Faculty Knowledge Base

This page is your BC Faculty ctcLink Knowledge Base, a centerpiece that houses “how-to” information in a centralized location.

The following guides address faculty-specific tasks.  Generalized tasks can be found under the Staff Handbook tab. Note: the trainings listed here were developed in the context of the college transitioning from the prior administrative system, HP. If you have questions, please contact your supervisor for assistance.

General

The following terms have changed in ctcLink:

  • ctcLink takes the place of HP (also known as the Legacy System).
  • ctcLink is also referred to as PeopleSoft (the actual name of the software).
  • Instructor Briefcase functions (class rosters and grade rosters) are Faculty Center functions (accessed by clicking on CS Staff Homepage, then Faculty Center).
  • Divisions are called groups and departments are called orgs.
  • SIDs become ctcLink IDs.
  • Class Search:
    • Departments are listed as Subjects.
    • Course # is listed as Catalog #.
    • Item # is listed as Class #.
  • Credits become Units.
  • ctcLink numbering system
    • The first digit is the millennium (e.g. 2).
    • The second two digits are the academic year (e.g. 21).
    • The last digit indicates the term (PeopleSoft uses 1 for Winter, 3 for Spring, 5 for Summer, and 7 for Fall).
  • Prerequisites are Enrollment Requirements.
  • Register/Registration is Enroll/Enrollment.

View here for account activation instructions and the Gateway link.


Account Activation FAQs

Q: I’m having trouble logging into ctcLink, do you have some suggestions?

A: Try using an incognito (private) browser window in your favorite browser. The incognito (private) mode is usually accessible through the menu at the top right corner of the screen.

  • Google Chrome: Click on three vertical dots on top right and select “incognito” window.
  • Brave: Click on little red circle with a house on top right and select “private” window.
  • DuckDuckGo – This browser allows you to browse privately.


Q: How will I get my new ctcLink ID number?

A: For faculty or returning students, you get your new ctcLink ID number when you activate your ctcLink account. Be sure to write down your new number when you get it and keep it in a safe place.


Q: Will the ctcLink ID number replace my SID (also called “900 number”)?

A: Yes, if you previously had a “900 number,” your ctcLink ID number replaces your old SID.
 

Q: Will my ctcLink password be the same as my Bellevue College network login? 

A: While this is a possibility for the future, right now employees should anticipate having a unique password for the ctcLink system. To login, use your ctcLink ID number and a password. 


Q: What if I already have a ctcLink ID number from another college?

A: If you have already received a ctcLink ID number from another college, you do not need to activate your account or receive a new number. The ctcLink ID number you already have is what you will use.


Q: What if I’m an instructor and also a student or staff member?

A: The “applications” you will see in your ctcLink access correspond to your roles at Bellevue College. Important note: the contact information you enter through the “Personal Details” tile in Employee Self Service will override the contact information you enter through the “Profile” tile in Student Self Service.


Q: Will new employees be active in ctcLink before their first day?

A: For most employees, account activation will occur during the first day on the job.

Verify in the Employee Self-Service tile that personal biographical information is correct (including mailing address, email address, and phone number). 

In the Faculty Self-Service tile, verify access to current classes and rosters. 

If you are unable to navigate within ctcLink or are unable to see data you believe you should have access to, please submit a ticket here. 

It is important to include as much information as possible, including but not limited to where you are trying to navigate, what permissions you think you need, your ctcLink ID and if you are currently employed at another college.

The Contract Info page in the Faculty Center application allows part-time instructors to view and accept (or reject) their quarterly teaching load contracts.

Full-time faculty use the Contract Info page to view and accept (or reject) a quarterly moonlight course contract.

The Contract Info page link is located on the left-side Faculty Center navigation bar.

View a introductory video tour of Part-time and Moonlight Contracts in Faculty Center and the accompanying how-to document.

View the How to Submit Leave PowerPoint for instructions (document courtesy of Edmonds College).

View a guide on direct deposit information for payroll processing.

View a guide on clearing your cache [PDF].

Online tutorials and resources are available to help with employee self-service like managing personal information and time and leave reporting. Go to the Staff Training tab.  

Online tutorials and resources are available to help students navigate and use ctcLink. Go to the Student Training tab.

Classroom

Faculty Center is the primary ctcLink application that instructors will use to manage their classes. It replaces several legacy systems that instructors have used in the past. This includes Instructor Briefcase and its class and grade rosters functions. It is the focal point of faculty activity in ctcLink. 

Instructors will use the following Faculty Center pages for these tasks:

  • My Schedule to view quarterly course schedule
  • Class Roster to review class rosters – including course waitlists
  • Grade Roster to enter end-of-quarter final grades
  • Contract Info for part-time faculty to accept quarterly teaching load contracts and for full-time faculty to accept moonlight contracts
  • Search Menu to search for classes, the course catalog, and faculty members

View the guide on How to Navigate Faculty Center.

My Schedule is the default page in Faculty Center. It allows instructors to view their current and historic course schedules.

My Schedule lists each instructor’s course with the course section number being a link to a Class Detail page that provides general information about the course.

