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Roles, Permissions and Access

Roles and permissions

Permissions allow users to access certain features and perform certain functions within Canvas and these permissions are dependent on the role that a user has been given. In Canvas there are two levels of role: course level (NU Module) and school level (Canvas sub-account). 

  • A course level role gives a user permission within an individual course (module). A user can have different roles within different courses. Any colleague that is enrolled to a Canvas course as a Teacher can add another user to that course and assign the appropriate role. 
  • At Newcastle University, each school has its own Canvas sub-account and all courses associated with the school are held here.  

Course level roles

School (Sub-Account) level roles 

School level roles give set permissions that are applicable across all courses within a school. Colleagues who require this level of access will need to get the relevant approval from their school before a role can be allocated. 

Process for Approval

  • Each school should decide what the appropriate level of approval is within their school. This information will need to be communicated to LTDS@ncl.ac.uk and the names of those who can approve access within each school will be collated and shared with the IT Service Desk. 
  • If colleagues require a Canvas role at a school level then they should request approval from the school by the Head of school or nominee. The recommended role given at this level should be Read Only unless a case is provided for permissions over and above what this role allows. The L&T Coordinator role would then be the recommended role. Given the level of permissions granted to the Sub-Account Admin role, this should be very much limited to those where this level of access is essential e.g. School L&T Managers. 
  • Any colleague with approval from their school should forward their request, indicating the role needed, together with the required approval to the IT Service Desk to be actioned.
  • The Head of School or nominee, will need to review the list of colleagues who have already been allocated a role at the school level (provided by the LTDS VLE lead) to ensure this level of access is still appropriate.
  • The VLE Lead in LTDS will contact the Head of School or nominee, annually in September to review the list of colleagues who have a school level role within their school to ensure this list is accurate. 

External Access to Canvas

The Canvas Implementation Team receive many requests for external colleagues to have access to Canvas. This may include, but is not limited to, External Examiners, Guest Lecturers and NHS Clinicians.

A University IT account needs to be created first for external colleagues to gain access to Canvas. Full details of staff IT account eligibility, requirements for access and the staff registration form can be found on the IT Service website.

Request for information

The project team would like to determine if there are any use cases where external colleagues to the University, aside from those detailed on the IT website, may require access to Canvas but do not need a University IT account.

If you feel you have any such instances in your Academic Unit, please could you complete the External Access to Canvas form with the details of this.

Please note, completing this form does not guarantee external colleagues will get access to Canvas without following existing University processes, but the Canvas Implementation team will review the information provided and will respond to your request as soon as possible.

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