Overview 

"Asynchronous" is the term we use for course materials that professors have prepared for you ahead of time. You will complete this content on your own each week before the live class session.

You will spend a large portion of your time with the asynchronous course materials. Because of the independent nature of the asynchronous platform, the academic content contained in the materials usually consists of learning activities to be done individually. This often includes presentations in various forms that might be accomplished in a typical classroom lecture with PowerPoint or by watching a video. Since you have access to the platform 24/7, you can view the asynchronous course material when it fits your schedule. Please keep in mind that you will need Internet access to view the course content.

Although courses vary, the goal is to have the asynchronous content inform preparation for live sessions. Asynchronous material is expected to be completed by you each week prior to attending the live synchronous class sessions.

Navigating the Digital Campus 

The Global Navigation Menu is located on the left side of every page in the Digital Campus. Global Navigation links provide quick access to frequently used features. These links provide access to all your courses collectively. Default links include the Dashboard, Courses, Groups, Calendar, Inbox, User Account, and the Help menu.

Dashboard. The landing page after you log in to the Digital Campus. The Dashboard can be toggled to a course view, list view, or recent activity view, and shows notifications for all current courses.

Account. At the top of the navigation bar is a link to edit your personal profile and your settings.

Courses. Where you can access your future, current, and past courses offered within the Digital Campus.

Groups. View any groups where your instructor has added you as a member, as well as any available self sign-up groups in your courses.

Calendar. View everything you have to do for all your courses in one place. You can view calendar events by day, week, month, or agenda list.

Inbox. Messaging system where you can communicate with other users in your courses

History. Recent History displays up to three weeks of your course page view history.

Help. Phone: +1 833-740-1273                                     
Email: TechSupport@digitalcampus.2U.com

** To expand or collapse or expand the Global Navigation menu, click the arrow icon located in the bottom left corner of your screen.**

Technical Assistance 

At the very bottom right of the page is an icon of a square word bubble. This icon has two functions. Firstly, if you see a number on the upper right-hand corner of the icon, there is a notification from Digital Campus Support to review. These notifications hold important information about maintenance times during which you should avoid using the Digital Campus or important information about updates. 

Additionally, this icon allows you to live chat for immediate support. Click on the icon and click on “New Conversation” at the bottom of the window that pops up. In the new window, state what you could use assistance with. Note, you should start a new conversation every time you need support to ensure you get the first available agent. If you prefer to call in to receive support, please click on the Question Mark icon on the left-hand menu for additional contact information for support. As a reminder, we recommend live chat or phone for any urgent issues. 

Digital Campus Tech Support:

Phone: +1 833-740-1273

Email: TechSupport@digitalcampus.2U.com

Dashboard Features

The Dashboard is the first thing you will see when you log into the Digital Campus. The Dashboard can be toggled to a course view, list view, or recent activity view and shows notifications for all current courses. Essentially, the Dashboard helps you see what is happening in all your current courses. 

Your Dashboard can be displayed in one of three views: Card View, List View, or Recent Activity View. You can also manually drag and drop a course card to another location in the Dashboard. Click on a course card and drag it to the desired location.

• Card View: displays course cards for quick access to all your favorite courses (the same courses display in the Courses link from the Global Navigation Menu)

• List View: displays all course to-do items in an agenda view

• Recent Activity View: displays all recent activity for all courses

To change your Dashboard view, click the Options menu and select your preferred viewing option:

Card View

The Card View Dashboard displays course cards for all your favorite active courses. Course Cards can help you organize your courses by adding a nickname or customizing the color, which is synced with the color shownCourse cards show an overview of course information including the course name, course code, and term [1].

Each card can include up to four tabs [2], which represent the four main Digital Campus features for student course activity: Announcements, Assignments, Discussions, and Files. These tabs mimic visibility and order in Course Navigation, so for instance, if an instructor hides the Announcements link, the Announcements tab will not display on the course card.

