
- Click Inbox in the left-most Global Navigation.
- Click the pencil icon. A Compose Message window will pop up.
- In the "Course" drop-down, select the course where you want to send your message.
- To specify individual recipients from the course to receive the message, search for a person by typing the name in the "To" field.
- Complete the subject and text for the message, then click Send.
Tips
- You can right-click or option-click the Inbox link to open it in another tab or window. This action keeps the Inbox handy while doing other tasks in Canvas.
- Once a course has concluded, you will no longer be able to message anyone in that course using your Inbox. However, you will still be able to see past messages exchanged in the course.
Submit your Canvas assignments
As you complete your course, you may be asked to submit assignments directly in Canvas.
- Log in to Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click Assignments in the Course Navigation.
- Click the assignment title from the list to open it.
- Click Start Assignment to access the submission page.
- If you do not see this button, your assignment may need to be completed in a tool that is external to Canvas. Click the button you see to open the tool, and follow the prompts in the tool instead of these instructions.
- Instructions in Canvas will vary on how to submit your work from here, depending on the type of assignment. Instructors may set restrictions on the types of files you can upload. Make sure to check these in advance of your due date.
- Click Submit Assignment.
Tips
- You can also access your assignments through your Canvas Dashboard when you first log in. If instructors enable it in your course, you may also have access to assignments through the syllabus, Canvas Gradebook, calendar, or modules.
- Assignment uploads are limited to 5GB for files and 500MB for media. If you can submit using the Canvas text editor, the Kaltura (rainbow sun) icon in the text editor toolbar will let you upload media up to 2GB.
- Some instructors may allow an unlimited number of "attempts", so you can submit your assignment again up until the assignment's close date. If this option has been enabled, click "New Attempt" and follow the prompts.
Participate in Canvas discussion boards
You may be asked to participate in a class discussion, either by responding to your instructor’s discussion question or responding to another student’s comment or thread.
- Log in to Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click Discussions in the Course Navigation.
- Discussions are organized with the newest discussion on top. Click the discussion title that you want to participate in.
- Click Reply and type or paste your response in the textbox.
- Depending on how the instructor has set up the discussion, you can also click Reply to respond to an individual student’s comment.
- Click Post Reply.
Tips
- If the "Discussions" link is not available in the Course Navigation, try accessing it in another area of the course. Some instructors may put discussions under the "Modules" or "Assignments" link in the Course Navigation.
- You can reply with text, links, photos, equations, and/or multimedia using the response textbox. If your instructor allows, you may also be able to attach files.
- Remember that UBC’s diverse community includes people from various cultures and backgrounds. These differences influence communication styles and practices. Stay open-minded and ask questions if something seems unclear or unfriendly.
Use Canvas course groups
You may be asked to work with other students in a group in your Canvas course. Each group will have its own private group area to work in, which contains announcements, pages, discussions, and files that are shared only within the group.
- Log into Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click People in the Course Navigation.
- Select the Groups tab.
- Click Visit next to the title of your assigned group to access your private group area.
If you want to create a study group or discuss an assignment with others in your course, you may be able to set up your own student group. Like course groups, student groups have their own private area to work in, which contains announcements, pages, discussions, and files shared only within the group.
- Log into Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click People in the Course Navigation.
- Select the Groups tab.
- Click +Group.
- Name your group.
- Decide how you will have other students join the group:
- To allow anyone in the course to join, select Course Members are Free to Join from the "Joining" drop-down menu.
- To invite only certain people, select Membership by Invitation Only from the "Joining" drop-down menu. Then invite members to the group by searching for their names under “Invite Students”.
- Click Submit.
Tips
- Another way to access groups is to click "Groups" in the Global Navigation. You will see a list of the groups that you are in across all of your courses.
- Student-created groups need to be enabled by your instructor. If the "People" link is not available in the Course Navigation or if you do not see the "+Group" button, your instructor has not enabled this feature yet. You may ask to have it turned on.
- Read more about Canvas student groups in the People and Groups section of the Canvas student documentation.
Complete Canvas assessments
There are two main types of quizzes in Canvas: Classic Quizzes and New Quizzes. The steps are a little different for each, but both follow the same general workflow.
Note that we do not recommend completing any Canvas assessments on mobile devices. The small screen does not fit the quiz layout very well, and you may miss something important.
- Log into Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Find your quiz under Quizzes or Modules in the Course Navigation.
- If you see “Requires Respondus LockDown browser” after the quiz name, you will need to install LockDown Browser first. This browser restricts printing, copying, and accessing other websites or applications during the quiz.
- For help installing and using the browser, see UBC's LockDown Browser student guide.
- Click the quiz title that you want to take.
- Type in an assessment code, if prompted. Your instructor will give this code to you ahead of time, if it will be needed.
- Click Take the Quiz or Begin (whichever you see) to start your assessment.
- Complete the assessment.
- Click Submit Quiz or Submit (whichever you see) when you reach the end.
Tips
- Canvas will always call your assessment a “quiz”. But instructors may give you a quiz or exam to complete.
- Avoid leaving a timed quiz midway through. The timer will continue running while you’re gone, and the quiz will auto-submit when the time runs out.
- If you get logged out in the middle of a quiz, you can go back in. Find your way to the question you were on by checking the question list in the sidebar.
