Groups (study areas)

Background

CIS has a grouping function which enables the creation of a group, to which you can add a number of courses (or subjects) and then display this group in a publication, e.g. the UTS website, the faculty's website, International Prospectuses, etc.

The function was developed in CIS because CASS has no mechanism for grouping courses or subjects. It enables you to display a group of courses that are otherwise not connected to each other in CASS, for example:

  • a group of courses from the one study area (e.g. for display on the public website)
  • a group of courses from an articulated program (e.g. for display in the PG International Prospectus).

Advantages

Grouping allows a dynamically generated list of courses to be displayed from the group. This eliminates the need to hardcode a course list and links on a webpage. Consequently this removes the chance of broken links if a course is discontinued (as it will disappear from the list), and the inevitable incorrect name of a course or subject being displayed if there is a name change (as it draws in the latest data). It also allows the uninterrupted display of courses even if there is a version change, as groups are based on code and not version number (as long as the data has been copied from the previous version to the latest version).

Courses are listed in groups in the following order (as applicable): Bachelor's, Bachelor's Combined, Bachelor's (Honours), Doctorates, Master's (Research), Master's (Coursework), Graduate Diplomas, Graduate Certificates.

How do I know if a course is in a group?

If a course is part of a group, this data is displayed in CIS, via CI/[course code]/View, under the heading 'Groups (study areas)'.

How do I get a new study area on the UTS website?

Faculties can't create study areas (i.e. CIS groups).

You need to contact APO CIS who can create the group/study area for you and assign specified courses to it. You can then, if needed, set the primary breadcrumb display to the new study area (via CI /[course code]/Edit) for each of the specified courses.

There is a maximum of 10 study areas under each course area.

How do I add courses to or remove courses from an existing study area on the UTS website?

Faculties can't add courses to or remove courses from study areas (i.e. CIS groups).

You need to contact APO CIS who can do this for you.

Troubleshooting

The two most common queries with groups and the possible solutions to those queries are as follows.

  1. Why has my course disappeared from my study area on the UTS website?
    • Has the course had a version change? If yes, copy the old version's data into the new version (and amend if required).
    • Has the course had a code change? If yes, the new course code needs to be added to the group. Contact APO CIS.
  2. Why is my course not appearing in my study area on the UTS website?
    • Is the course a member of the group/study area (check CI/[course code]/View/Groups (study areas) to determine what group(s) the course is a member of)? If not, it needs to be added to the group. Contact APO CIS.
    • Is the course marked as 'Yes' in the 'Publish status (UTS website)' field? If 'No', it needs to be changed to 'Yes'. Contact APO CIS.
    • Is the course a member of the group/study area that is displayed on the particular webpage? Your website administrator can tell you what groups are being used on a particular webpage. You can then check CI/[course code]/View/Groups (study areas) to determine if the course is a member of that group. If not, it needs to be added. Contact APO CIS.