Guidelines and Expectations for Virtual Asynchronous Courses

To help you succeed in Virtual Asynchronous (VA) courses, this section outlines what you can expect and how to prepare. From course features and registration to time management and assessments, these guidelines are designed to support your learning experience and ensure you're set up for success.

Administration and Finances

Course Registration

Once you're registered at Laurier, you can set up your myLaurier webmail account. Your Laurier email account is the official means of communication between you and Laurier, so be sure to set it up as soon as you are able.

Our course registration guide has all the information you need to get started on registering for courses.

Costs

VA students pay all regular Laurier tuition and fees. In addition, you must pay an virtual course administration fee of $37 per course, primarily for courses marked with VA[#] in LORIS.

Your course may also require you to purchase course materials.

For details, contact Service Laurier.

Check Your Access to MyLearningSpace

Access to your course materials is typically granted by the start of the term. Follow the steps below to log in and being using MyLS:

Go to mylearningspace.wlu.ca.
Log in using your Laurier username and password. This is the same login that you use for your Laurier email.
Click on the course title to find your weekly schedule, course notes, assignments, and communication tools. All course correspondence will take place using the MyLS communication tools. You are responsible for being aware of online notices and for accessing your courses as required.
Verify through MyLS that you have all the course materials.
Review any introductory student information videos associated with your courses. For problems with login, password, or "course missing" errors, contact myls@wlu.ca.

Course Work and Assessments

Time Spent on Studying

VA courses are flexible and convenient, allowing you to work around other commitments. However, they do require you to dedicate approximately 10 to 12 hours per course per week to your academic work (specific requirements vary by course).

There will be assessments, assignments and activities that are due at set times throughout the term.

Tests and Exams

The assessment scheme for our VA courses may include quizzes, midterms and final examinations that may require you to use Lockdown Browser. For all course modes, assessments can be held in-person and/or virtually, as determined by the instructor and indicated on the course syllabus. Students in virtual courses can be required to complete in-person assessments.

Deadlines

Due dates are set up at the start of the courses and are identified by the week of study that you are in. For example, you may have an essay due at the end of week three; this is because terms may start on any day of the week. Some courses may also include upgraded learning tasks that are intended to help reinforce learning.

Virtual Degree Students

For students in the part-time Master of Social Work program, your courses may be six weeks long, in comparison to the typical 12-week courses for on-campus students.

For example, in the fall 2024 term, the first six-week course will start on Sept. 9, 2024, and the second six-week course will start on Oct. 28, 2024. It is recommended that students take only one six-week course at a time.

Part-time students can only take three courses per 12-week term:

three courses total between January and April,
three courses total between May and August, and
three courses total between September and December.