What it does
Block structures divide an academic period into the named, numbered date ranges — blocks — that rotation schedules are built on. You can maintain several structures per period (for example, 13 four-week blocks for one cohort and 4 quarters for another), mark one as the default, and point each schedule at the structure that fits its cohort.
Who it's for
Program administrators and coordinators who set up the academic calendar for their program, and institution or organization administrators who maintain shared structures that multiple programs inherit.
How it works
A block structure belongs to one academic period. It's scoped to a program, an institution, or the whole organization. Inside it, you define each block's name, number, and start/end dates. Edit blocks inline, or copy a whole structure to reuse its pattern elsewhere. If the program has no academic period yet, this page shows No academic periods yet with a Set up academic periods action (or a note to ask an administrator) instead of the structure editor.
Resolution. A structure explicitly chosen on the schedule wins. Otherwise the schedule inherits the default for its program and period. That falls back through institution and organization scopes. A schedule can instead own a fully custom block set that no other schedule shares.
Moving schedules. Moving a schedule to a different structure re-maps its rotation assignments onto the target's blocks by date alignment. If a live assignment doesn't align to a target block, the switch is refused and you're asked to reassign it first — assignments are never moved silently. You can also reset a custom-block schedule back to the standard period blocks.
Before you start
You need program, institution, or organization administration access, matching the scope of the structure you want to manage.
Know the academic period the structure belongs to — every structure serves exactly one period.
If you are copying a pattern, know which other academic period already has the structure you want to reuse.
Do this
Open the block structure page (
/schedules/block-structure) → you should see the Structures list for the current academic period.Select New structure → the structure sheet opens; enter a Name and, if your program uses one, a Cohort label, then save → the structure appears in the list with 0 blocks.
Open the structure's blocks panel and select Add Block → a new block row appears; set its name, number, and start and end dates.
In the same panel, repeat Add Block for each block in the pattern, or edit an existing block's dates inline → confirm no block's end date is before its start date.
On the same page, if this structure should be the one schedules inherit by default, select Set as default → the Default badge moves to this structure.
To reuse a pattern from another period, select Copy from period in the toolbar → the Copy block structure dialog opens; pick the source period and structure, then confirm → the copy appears in this period's list.
You're done when
The structure lists every block with the right number and date range.
The structure you intend schedules to inherit shows the Default badge.
A schedule pointed at this structure shows the matching columns in the schedule grid.
Boundaries and limits
Every structure must be scoped to a program, institution, or organization, and must belong to one academic period — there are no cross-period structures.
Switching a schedule to another structure re-maps assignments by date; if a live assignment does not align, the switch is refused rather than moved without notice.
Resetting a custom schedule back to standard blocks is refused when a live assignment cannot be re-mapped — you are asked to reassign it first.
Custom blocks belong to exactly one schedule; other schedules cannot reference them.
Block dates are validated on entry: an end date cannot precede its start date, and block numbers must be positive whole numbers.
Block Structure cannot be edited until the program has at least one academic period.
Common questions
Q: Can different cohorts in one program run on different block calendars? A: Yes. Create one structure per pattern in the same academic period and point each schedule at the structure it should use.
Q: What happens to assignments if I change a block's dates? A: Block date edits are made in the structure editor and affect every schedule using that structure. Review the schedule grid afterwards — assignments keep their own start and end dates.
Q: Do I have to build blocks by hand every year? A: No. Copy an existing structure into the new academic period and adjust the dates.
Q: Which structure does a schedule use if I never picked one? A: The default for its program and academic period, falling back to institution and then organization defaults when a closer scope has none.
Q: What if this program has no academic period? A: Block Structure won't open the editor. Use Set up academic periods if you can manage program settings, or ask an administrator to create a period and then return.
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