Class Roster and Grade Roster may be accessed via icon links on the My Schedule page or they may be accessed on the left-side navigation bar.

The View Weekly Teaching Schedule page is based on information supplied by the division office scheduler. Faculty are unable to edit the Weekly Teaching Schedule page. However, if a course scheduling change is implemented by an instructor’s division, their Weekly Teaching Schedule page will be updated.

View the guide on How to View Teaching Schedule.

The Class Roster page in the Faculty Center application enables instructors to view student course rosters.

A course roster may be accessed by an Access Class Roster icon on the My Schedule page or directly by a Class Roster page link located on the left-side Faculty Center navigation bar.

View the guide on How to View Class Roster.


Class Roster FAQs

Q: After looking at a class roster, how do I return to my course list?

A: On the left-side vertical navigation bar, click the “My Schedule” page link. This will take you back to your course list.
 

Q: How does the “Notify Students” option work?

A: After selecting a student to notify (by clicking the Notify checkbox column to the left of the student(s) ID column) and clicking one of the Notify buttons, a message box opens that allows you to type and send a message. Your message will be a BCC to the student(s) and a direct send to your district supplied email inbox.
 

Q: Is it possible to print my class roster?

A: Yes. Scroll to the bottom of your class roster screen then scroll to the far right-side. Click the “Printer-friendly Version” link.
 

Q: Students have withdrawn from my current course but I don’t see a “W” next to their name on my course roster. How do I know if a student withdrew during the quarter?

A: In the Faculty Center application on the My Schedule page, click on the Access Gradebook icon. It is the second icon from the left of the icons list next to each class title name. NOTE: It will become the third icon from the left when Grade Rosters are available.

On the Gradebook page, click on “Requirement Designation” which is the fourth item to the right of “Go To”, just below the class information box. This will show a different view of your roster and should have a “W” shown for any students who have withdrawn.
 

Q: When registering for classes, my students are being prompted for entry and/or permission codes. Are these available in ctcLink?

A: No. Contact your division office about instructions for receiving entry codes.


Q: May I add an overload student to my course in ctcLink?

A: No. Contact your division office or the registrar about instructions for adding overload students to your courses.


Q: What happened to my course(s) item numbers? They look very different in ctcLink.

A: The previous course item number is now called “Class Number” and is five digits in length. NOTE: Please always include your Class Number when asking for assistance with a class or grade roster issue.

To view waitlists, please follow these instructions:

  1. Log in to ctcLink.
  2. Faculty Center should be default view.
  3. Make certain Winter 22 is the selected term.
  4. Scroll to find class. 
  5. Click on Access Class Roster. The icon looks like three people standing together.
  6. Locate Enrollment Capacity #. To the right should be Enrolled # and again to the right is Enrollment Status. Click on the down arrow and choose Waiting. If the course does not currently have a waitlist, the Waiting option will not be visible.
  7. Scroll down on the screen. A list of students should appear.

View the guide on How to View Faculty Waitlist.

It is possible to access a student’s history via the Advising Center through ctcLink. Here are the steps on how to access it from the ctcLink Gateway:

  • Go to the Advisor Homepage
  • Find the Advisor Center Tile
  • Click on Student Center
  • Enter the student’s ctcLink ID
  • Click the Search button
  • Click the down arrow in the dropdown box, located on the left side of the page to select Course History
  • Click on the blue double arrow next to the drop down box

Faculty may want to verify that their students have met the Enrollment Requirements during the first week of the quarter.

Courses with an ampersand in the course title have common course numbering (CCN) and can be used for transfer credit at other institutions. These courses are listed separately on the Subject (Department) drop-down list in ctcLink. 

For example, when students are searching for ENGL& 101, they need to look for English [CCN] in the Subject drop-down list. 

When students are searching for a non-transferrable English course, for example ENGL 99, they need to look for English in the Subject drop-down list. 

The same holds true for other departments that offer courses for transfer credit. 

The Grade Roster page in the Faculty Center application enables instructors to submit end-of-quarter final course grades.

A grade roster may be accessed by a Grade Roster icon on the My Schedule page or directly by a Grade Roster page link located on the left-side Faculty Center navigation bar.

View a video and an accompanying PDF document of the Grade Roster page in Faculty Center (courtesy of Seattle College).


Grade Roster FAQs

Q: I see an “Access Gradebook” icon next to my Class Name. Is this like Grade Roster?

A: No. Gradebook allows faculty to grade course assignments. Colleges are not using this option. Faculty will continue using Canvas to manage course assignments. You will use Grade Roster to enter and submit end-of-quarter grades.

Q: Am I able to enter and save “draft” grades before they are ready for final submittal?

A: Yes. After entering your draft grades, you click “Save” then proceed to the “Action Approval Status” field dropdown box & make sure “Not Reviewed” is selected. If it isn’t, select it, then click “Save” again. When ready to submit your grades, you’ll change the “Not Reviewed” option to “Approve”, then “Save” once more. This action will then post your grades to the Registrar.

Q: How do I change a student’s grade after I have entered final grades, approved them for the course, and saved?

