According to Cyon, Scientia’s Sydney-based subsidiary, many further and higher education institutions, along with private providers, have realised the benefit of better scheduling and resource management through using Syllabus Plus.
Cyon notes that over 30 universities in Australia and 20 institutions in New Zealand are currently using Syllabus Plus, and that utilisation improvements have been one of the many benefits achieved. It states that the suite of software tools also enables institutions to have better visibility on room usage and energy efficiency, as well as student and staff satisfaction.
Nicole Eaton, manager of space management at RMIT University, comments, “For RMIT University, Syllabus Plus is more than just a timetabling tool, it is a space planning tool. We use the application to assist us in developing the university’s future teaching space. Key studies undertaken with Syllabus Plus include determining how many teaching spaces are required to accommodate a new teaching program or accommodate growth in an existing program. We also use Syllabus Plus to determine if there is excess teaching space that could be repurposed for other key university requirements. Syllabus Plus is effectively a modelling tool for our teaching accommodation needs.”
Victoria University’s manager of space management, Terry Roche and the university’s manager of timetabling, David Reanney, add, “Victoria University has enjoyed a long relationship with Cyon as supplier of both our timetabling and exam software. In that time, we have been able to develop our use of the timetable product, Syllabus Plus, to support a centralised and constraints-based timetable system, which has greatly enhanced our ability to effectively manage our space utilisation and efficiently redeploy space to match changing requirements. Our focus on improving space utilisation is highly dependent on the quality of data we extract from Syllabus Plus, particularly when we compare timetabled bookings to actual room use. We are currently working on developing pedagogy-based classifications, using the software to better match timetable allocations to developing teaching and learning aspirations and increasingly complex delivery models.”
