The Academic Cycle is a concept which encompasses the overall flow of data back and forth between your student information system and 25Live. With each new term, you'll begin a new cycle as you create sections in your SIS, find classrooms for them in Series25, and convey those placements back to instructors and students.
These articles walk you through every step of this cycle and set you up for success! Review them before you start a new cycle and refer back throughout the term. Once you've walked through it a few times, it'll feel like second nature.
Open the Table of Contents menu on the left to see all the articles in this guide!
Setup
Prepare your SIS and Series25 environments for academic scheduling with these articles:
- Read 25Live Fields vs SIS Data to understand what fields 25Live uses from your SIS.
- Configure all Key LYNX Settings in the Configuration area of LYNX.
- Consult Setting Up Translation Tables and Mapping Event Names, Categories, and Attributes for guidance on the mapping those fields between systems.
- Follow Best Practices for Optimizer Partitions and Preferences to prepare for Schedule25 Optimizer usage.
- Set up Standard Meeting Patterns to help with reporting and availability searches down the road.
At the Start of Each Term
Every term, follow these steps in your SIS and Series25 to begin a new Academic Cycle.
- In your SIS:
- In Series25:
- In your SIS:
- Adjust section meeting patterns and preassignments
- Repeat previous steps until satisfied
Placing Classes Using Optimizer
When you're ready to place your sections, use the Schedule25 Optimizer to automatically find rooms:
- Finalize bindings between sections
- Review Best Practices for Optimizer Runs
- Run the Optimizer to find placements
- Tweak settings to improve your Optimizer results
- Finalize placements with the Meeting Pattern Grid
- Export extract sets back to the SIS
Ongoing Throughout the Term
For the rest of the term, LYNX will carry changes back and forth between your SIS and Series25:
- Read Updates Throughout the Term for an overview of the transactional update process
- Keep an eye on Ongoing Maintenance for LYNX tasks, including:
- Checking daily for import errors
- Initializing data for Workday/Ethos
- Cleaning up 25Live when sections are removed in your SIS
- Follow Finishing a Term when scheduling is completed
Final Exams
If you create exams in your SIS, you can import them like regular classes. If you don't, LYNX can create exams in 25Live for you. (Note: these exams are not exported back to your SIS.)
See Tips For Final Exams in LYNX for more details.