Technical Documentation

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Import Student, Course, and Instructor Information

The Trac application can import data from any source as long as it is provided in the correct format. The data needs to be provided in a flat file format, tab or comma delimited are preferred. The Trac application will not import data from Excel files. The order and delimiter of the fields is completely up to your preference. However, the format, order, and delimiter of the fields must remain consistent with every import.


Using your current registrar’s Student Information System (such as Banner, PeopleSoft or DataTel) as a source, create files to be imported into your Trac System. We prefer two files - a student file (e.g., "TracStudents.csv") and a course enrollment file (e.g., "TracCourses.csv"). Create sample files with 5-10 lines of data and header rows with the fields you would like to import. Send us this sample data and we will create a custom import script for your Trac System to import data from these files. Once our script is ready, you will need to either place the import files in your Trac System's Import folder on the server itself or upload these files to our SFTP server (if hosted). We will then work with you to determine an automatic import schedule going forward.

Description of Import fields

Code Field Types
A## Alpha field of a certain maximum length (you do not have format to this length)
#L Long Integer (-2.1 billion to +2.1 billion)
#R Real Value (decimal # with 12 digits precision)
# Small Integer (-32676 to +32676)
B Boolean (Yes/No)
D Date (mmddyyyy or yyyymmdd or mm/dd/yyyy), please specify format utilized



Student Import Fields

Name Type Required Field Description
ID #L Yes The unique numeric ID of the student. This needs to be in the first column of the import file.
Other ID A40 * A secondary ID (or barcode) for the student - may be required if you plan on utilizing a barcode scanner or magnetic card reader to sign in your students
Last Name A60 Yes The last name of the student
First Name A60 Yes The first name of the student
Middle A20 The middle name/initial of the student
Street Address A80 The street address of the student
City A50 City of the student address
State A2 The state code of the student address
Zip A10 The zip code of the student address
Email A80 * The email address of the student - required if you plan to send emails to your students, including automatic appointment reminders
Full Name A80 The student name formatted as Last, First Middle. If the rest of the import file is comma or tab delimited, this field will need to be surrounded with quotes (e.g., "000001,"Last, First Middle",FirstName,LastName,...").
Home Phone A20 The student home phone number
Work Phone A20 A secondary phone number for the student
Gender Male B The gender of the student is stored as a boolean - the only options are Male or Female and all students default to Female
Birthdate D The student birthdate
Ethnicity A80 Ethnicity (could be a code or complete name)
Grad Und A80 A code that indicated Graduate or Undergraduate (usually "G" or "U")
College A80 What college the student is attending
Class A80 The student's class: Freshman, Sophomore, etc. or FR, SO, JR, SR or 2003, 2004, etc.
Cohort A80 Used to custom group the student records. Use of this field is determined by the TutorTrac administrator.
Major A80 The student's major. May be a code or complete description.
Handle A60 * The student's username to log in to your Trac application online - required if you plan to log students in through LDAP, Active Directory, or Single Sign-On
Password A40 The student's password to log in to your Trac application online.
ReferredBy A80 Who referred the student to the center.
Degree Goal A80 Either the Degree Earned or the Degree Goal.
Overall GPA #R The Overall GPA for the Student (EMCCGPA)
Total Hours #R Total Accumulated Hours for the Student (BMI1)
HS Name A30 Name of the High School Attended
Custom Field1 A80 A custom field that may be used for any purpose.
Custom Field2 A80 same as above
Custom Field3 A80 same as above
Custom Field4 A80 same as above
Custom Field5 A80 same as above
Custom Field6 A80 same as above
Custom Field7 A80 same as above
Custom Field8 A80 same as above
Custom Field9 A80 same as above
Special Status A80 A student status field: may be a code or description.



Registration Import Fields

Name Type Required Description
Student ID #L Yes The unique numeric ID of the student. In some cases the ID is the secondary alphanumeric ID - please indicate to us which ID will be utilized.
Course Subject A40 Yes The course in which the student is enrolled
Course Section A40 Yes The section in which the student is enrolled
Course Title A80 Yes The name of the course in which the student is enrolled
Term # Yes The term code for the semester that the student is enrolled in: 032 might be the year 2003 Spring, and 034 might be the year 2004 Summer.
Instructor ID A20 * Unique identifier to find and create unique faculty instructors
Instructor First Name A40 * The first name of the course instructor
Instructor Last Name A40 * The last name of the course instructor
Instructor Email A80 * The Email address of the instructor - required if sending automatic emails to instructors
Instructor Phone A20 The phone number of the instructor
Instructor Sal A8 The Salutation or Degree for the instructor (Phd, etc.)
Instructor Username A20 * The instructor's username to log in to your Trac application online - required if you plan to log faculty in through LDAP, Active Directory, or Single Sign-On
Course Grade A20 The Grade received for this course.
Value # The Numeric grade value
Date D Date grade/report issued.
Type A40 The report type (midterm, final, etc.) In some cases it is simply a flag used by the system to indicate the disposition of the course (REGISTERED, DROPPED, WITHDRAWN).


Registration Date Range

Name Type Required Description
Date Begin D MM/DD/YYYY – date the course begins
Date End D MM/DD/YYYY – date the course ends


If you plan on using the optional Class Schedule feature, click the "Expand" button to view the additional fields available.

Registration Import Fields With Class Schedule
Name Type Required Description
Date Begin D Yes* MM/DD/YYYY – date the course begins
Date End D Yes* MM/DD/YYYY – date the course ends
Monday A2 Yes* Populate with “MO” if the class is in session on Monday.
Tuesday A2 Yes* Populate with “TU” if the class is in session on Tuesday.
Wednesday A2 Yes* Populate with “WE” if the class is in session on Wednesday.
Thursday A2 Yes* Populate with “TH” if the class is in session on Thursday.
Friday A2 Yes* Populate with “FR” if the class is in session on Friday.
Saturday A2 Yes* Populate with “SA” if the class is in session on Saturday.
Sunday A2 Yes* Populate with “SU” if the class is in session on Sunday.
Start Time A6 Yes* ##:## - Time of day the individual class begins. Military time is preferred.
End Time A6 ##:## - Time of day the individual class ends. Military time is preferred.
Duration # Yes* Number of minutes the individual class is in session. (Class start time minus class end time).

*Only required if you're planning on using the Class Schedule feature.


Manually Running the Import

Go to Trac Navigation > Trac Man > Utilities and Prefs > Auto Events.


Import1.jpg


Click on the Link for the “Auto Import” Event. This will open the Event Entry screen.

To configure the auto event to run on a scheduled basis, check the "is Pending" box, set the schedule (Daily, Weekly, Monthly), set a time, and save.

Import2.jpg


You can also manually start the import a single time by clicking on the green execute button on the right side.

Import3.jpg


In addition you can also run the import and check on its status from the Custom Utility tab. Set the category to "Standard" and choose "Import Student Data" or "View Import Status".

Import4.jpg

This will display information on your most recent import.

Import6.jpg

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Import, Importing, SIS, Student Information, Course Information, Student Information System