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Compare and select your scheduling tool

Updated on Nov 30, 2023

This guides provides an overview and comparison of both Quercus Calendar Scheduler and Microsoft Bookings tools.

Quercus Calendar Scheduler and Microsoft Bookings are online booking and calendar tools that can be used to create and schedule appointments. Both tools are available to the U of T community as a part of the Academic Toolbox. Depending on your course structure and goals, you can choose one or another tool to create office hours, coordinate course presentation times and exams, schedule TA sessions, or host other types of appointments.

1. Overview of Quercus Calendar Scheduler

Quercus Calendar Scheduler tool is integrated into Quercus Calendar and allows instructors to create Appointment Groups with blocks of time that are available to students in their Quercus course to sign up for.

1.1. Scheduler Features:

Scheduler is only available within the Quercus Calendar and specific to courses.
Only students (no other roles in Quercus) can sign up for appointment blocks in Scheduler.
Appointments can be set up as individual or group appointments.
Instructor can view, edit and delete appointment groups.
Instructor can cancel appointments booked by students.
Instructor sees booked Appointments in their calendar after a student or group has reserved a time block.
Students access appointment time slots in their own Quercus Calendar.

1.2. Scheduler is Best for:

Scheduling appointments for student groups in a Quercus Course

2. Overview of Microsoft Bookings

Microsoft Bookings is a scheduling tool for appointments, office hours, or other services that is available to U of T faculty, staff and students as part on their Microsoft 365 license. It simplifies appointment scheduling and allows customizing appointment details and booking requirements.

2.1. Microsoft Bookings Features:

Any U of T faculty member, staff and student who are logged into their Microsoft 365 account can book an appointment on your booking page.
Once an appointment is booked, the person making the appointment will receive an automatic confirmation email and calendar invitation.
You can create appointments for students and others by simply entering the appointment details in Bookings and all confirmations and reminders will be sent.
You or the person who booked an appointment can reschedule or cancel the appointment.
You can set up Bookings calendar for virtual and in-person appointments

2.2. Microsoft Bookings is Best for:

Scheduling appointments for U of T students (regardless of course enrollment), faculty, and staff
Virtual appointments

Read more about Microsoft Bookings features and setup:

Microsoft Bookings Knowledge Base (see list of articles on the left-hand side menu)

Quercus Calendar Scheduler vs. Microsoft Bookings Comparison Table

	Quercus Calendar Scheduler	Microsoft Bookings
Use Cases	Create office hours Schedule TA sessions Coordinate exam sign-up Assign presentation times to individual students and groups Host other appointments for students in your Quercus course	Create office hours Schedule TA sessions Coordinate exam sign-up Assign presentation times to individual students and groups Schedule virtual meetings via Microsoft Teams Host other appointments for any U of T students, faculty and staff.
Part of UofT Academic Toolbox	Yes, via Quercus	Yes, via Microsoft 365
Integrated into Quercus	Yes	No
Allows scheduling virtual meetings	No* * However, you can include a link to an existing Teams or Zoom meeting in the Appointment Details section	Yes, via Teams; You can also include a link to a Zoom meeting in the meeting Details section
Audience	Limited to students within your Quercus course	U of T faculty members, staff, and students (regardless of their enrollment in your course)
Appointment Types	Individual and group	Individual and group
Access and Setup	Go to the Calendar tab in the Global Navigation in Quercus Select the course in which you want to create an event Select the required date on the calendar Create an Appointment Group. Here you can create individual and group appointments. See How do I add a Scheduler appointment group in a course calendar?	Go to Microsoft Bookings app webpage or access Bookings app in MS Teams Select an existing or Create a new MS Bookings calendar Add a Service. See Define your service offerings in Bookings or watch a Connect+Learn Demo: Microsoft Bookings - Office Hours/Writing Centre Appointments
Appointment management	Instructor can view, edit, and delete an appointment group. Once student books an appointment, Instructor can: Message the student Cancel or delete the appointment Instructor cannot: Change the time of the appointment Change the student allocated for the appointment	Instructor can view, edit and delete MS Bookings calendar and setvices Once student, faculty member or staff books an appointment, Instructor can: Change the time of the appointment Make an appointment virtual Change the student allocated for the appointment Cancel or delete the appointment
Student Access	Go to Calendar tab in Quercus Select Find Appointment button Select Course View and Select the available appointments See How do I sign up for a Scheduler appointment in the Calendar? Students need to be enrolled in a Quercus course to sign up for an appointment Depending on appointment settings, might need to be a member of a particular session to be able to view and sign up for an appointment	Log in to Microsoft 365 account Open the MS Bookings calendar (usually shared via link) Students need to be logged into their Microsoft 365 account to book an appointment

For scheduling presentations or oral exams in smaller classes, you can consider using sign-up sheets (e.g. a sheet created in Microsoft Excel and shared with students in Quercus)

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