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Administrator Guide
Last Updated: 2026-05-01
Steps: Set Up Academic Calendars

Steps: Set Up Academic Calendars

The academic calendar controls date-driven processes and enables you to:
  • Create academic years and periods.
  • Specify holidays and other noninstructional days.
By default, academic units inherit calendar configurations from the superior academic unit designated as an institution. After you create academic calendars, you assign them to academic unit and level combinations or programs of study to create calendar policies.
  1. Access the
    Maintain Academic Period Types
     task.
    Create academic period types. Example: Spring, Fall, and Intersession.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  2. Set up holiday calendars for your holidays and other noninstructional days.
  3. Access the
    Create Academic Calendar
     task.
    Complete the task:
    Option Description
    Academic Calendar Name
    Enter a name for the academic calendar. Example:
    Semester Calendar
    .
    Non-Instructional Days
    (Optional) Select from the holiday calendars you created on the
    Create Holiday Calendar
     task.
    Order
    Workday displays the academic periods in this order on the tasks for creating academic years.
    When the academic calendar is in use, you can't change the order of academic periods.
    Period Type
    Select from the period types you created on the
    Maintain Academic Period Types
     task.
    Standard Period
    Select the check box for at least 1 academic period to represent the reporting window for your academic calendar.
    For multiple standard periods in the academic calendar, you must have standard periods that are contiguous and nonoverlapping.
    For nonstandard periods available in the academic calendar, leave the check box unchecked. Example:
    Summer Extended Period
    .
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  4. From the related actions menu of the academic calendar, select
    Academic Calendar
    Create Initial Academic Year
    .
    Complete the task:
    Option Description
    Name
    Enter a name. Example:
    2024-2025 Alma Mater College Academic Year
    .
    Start Date
    Enter the start date of the academic year. Workday uses this date as the standard start date of the first standard academic period.
    Standard Periods
    Specify the date ranges for standard academic periods in the academic year. The
    Standard End Date
     represents the end of the reporting window for an academic period.
    When you have multiple standard periods, enter a
    Start Date
     that’s 1 day after the
    Standard End Date
     of the previous standard period. Standard period dates must be contiguous and nonoverlapping.
    Nonstandard Periods
    Specify the date ranges for nonstandard academic periods in the academic year.
    The start and end dates must be between the standard start and standard end dates of a standard academic period.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  5. From the related actions menu of the academic calendar, select
    Academic Calendar
    Create Next Academic Year
    .
    Create the subsequent academic year. Repeat this task to create additional academic years.
    You must build out your academic calendar years at least as far as your longest program length. If you don't have calendar years built out far enough, Workday might not calculate a student's expected completion date correctly.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  6. (Optional) From the related actions menu of the academic calendar, select
    Academic Calendar
    Create Previous Academic Year
    .
    Create an academic year preceding your existing years. Repeat the task to create additional years.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  7. (Optional) Add nonstandard academic periods to all academic years on an academic calendar that’s already in use.
    1. Access the
      Add Nonstandard Academic Periods to Calendar
       task.
    2. Edit the academic years to configure the nonstandard academic periods.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  8. (Optional) From the related actions menu of the academic period, select
    Academic Period
    Maintain Academic Period Weights
    .
    Assign academic weights to academic periods for use in calculations.
    1. From the
      Type
       prompt, select from
      Tenure
      ,
      Sabbatical
      , and
      Residence
      .
    2. Enter the
      Weight
       value.
    Security:
    Set Up: Academic Calendar
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
  9. (Optional) Allow course sections to be offered across multiple standard academic periods.
    Enabling this option has downstream impacts on financial aid, Student Financials, and academic statistics. Examples:
    • Courses that overlap academic period dates can cause programs to become nonterm for financial aid purposes.
    • Courses are billed and paid for in the standard academic period when the course section starts.
    • Courses that span multiple academic periods are counted in the academic period of the course section start date for academic statistics, such as GPA and institutional load status.
    Ensure that you consider and understand the downstream impacts before using this feature. Once you enable standard academic period spanning, you can’t disable or change the setting.
    2. Access the
      Designate Standard Academic Period Spanning
       task.
      Security:
      Set Up: Course Section Calendar Options
       domain in the Student Records functional area.
    3. For the selected institution, select
      Allow Course Sections to Span Standard Academic Periods
      .
  10. (Optional) Access the
    Assign Years to Academic Calendar
     task.
    Use this task if you have academic years or periods created outside of the calendar with:
    • An older version of Workday Student.
    • The
      Maintain Academic Periods
       task in Workday Human Capital Management (HCM), if you want to use the same periods in Workday Student. See Steps: Manage Academic Appointments.
    Security:
    Manage: Academic Calendar Updates
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
You can set up and manage date-driven processes in Workday Student.
You can use these reports and task (secured to the
Set Up: Academic Calendar
 domain in the Academic Foundation functional area):
  • View Academic Calendar
     to review the academic calendar.
  • Edit Academic Calendar
     to edit the academic calendar.
  • View Non-Instructional Days
     to view the noninstructional days for an academic year.
You can also use the
Edit Academic Period Dates
 task (secured to the
Manage: Academic Calendar Updates
 domain in the Academic Foundation functional area) to edit calendar dates.