An unread icon on the Discussions or Announcements tab indicates that there is a new discussion or announcement in the course [3]. The number in the icon indicates the number of new items. for the course in the Calendar.

Nickname a Course 

If one of your courses includes a long or confusing name, you can create a nickname for your course. Most courses are created using Student Information Systems (SIS) that generate course names based on terms, departments, and section numbers, and courses with similar names may be hard to distinguish.

Course nicknames appear in the Dashboard, Course Navigation Menu, course breadcrumbs, and notification emails. A course nickname does not affect the course name at the account or course level; it only changes the name of the course for the individual user who created the nickname. If you need to know the original name of the course, you can hover over the nickname and the original name will appear. Additionally, the course code is not affected and always displays on the course card for course reference.

Note: This feature does not currently apply to the global Grades page and Dashboard sidebar elements such as the To Do list.

Navigating Courses

To access your courses, click Courses in the Global Navigation Menu (the book icon). Always log in to your new courses as soon as you gain access to confirm you are in the correct section of the course and that you have access to the courses you registered for. As you progress through your program, you will see previous-term courses listed here in chronological order with most recent/active courses at the top.

In Global Navigation, click the Courses link, then click the name of the course:

Home

The Course Home page involves Course Navigation, the content area, and the sidebar.

The Course Home page is viewed from the Course Navigation Home link. 

Course Navigation includes links that help you and your students get to specific locations in the course. Instructors can customize what links are shown in a course, so if you don't see links that may display in other courses, your instructor has hidden those links from your view. 

The active link of the page you are viewing is highlighted with different color text and a line indicator. This highlight helps you quickly identify the feature area you are currently viewing in the Digital Campus. You may also see course indicators [2] that show updates to your course grades when your instructor grades your assignments.

Content Area

Home Page content is displayed in the content area. The content can be a page, the syllabus, discussions, announcements, quizzes, or imported content [1]. 

The content can also show the Course Activity Stream, which is a list of all recent activity in the course. Your Home Page may also display recent announcements at the top of the page [2]. 

The Home Page content also defines what sections display in the sidebar.

Sidebar

The sidebar functions the same as the Dashboard sidebar but only shows content for the specific course and includes additional options. 

If your Course Home Page displays a page other than the Course Activity Stream, you can view the course activity stream by clicking the sidebar View Course Stream button [1]. 

When the Home Page is set as the Course Activity Stream, this button will not appear. If you have been added to a group in your course, the Course Group section [2] includes links to your course groups.

Sidebar Sections

The sidebar always shows the To Do section [1], which shows all recent announcements and up to seven assignments that are due in the upcoming weeks, including ungraded quizzes and assignments that do not require a submission. Each item in the To Do list displays the assignment name, the number of points, and the due date for the assignment. Once the due date has passed, items remain in this section for four weeks.

The sidebar can also include a variety of other sections, depending on the layout your instructor sets for the Course Home Page. Additional sidebar options include the Assignment list, Calendar and Assignment Groups, and Recent Feedback.

Manage Sidebar Items

Each section item displays an icon [1] to differentiate between assignments and peer review assignments.

If a section contains more items than are listed, a link will appear under the list that you can use to view additional items [2].

The To Do section shows up to seven items with due dates in the upcoming weeks. To view more items, you must manually remove items from the list. To remove a To Do item, click the remove icon [3].

Note: Assignments submitted through the Digital Campus disappear automatically from the To Do list; no-submission assignments (submitted on paper/in class) can only be removed from the list manually.

Course Features

Modules 

Many courses use interactive features that allow you to engage more fully with asynchronous content. You may be asked to write a response to a video or slide, answer a multiple-choice question, or even record a video of yourself discussing a topic. Modules are used to organize the course, and will control the entire flow of the course, along with its content.