View your Canvas grades
Depending on how your instructor has set up grading, you will either see grades immediately (e.g., after you take a quiz) or when the instructor manually releases the grades.
To see the grades currently available to you, follow these steps:
- Log into Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click Grades in the Course Navigation.
- You can use the "Arrange by" drop-down menu to sort grades by assignment group, due date, module, or name
- To view specific details of an assignment, click the assignment title.
Tips
- Note that your Canvas grade may not reflect your official grade. Your official final grade will be posted in the UBC Student Service Centre.
- You can print your grades for the course. Click the "Print Grades" button at the top right of the "Grades" page and print a paper copy or print to a PDF.
Manage Canvas notifications
You can change the default notification settings in Canvas by selecting your preferences.
- Log into Canvas with your UBC CWL and select your course.
- Click Account in the left-most Global Navigation, and select Notifications.
- Under the “Settings for” filter, select whether you want to change notifications for your whole Canvas account or for a specific course. Keep in mind that course notification settings will override your account notification settings.
- Once you set the filter, you will see a table of all the emails associated with your Canvas account and all types of notifications that each can receive. Select the notifications you want by clicking the email notification icon under each address.
Tips
- Keep your email address up to date in Canvas. If you don't see the desired email when checking notifications, you can change it. Click "Account" in the left-most Global Navigation and select "Settings". On the settings page, use the list on the right to add a new email or change which email is your default (the "starred" one). You may get an email at the new address about the change; make sure to click the confirmation link that it contains.
- Learn more about managing Canvas notification settings as a student by checking out Canvas’s documentation.
Canvas FAQ
Find UBC-specific answers to frequently asked questions by clicking any bar below.
Canvas complies with the BC Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), meaning it follows provincial privacy policies, and its data is stored securely in Canada by Amazon Web Services.
Under FIPPA, personal information can be used for the purpose it was collected or for a consistent purpose. That means your personal information in Canvas will be used for the purpose of delivering your courses. Personal information may also be used in providing course support, in detecting academic misconduct, and for tools that support the quality of teaching and learning (such as dashboards for monitoring progress or tools that provide feedback). Additionally, personal information may be combined for statistical analysis purposes, but only after anonymizing it by stripping out identifiers so no personal information is tied to a specific individual.
You can find more information about Canvas analytics and statistics that instructors and teaching assistants can use to better support your learning on the UBC Learning Analytics website.
More details about privacy policies are in the "Acceptable Use Policy", which is linked from the footer of the Dashboard when you first log in to Canvas. The UBC Canvas instructor guide FAQ also answers more questions about privacy and Canvas.
You can use the Canvas on your phone or tablet to read course content, watch live or recorded lectures, submit assignments, participate in discussion boards, collaborate in groups, and view grades. However, you should not use your phone or tablet for Canvas quizzes and exams. The small screen size does not accommodate the quiz content and you may miss something important.
Apart from exams, you can best access Canvas through the Canvas Student app.
Canvas supports using Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari. For which versions work, check the Canvas supported browser page. Canvas will not work with Internet Explorer.
If you are using a supported browser and still encountering issues, try logging out of Canvas, clearing your browser cookies, and logging back in. You can also disable any browser extensions or plugins to see if that's what is causing an issue.
If you still can't access Canvas, get UBC Canvas help.
Make sure you are viewing all your courses in Canvas. Click "Courses" in the left-most Global Navigation, then click “All Courses”. Also be aware that Canvas courses may not appear until the first day of class and access typically ends eight weeks after the last day of class.
If you can’t find your course on the "All Courses" page and classes have begun, first check with your instructor that the course has been published. Unpublished courses will not be visible to you in Canvas.
If you still can't find your course or can't access Canvas at all, get UBC Canvas help.
If your instructor uses the default end date, your access to a course in Canvas will end eight weeks after the last day of class. However, instructors may change the default to an earlier end date. It's best to assume that you will not have access to course materials after the end of the term.
Depending on how your instructor sets up the course, items in a module may or may not be automatically marked as done as you go. Assessments will always be automatically marked as done and will allow you to progress through the module. Pages and assignments will sometimes have a “Mark as done” button, which you will have to manually check before moving on.
- If you are auditing a course as an undergraduate student, you should register as an auditor through Enrolment Services.
- If you are a graduate student auditing either an undergraduate or a graduate course, you should register as an auditor through the Faculty of Graduate Studies and the Change of Registration form.
Once registered, you will be automatically enrolled in the Canvas course in the "Student" role, providing you with the same access to the course as other enrolled students.
If you have questions or issues with auditing a course in Canvas, get UBC Canvas help.
Where can I get more support with Canvas?
Technical support
If you can’t find your course or have trouble accessing Canvas:
- Contact the UBC IT Service Centre Help Desk:
604 822 2008 or fill out the UBC IT request form. - Reach out to your instructors or teaching assistants with any questions, too, as they often have a lot of experience with Canvas.
Online learning support
- Visit UBC’s Keep Learning site and the Chapman Learning Common’s student toolkits.
Learn more
- For UBC-specific, student-focused guidance with using Canvas, check out the foundational technology skills video tutorials produced by the Chapman Learning Commons.
- For more how-to instructions, explore Canvas’s support documentation for students.
- For more answers to questions about privacy and Canvas, please check out the Canvas instructor guide FAQ.