Undergraduate Canvas Template
Setting up a clear, well-organized Canvas course site is an important first step in supporting student success in any modality. Students report* that consistent design across Canvas course sites would allow them to better focus on course content over Canvas site functionalities, reduce barriers for learning interactions online, and help to stay actively engaged with the learning process.
The Office of Undergraduate Education collaborated with academic technologists and instructional designers to develop a Canvas template that assists instructors in delivering well-designed, consistently formatted Canvas sites in support of student learning. This template is an example of a course structure (how course content can be organized on a Canvas site) and offers placeholders for your course resources. Using this template can save you time and effort, boost accessibility, and give students a consistent, easy-to-navigate experience across their course sites.
The UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template follows course design guidelines supported by research and shaped by student feedback, and includes 6 Essential Design Elements.
Essential Design Elements for Undergraduate Canvas Sites
- A welcoming Homepage with important course information:
- Course meeting schedule, time, and location
- Instructor and TA contact information (including pronouns, email, office hours, location, etc.)
- Guidance on how to navigate the site and get started with assignments
- How students can find technical and course help
- An up-to-date and visible course Syllabus.
- Consistent use of the Canvas Syllabus Tool helps students easily locate their syllabi across course sites.
A streamlined and focused Course Navigation menu showing only the options students need to use (see instructions on how to adjust your navigation menu).
- Home
- Announcements
- Syllabus
- Modules
- Assignments
- Course Works
- Grades
- People
- Student Rating of Teaching
- Check Accessibility with UDOIT
We recommend starting with these options and adding other items as needed (see instructions on how to adjust your navigation menu).
- Course content organized into Modules to help students find learning materials and stay on track.
- Clear and consistent naming conventions for content resources and activities that match the language used in the course syllabus.
- Due dates or to-do dates for course assignments and activities.
It is important to note that the template is flexible and can be customized to fit your teaching style and needs. View the Undergraduate Canvas Template or see it in an example site with content.
Adding the UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template to your Canvas Site
There are two ways to add (or import) the UMN Undergraduate Canvas template to your course site. You can choose a Do-It Yourself option; or you can submit a request for the template to be imported to your course site(s).
Option 1: Do It Yourself.
If you are comfortable using Canvas, you can import the Undergraduate Canvas Template into your course from the Canvas Commons (see UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template Instructions).
- Sign-in to Canvas.umn.edu. You will see your Canvas Dashboard.
- Click the Commons icon on the left-side maroon navigation menu.
- In the search bar, type “UMN Undergrad”.
- Select the UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template.
- Select the blue Import/Download option. The tray panel will slide in on the right - it will list the course sites you have access to.
- Choose the course(s) where you want to apply the template, then select Import into Course at the bottom of the list.
Option 2: If you are new to Canvas.
You can request that the template be imported to your course site by filling out the UMN Undergraduate Template Request Form. Please note: you must be listed as a Teacher or a TA on your Canvas course site(s). If you are not seeing the course site(s) or are not listed as a teacher, please contact your department scheduler first to update instructor’s information in PeopleSoft.
This process is being finalized; please check back in January 2026 for more details and a link to the request form.
Are you teaching multiple sections or an interdisciplinary course?
If the course you are teaching has multiple sections using the same content, or if it is an interdisciplinary course offered through multiple departments, you can cross-list (or merge) such interdisciplinary courses and/or multiple sections in a single course site using the Canvas cross-listing function. Contact [email protected] to request section or course cross-listing. More information on how to cross-list a course site can be found at Canvas: Cross-List (Merge) Course Sites or Sections.
After adding (importing) the U of MN Undergraduate template to your course site
The UMN Undergraduate template can be imported to a new and empty site (see how to use the template with new content.) Or it can be imported to a site that already has content from the previous semester (see how to use the template with imported content).
Once the import is completed, it is important to review the course content and do some cleanup: the content of at least two Canvas sites (the UMN Undergraduate Template and existing content from an old site) has been imported to your new site, there will be some mix-ups.
- Make sure the correct page is set as a Frontpage, i.e., homepage.
- Go to the Modules and check if:
- all the modules are ordered correctly.
- resources in each module are sequenced and/or named correctly
- modules and module resources are published or unpublished as it fits your teaching needs
- Check if assignment settings and due dates are set correctly.
- Make sure all links are active using Settings -> Validate Links in Content option.
If you need assistance importing the UMN Undergraduate template and customizing/organizing/cleaning up your site, contact your local academic technologist.
UMN programs and units interested in implementing the UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template across their courses should email [email protected].
Accessibility
Is the UMN Undergraduate Canvas Template Accessible?
The Undergraduate Canvas Template meets digital accessibility standards. After importing the template to your Canvas site, you might want to add content from other course sites or create new resources. It is your responsibility to maintain digital accessibility standards when you make any changes on your course site. If you are new to digital accessibility, we recommend you start with the 7 Core Skills of Digital Accessibility. Consistently applying accessibility guidelines and using accessibility checker tools will help to ensure that your Canvas site continues to be digitally accessible for students.
Other Canvas Tools
If you are a seasoned Canvas user looking to improve or enhance your Canvas site, explore these advanced features to support student learning:
- Schedule course announcements to provide student reminders or help pace longer assignments or projects.
- Set office hours in Canvas Calendar so students can see all events and due dates for your course in one place.
- Provide student feedback in SpeedGrader. Create, save, and reuse frequent comments using the comment library.
- Use the Message Students Who feature in the Gradebook to send targeted messages based on criteria like submission status or grade.
Additional Resources
Canvas Training and Self-Paced Learning
- The Canvas Essentials microcourse is a self-directed walk-through on how to get a Canvas site ready for the start of the semester.
- Online Teaching and Design Resources
- UMN’s Canvas Help Knowledge base
- List of all UMN Canvas templates and Tips for using a Canvas Template
Inspiration and Proven Methods
- Canvas Hall of Fame showcases stellar, student-nominated Canvas sites
- Online Course Standards
Support Services
- Find your local academic technologists
- Academic Technology Support Services
- Center for Educational Innovation