Course Access Timeframe

[JeremySehn]

How long after completing a course will the content remain accessible to me? I would like to be able to recover some material from my undergrad (I am now in a Masters program) and I'm wondering if it is a Canvas decision or instructor/institution-specific as to how long my course information remains available.

[dbrace · Accepted solution]

Hi @JeremySehn,

How long you have access to course material (and to Canvas as a whole) depends on policies and settings applied at a mix of the institution-level, course-level, and teacher-level.

I would recommend that you reach out to your teacher or to the Canvas team at your institution. When reaching out to either area, make sure to have a specific course in mind (preferably an "old" course) so that they can use it as a way to provide you with an accurate answer.

-Doug

[SusanNiemeyer]

My community college district's policy is to cut off student access about a week after the grades are due. Instructors can still access their old courses in read-only mode.

Access to a Canvas course is generally treated like a face-to-face class. Once a semester has ended, a student can't expect to walk back into the classroom a year later and listen to the professor's lectures again. 

A lot of students equate Canvas courses with books or other materials, but what you are really paying for is instruction and access to a professor during a specific period of time.