Get ready for Launch 2 of Workday Student! 

Get ready for Launch 2 of Workday Student! 

January 30, 2024

The Integrated Renewal Program – Student (IRP Student) is continuing the mission to launch Workday Student at UBC. Launch 1 was successfully completed in October 2023 and Launch 2 is on track to begin February 2024. This article will help explain what you can expect leading up to Launch 2 and will highlight some key activities and milestones coming up in 2024. 

Navigate easily to different activities by clicking on the topic below: 

Institutional Readiness Assessments 

IRP Student is dedicated to supporting our community members through this academic and organizational transition. We have been continually assessing how prepared the UBC community is for Workday Student through a series of surveys – known as the “Institutional Readiness Assessments” or IRAs.  The first IRA happened in late 2022 and the second was in Spring 2023.  

IRA #3 is currently active. Access the survey here until February 1, 2024. It will help the program measure how prepared the UBC community feels and will capture any changes in readiness levels as we approach Launch 2. A greater emphasis will also be placed on whether the community has the knowledge and ability to implement new ways of working.   

Cutover 

The Cutover period consists of usage freezes and will have business impacts on our UBC Community. To learn more about the specific business impacts, please visit the cutover web page. 

The term “cutover” refers to the planning and execution of activities required to successfully transition the Classic SIS system to Workday Student. To ensure cutover is successful, both systems will undergo temporary Usage Freezes and are scheduled to cause minimal disruption to day-to-day operations. 

In advance of Launch 2, there will be two freezes that will impact system users: 

  • Freeze on some student hiring transactions in Workday from January 23 to 28, 2024 as student records are uploaded. Please see the HR website for more details and key deadlines. 
  • Pause of email notifications from Workday on January 27, 2024, to support the student record upload. Some rules that prevent errors on personal info in Workday will also be turned off. 

IRP Student and the Integrated Service Centre are working with impacted UBC stakeholders to confirm technical cutover tasks are completed promptly. 

Launch 2 Prep Call-in Sessions 

A week before Launch 2 begins, these Call-in Sessions aim to provide important information to all impacted UBC staff and faculty. 

Watch recordings of past call-in sessions on the event archives web page.  

Training 

Based on lessons learned from Launch 1, and community feedback, IRP Student has revised our approach to training. Where possible, Workday Student training will be practical and hands-on. Guided by community needs and preferences, training will focus on the system’s most common tasks, processes, and scenarios.  

The design and delivery of training for staff and faculty will follow a continual and consistent stepped approach bringing users through the following models of training in this order. 

Build Foundation - Build Foundation training focuses on providing information in topic areas to help the community contextualize the change and future state for their business. This training type is delivered through Change Bundles, Call-In Sessions, Demos, and Videos. 

Build Expertise - Build Expertise training is where users receive hands-on training sessions, which teach them how to complete tasks needed for their business operations. 

Support Learning - Support Learning training includes short-term and long-term sustainable artifacts that can be efficiently updated and are in a format the community will continue to use to onboard new users to the system or refresh knowledge for existing users. Examples of Support Learning training include Knowledge Base articles, Drop-in Sessions, Canvas Courses, etc. 

Assessment - Ongoing assessments will help measure our community's readiness and the effectiveness of training activities. 

Simultaneous training, across several topic areas, will occur throughout the entire training period. For example, users can expect to receive Build Foundation training in one topic area while completing Build Expertise training in another. For more information and details as they become available, visit the training web page. 

February 26 - Launch 2 Phased Approach begins 

Launch 2 of Workday Student will begin, as scheduled, on February 26, 2024.  

Most users will not need to take any action until after March 11 as the system will be syncing data with Classic SIS. Workday Student is expected to be complete, up to date, and ready to be used by our UBC Community by March 11, 2024.  It is important to note that users will conduct tasks in Workday Student in line with the academic cycle (see the Launch 2 Uptake Timeline section). Instructors or faculty will not need to perform any tasks in Workday Student until Summer 2024. Learn more here.  
 