A: Faculty are unable to change grades on a roster with an “Approved” status displaying (in the Action Approval Status field) after they have been saved. However, you can change the status to “Not Reviewed” to change grades, then change the status to “Approved” once more and click Save before the grade post process runs.

Q: How do I know my grades were successfully approved and submitted?

A: You can verify if grades were successfully approved by navigating to the Grade Roster; the Grade Roster Action Approval Status field will state “Approved. If the roster has been posted, you will see the word “Posted” next to the Approval Status field.

Q: I’m missing students from my Grade Roster. Where are their names?

A: There are only 20 students listed per page. If you have more than 2 students on your Grade Roster, you must click the little arrow in the upper right-hand corner of the grade roster to get to the “next page”.

Q: I see I could post a “Transcript Note”. What information may I enter?

A: DO NOT ENTER ANYTHING IF YOU SEE THIS OPTION. It should already be disabled. It literally posts these notes directly on the student’s official transcript. If allowed to enter anything in this field, the Registrar must manually remove it.

Q: Will I submit a Grade Change request in Grade Roster?

A: No. This option is currently disabled. Please consult your division office for the current grade change procedures.

Q: How can I review any “I” Incomplete grades or “Y” Ongoing grades I issued from previous quarters?

A: In the Faculty Center application on the My Schedule page, click the Change Term button and select a previous quarter. Next to one of your course names, click on the Access Gradebook icon. It is the second icon from the left of the icons list next to each class title name. NOTE: It will be the third icon from the left when Grade Rosters are available.

On the Gradebook page, click on “Requirement Designation” which is the 4th item to the right of “Go To” row, just below the class information box. This will show a different view of your roster and will have an “I” or “Y” grade for any students who received one.

Q: What happened to my course(s) item numbers? They look very different in ctcLink.

A: The previous course item number is now called “Class Number” and is five digits in length. NOTE: Please always include your Class Number when asking for assistance with a class or grade roster issue.

To print a grade roster:

  1. Bring up the grade roster. All students and their submitted grades should be visible.
  2. In the upper left-hand corner, just above the Student Grade tab, locate a picture of a little grid with an arrow on it. Hovering over it offers the options to personalize, zoom, or download to Excel
  3. Choose to download the data to Excel. Once done, the grade roster will be neatly organized in Excel.

The following guides cover the task of submitting grades in ctcLink:

Please note: When entering grades, instructors will need to click on the Grade Roster icon rather than the Access Gradebook icon or the name of the class (course detail). 

When submitting grades, please keep in mind the following tips:

  • Use the Save button at the bottom of the Grade Roster page frequently. 
  • Ignore the Unsaved data message at the top of the Grade Roster page if the information has been saved.
  • Make sure to click to the Next Page if a class is larger than 20 students in order to view the complete grade roster. Only 20 students can be displayed on the screen at a time.
  • Once Approval Status is set to Approved and grades have been saved, they are saved. 
  • Instructors will not receive a message or checkmark in ctcLink (like they did in Instructor Briefcase) confirming that grades were successfully submitted.
  • If the grading period is still open and a grade needs to changed, modify the status to Not Reviewed, update the grade, change the status back to Approved, and then save.

If there is a message on the Grade Roster that grades are “Posted,” you can no longer change grades by changing the Approval Status to “Not Reviewed”. Instead, use this form to request a grade change.

Using Canvas

It is recommended that faculty continue using Canvas as a primary method for communications with students.

Using Email

It is recommended that faculty continue using their campus email accounts as a primary method for communications with students.

FYI: Students may continue using their private email addresses when communicating with faculty or use their campus supplied O365 email accounts:

Using ctcLink

  • Class Roster: Instructors may contact students individually or as a group using the Notify Students buttons listed at the bottom of each course roster. 

In the class roster, select the students to notify.  Type a message, then click the Send Notification. not include sensitive information or anything based on a student record.) A copy of the email be sent to the instructor’s BC email inbox. Student replies will also come to the instructor’s BC email Inbox. 

Note:  Instructors will not have access to the Sent message email list.

  • Waitlist: On the Class Roster page, instructors may contact waitlisted students individually or as a group using the Notify Students buttons listed at the bottom of each waitlist. ctcLink is the only way to contact waitlisted students.
  • Grade Roster: Instructors may contact students individually or as a group using the Notify Students buttons listed at the bottom of each course grade roster once the grade rosters appear – near the end of each quarter. 

View an introductory video about contacting waitlisted students using ctcLink (courtesy of Seattle College).


Communicating with Students FAQs

Q: Can students send messages from ctcLink to their instructors? 

A: No. Students can receive messages in their Student Message Center tile from other college departments like admissions, registration, and financial aid. However, students are unable to send messages from this tile. NOTE: Faculty may send messages to students from the Faculty Center Course Roster page, but these messages are sent to the students’ email account not their ctcLink account. 

This feature is being used by other schools on the ctcLink system. BC will not be using it at this time. 

To find a student’s phone number, go to the Student Services Center. Enter the student’s information (name, etc.). Scroll down to view address and phone number.

Last Updated September 18, 2023