Modules can be filled with different types of content. Each module item also includes an icon with its type:  

• Page [1]: a page of content to read

• Discussion [2]: a course discussion

• Quiz [3]: a course quiz

• Assignment [4]: a course assignment

• Link or External Tool [5]: an external link or tool to view outside of the course

• File [6]: a file to download or view

For text response questions, take note of the minimum and maximum word limit. You will not be able to proceed through the material if your answer does not stay within the specified parameters. Also look for whether or not the response can be edited upon submission. 

Depending on the professor’s discretion, your responses to material may be public and posted for your classmates to view in order to encourage continuing discussion. If your response will be public, at the end of the material, there will be instructions and links redirecting you to the cards containing public questions for you to interact with on a discussion board. 

If the material does not contain any public questions, at the end, you will simply be directed to proceed to the next page.

Depending on the module item type, requirements include up to five options:

• View: You must view the item.

• Mark as done: You must mark the module item as done before you can progress to the next item.

• Contribute: You must post a reply to the discussion topic or contribute content to a page.

• Submit: You must submit the assignment, graded discussion, or quiz.

• Score at least X: You must submit the assignment with a minimum of the shown score.

You can advance through module items or return to previous modules using the progression bar at the bottom of the page. To advance to the next module item, click the Next button [1]. To return to a previous module item, click the Previous button [2]. You can view the name of the next or previous module item by hovering over the Next or Previous button, respectively:

Syllabus 

The Syllabus helps your instructor communicate course expectations and information. The Syllabus is automatically populated by assignments and events in the course. In Course Navigation, click the Syllabus link.

To Do List

In the Card View Dashboard and the Recent Activity Dashboard, the sidebar contains a To Do list and other sections that help you know what assignments and events are coming up in all of your courses. The sidebar includes specific items for instructor and student roles.

The sidebar is similar to the sidebar that displays in your Course Home Page, but the course sidebar only includes items for the specific course. Depending on the setup of your Course Home Page, the sidebar in a course may contain additional sections than shown in the sidebar. Note: You can also view items on the To Do list from the List View Dashboard.

In Global Navigation, click the Dashboard link. The sidebar shows various action items in all your courses. Each item is associated with a specific course. All items from all your active courses display in the sidebar—not just favorited courses in the Dashboard. For course identification, each sidebar item displays the course code, or short name, for the course. The course code is located directly below the full course name. Course nicknames can be set in place of sidebar course codes that are long or otherwise confusing to remember which courses they represent. If you have created a nickname for a course, the nickname displays in the sidebar instead of the course code. However, the original course code always displays in the course card.

The sidebar helps you see what you need to do next and what feedback you've received across all your courses. However, assignments that are not graded or do not require an online submission only display until the due date.

The To Do section shows up to seven items with due dates or event dates in the upcoming weeks, including ungraded quizzes, assignments that do not require a submission, and course announcements [1]. Each item in the To Do list displays the assignment name, the course name, the number of points, and the due date for the assignment. Once the due date has passed, items remain in this section for four weeks.

The Recent Feedback section shows assignments with feedback from your instructor during the last four weeks [2].

The View Grades button links to the Dashboard Grades page and displays grades for all active courses [3].

Announcements

The Announcements Index Page allows you to view and filter announcements in your course. You can also receive new announcements via notifications, view announcements on the Recent Activity Dashboard, or view announcements in the To Do list.

Discussion

The Discussion Index page allows you to view all the discussions within a course.

When you think of Discussions, think of a small, intimate classroom setting in college. Any conversation that you would feel comfortable having in that classroom (with your instructor, of course) is appropriate in Discussion. For example, if you just read a great article about a topic that the class was recently discussing, your course wall is a perfect place to post a link and tell your classmates why it is worth reading. Do you have a question about an assignment? Do you have knowledge of an upcoming office hours session that you think might benefit others? Discussions is the perfect place for this as well.

You can post comments or add comments to an existing post on Discussions. To post on Discussions, click the Add Discussion button. This will expand and allow you to type in text. You can change the font and the font color, size, and style, and you can add bullets or numbering. Anything you post here will be visible to everyone associated with this section.

