Getting the Most from Canvas and Outlook

There are two particular IT platforms or applications that are absolutely essential for you to get to grips with as a University of Galway student:

• Canvas, your virtual learning environment, and
• Microsoft Outlook, which includes your university email

See this page in the Getting started section of the Academic Skills Hub if you need help getting started with Canvas or Outlook.

Most of your lecturers will use Canvas to post module information, assignments, lecture notes and other learning materials. Some will post rubrics, give feedback, and return grades on this platform. Others will use additional functions such as discussion boards or live video-streaming. It can be a bit tricky, as a student, to figure out the different ways that your lecturers make use of Canvas. Take some time, as early as you can in the academic year, to get a handle on this as – apart from attending lectures – Canvas is your main link to your lecturers and the modules that they teach.

It’s also vital to keep up to date with your University of Galway emails. Remember that your student email is the main means by which University of Galway will communicate with you about everything from exams to social events. Don’t let your emails get out of control – managing email is a key skill that most of us will need to master in our lives and our workplaces.

Student email is just one of the applications available through Microsoft Outlook, a personal information management system that all students can download for free. Other applications available through Outlook include a calendar, task manager, note-taking facility, contacts list, and journal. Microsoft Outlook can be a very useful tool for managing your time, your workload and your communication with others. You can find training resources for Outlook and student email via Microsoft.