Students will not have access to Workday Student until May 21, 2024. More information on student access is further along in this article.  

For more information visit the Launch 2 web page. 

Launch 2 Uptake Timeline 

Launch 2’s phased approach will align with important milestones in the academic cycle. Launch 2 training will follow this cycle, ensuring users have information and training in time to perform their academic administrative tasks.  

Hypercare – Workday Student Support  

After each launch, there is a dedicated support period called Hypercare which is designed to troubleshoot technical issues that arise, minimize any business disruptions, and support faculty and staff through the transition to Workday Student. Hypercare continues to November 2024. For Workday Student technical support, faculty and staff can submit a support request via the UBC Self Service Portal.  

Details of support for UBC Students including how to get help will be shared when students will first gain access to the new system in May 2024.  

Coexistence 

From Launch 1 in October 2023 through September 2024, Classic SIS and Workday Student will run in parallel, meaning both systems will be live and in use; this is known as the Coexistence Period.  Launch 2 will impact staff, faculty, and current students at UBC. Current students who are completing 2023 Winter and 2024 Summer sessions will manage administrative activities within Classic SIS, and all students (both current and new) will register and manage activities for 2024 Winter and beyond within Workday Student as of May 21, 2024.  

Examples of single/dual entry tasks for students, staff, and faculty include:  

Students:

  • Single Entry: Students graduating in Spring 2024, with a final session in 2023 Winter, or prior, can enter a change of address in the SIS only.  
  • Dual Entry: For students continuing their studies at UBC beyond the 2024 Summer session, a change of address will be required to be entered into both the SIS and Workday Student. 

Staff & Faculty:

  • Single Entry: Grades for 2023 Winter and 2024 Summer will be single entry into the SIS. These grades will be uploaded to Workday Student through an automated data sync.  
  • Dual Entry: Program of Study (PoS) changes will be required to be added into both systems during the Coexistence period. For example, should a student drop a minor in order to graduate, this will be required to be entered in both SIS and Workday Student.   

In the fall of 2024, Classic SIS will go offline. All activities related to 2024 Winter and beyond will be exclusively managed through Workday Student.  

Faculty and instructors Access 

Faculty and instructors are a key impacted stakeholder group and although the tasks performed in Workday Student by this group are somewhat limited, they are critical to the student academic journey at UBC. 

Faculty and instructors will have access to Workday Student after Launch 2 based on instructor names being assigned to course sections. No action is required in Workday Student by faculty and instructors until after student registration begins in June 2024 for their upcoming course sections the 2024-2025 academic year.  

Please note - there is no change to access to or functions in Canvas (e.g., creating course content, communicating with students or grade book entries). Features of the Faculty Service Centre (FSC) are captured in solutions using Workday and Appian BPMS. Instructors will continue to use the FSC for grade entry, class lists, and email communication to students for their course sections related to 2023 Winter and 2024 Summer sessions. 

Visit our faculty and instructors resources web page for more information. 

Student Access to Workday Student 

Shortly after Launch 2, UBC students will first gain access to Workday Student in May 2024. Plans for onboarding students to the new system are underway and more information will be coming soon. For now, it is important for students to know that they will not have access to Workday Student until May 21, and they do not need to take any action until then. 

Click here to learn more about Student Readiness 

IRP Student Completion Project  

Lessons learned from IRP Release 1 (HR and Finance) indicated that a follow-on phase will be required for IRP Student. Given the program is tracking on schedule, the team wanted to be proactive in addressing the need for a Student Completion Project.  

Therefore, once the entire new student information system is launched by fall of 2024, the focus will be on sustainment and continuous improvement of Workday Student through the IRP Student Completion Project, so it is optimized to grow with UBC for years to come.  

2024 will be a big year for IRP Student. We remain focused on the successful Launch 2 of Workday Student and continuous support from the UBC community. IRP Student recognizes how much the community is doing to move us forward toward the final implementation of the system and beyond.  We encourage you to connect with your Primary Transition Lead (PTL) with any questions. 

Resources Available 

Program Updates