Canvas Course User Roles
Canvas comes with five basic user roles, each with different levels of access and permissions in a course. Two of those are assigned at the Banner level during enrollment: Teacher and Student.
We've also created a few extra roles when one didn't completely fit what we needed.
Teachers are able to add people into their courses and select an appropriate role. Here is a quick snapshot of the options we have available.
Teacher-Based Roles
Teacher
Highest level of course access.
Can create content, grade submissions, enroll users, and change most course settings.
Can share to and import from Canvas Commons.
TA
High level of course access.
Can create content and grade submissions. Can't enroll users or change many course settings.
Can share to and import from Canvas Commons.
Designer
Moderate level of course access.
Used for creating and editing content. Can't grade or enroll users. Can change course settings.
Can share to and import from Canvas Commons.
Course Trustee
Low level of course access.
Used for sharing courses with another teacher. Can't edit course content but can import content into another course.
Can share to and import from Canvas Commons.
Student-Based Roles
Peer Mentor
Moderate level of course access.
Like a TA only without grading access. Can create and edit some content but can't change course settings.
Can share to and import from Canvas Commons.
Course Assistant
Low level of course access.
Like a Peer Mentor but cannot create or edit much content. Helps facilitate student groups and class discussions. No grading access.
Can't share to or import from Commons.
Student
Low level of course access.
Access and permissions determined by Teacher. Typically can submit assignments and interact with other students.
Can't share to or import from Commons.
Observer
Lowest level of course access.
Read-only access to your course content. Can't submit assignments or interact with others in the course.
Can't share to or import from Commons.
Complete Roles and Permissions
For a detailed list of all Canvas course user roles and permissions, check out our Canvas Permissions table.
Canvas Roles and Permissions