On all Discussion posts, you also have the ability to make comments on other users' posts by clicking Reply below the text.

Note: Anything that is purely social and unrelated to the course itself should not go on the Discussions tab. For instance, that pie-eating contest you won over the weekend? Interesting, sure, but that would be more appropriately shared on your personal wall, not on the course wall.

People

People show all the users enrolled in the course, along with the professor teaching the course. In People, you can:

• View all the users participating in the course.

• Use the search bar to find a specific person.

• Use the drop-down menu to filter users by role. The filter will also display the number of users in each type of role [e.g. student, TA].

• Use the Options drop-down menu to view user groups or registered services in the course.

Pages

The Pages index will list all the pages in the course, and is designed to open to the front page for the course, if there is a front page selected. Click the title of the page you want to view.

Files 

As a student, Files allows you to store files and assignments within the Digital Campus. You can upload one or multiple files, view all details about your files, and preview files. Files is built with responsive design to adjust for browser scaling. The folder navigation window, file displays, and even file names adjust to the width of the browser window.

The left panel [1] shows all folders for quick navigation. Some folders may be housed within other folders. To expand all folders, click the arrows next to the folder name. When you click the name of a folder, all contents within the folder you are viewing display in the right panel [2]. You can also click folder names in the right panel to view folder content.

You may have access to files (documents, images, media, etc.) in three different feature areas:

• User files, located in your user account

• Course files, located in each course where you are enrolled (if your instructor allows you to view Course Files)

• Group files, located in each group where you are a member

Conferences 

The Conferences page allows you to view all the conferences within a course. As a student, you can join conferences where you have been invited to participate. In student groups, you can create new conferences, start conferences, and manage concluded conferences.

You can view conferences where you have been invited to participate. Conferences are grouped in two parts: New Conferences [1] and Concluded Conferences [2]. Both always display the conference name [3] and description [4]:

New conferences will be listed in the index, but they cannot be accessed until the host has started the conference. When the conference is available, click the Join button [1]. Once the conference has started, the conference status shows as in progress [2]. You can join the conference for as long as the Join button is available. Some conferences only allow you to join the conference for a specific amount of time.

When your conference has concluded, click the name of the recorded conference [1]. To replay the conference, click the recording format link [2].

The recording format displays as either a presentation or a video. The recording format link does not appear until the conference has been rendered for playback. The rendering process may take some time to complete. The length of the conference is indicated in hours:minutes (e.g. 0:18 is 18 minutes). If your conference included closed captioning, the playback bar for the video displays a CC button to view the available captions.

Note: For all basic Conference accounts, recordings are automatically deleted 7 days after the conference ends.

Collaborations

The Collaborations page displays all collaborations where you have been invited to participate. For each collaboration, you can view the name of the collaboration [1], the description [2], the person who created the collaboration [3], and the date and time the collaboration was created [4].

Your instructor can always view any collaboration you create, though other students can only view collaborations that have been shared with them. If your instructor has added you to a course group, you can always create collaborations within a group. You can choose to receive notifications about collaborations in your notification preferences.

If you've been invited to join a collaboration, you can access the collaboration from the Digital Campus. Collaboration files can also be viewed on your online account for the collaboration type (OneDrive or Google Drive, respectively). 

Calendar

The Calendar is a great way to view everything you have to do for all your courses in one place. You can view calendar events by day, week, month, or agenda list.

The Calendar spans all courses and displays information for each of your enrolled courses and groups. In the navigation bar, you can choose to view the calendar in Week, Month, or Agenda view [1]. The view you choose dictates the style of the calendar window [2]. By default, the calendar appears in the Month view.

The sidebar [3] shows a quick-view calendar, your list of courses and groups, and undated items for your courses and groups.

Each calendar view shows any assignments or events that have been added to the calendar. You can add events and to-do items to your personal calendar at any time in the navigation bar by clicking the Add button.

Each personal, course, and group calendar is identified by a separate color that populates the calendar view. Associated calendar items for each course or group display when selected in the calendar view [1].

By default, the first 10 course and group calendars will be selected and appear in the calendar view. To hide a calendar, click the box next to the name of the calendar [2]. Calendars that are not active within the calendar view display as faded text [3].

Assignments are shown with an icon next to the assignment title. The icon reflects the assignment type: Discussion [1], Assignment [2], Quiz [3], or Events [4]. Non-graded items with a to-do date may display in the calendar for a course. Each item on the calendar is color-coded to match the courses or calendars in the sidebar. To view full details for an assignment or event, hover over the item [5]. Calendar assignments can also be crossed out [6], which is a simple way to keep track of assignments. Assignments are crossed out once the assignment has been submitted. However, assignments that have been awarded a grade but do not contain an actual submission will not be crossed out.

Assignments 

Viewing Assignments

You can view all your course assignments on the Assignments page. In Assignments, you can view all the assignments in your course. By default, assignments are grouped by overdue assignments, upcoming assignments, undated assignments, and past assignments. 

• Overdue Assignments: assignments and discussions that are past the due date, are still available, have not been submitted, and have not been graded.

• Upcoming Assignments: assignments, discussions, and quizzes that have an upcoming due date.

• Undated Assignments: assignments, discussions, and quizzes that do not have a due date.

• Past Assignments: assignments and discussions that are past the due date and either are not available, have been submitted, or have received a grade; quizzes that are past the due date.Each assignment also includes an icon with the assignment type: assignment [1], discussion [2], or quiz [3].

Note: The Assignments page supports keyboard shortcuts. To view a window with a list of keyboard navigation shortcuts, press the Shift+Question Mark keys simultaneously on your keyboard.

Submitting an Assignment 

You may have assignments to complete as part of your courses. They may be graded or ungraded and can include formal papers, oral presentations, group work, forum posts, or other activities. Each course has a section where the instructor will post the assignments and instructions.

You can submit online assignments in the Digital Campus using several submission types. Instructors can choose what kind of online submissions they want you to use. You may also have the option to resubmit assignments if your instructor allows.

In Course Navigation, click the Assignments link and then click the name of an assignment. Note: You can also access your Assignments through your user or course dashboard, the Syllabus, Gradebook, Calendar, or Modules. 

To submit an assignment, click the Start Assignment button. Your instructor may limit the number of submission attempts you are allotted for an assignment. 

If your assignment has a limited number of submissions, you can view the number of submission attempts you have made [1] and the number of submissions allowed for the assignment [2]. Once you have used all your submission attempts, the New Attempt button displays as disabled [3].

Your instructor will decide what kinds of submissions are appropriate for each Assignment. There are four submission types: upload a file, submit a text entry, enter a website URL, or submit media. You can only select one submission type per submission.

When you are ready to submit your assignment, click the Submit Assignment button. After you have submitted your work, you will see information in the Sidebar about your submission [1]. 

For file uploads, the sidebar provides a link to your submission to download if necessary. If you choose, you may resubmit another version of your assignment using the New Attempt button [2]. You will only be able to view the details of your most recent submission in the Sidebar, but your instructor will be able to see all of your submissions. Once the instructor has graded your submission, the Grades link in Course Navigation displays a grading indicator. You can also see details about your assignment and links to additional feedback in your Grades page.

IMPORTANT: If you need to make a change to the file you have submitted, you must reach out to your professor. You are not able to make immediate changes once you have submitted your assignment. 

You may be required to have a scanner to upload assignments.  You will also need software to convert the scanned objects into a .pdf file (if not provided with your scanner).

Always submit assignments and exams in the designated areas; do not email your assignment to your instructor or post it in the Files area. If you do not see where to submit an assignment when the time comes, please contact Student Success for guidance.