Hi all,
I am searching for software to help me figure out if a certain study track is doable. I was hoping FET could help me. Before I deep dive into learning all the details, I wanted to make sure one of our requirements can be done with FET and hope you can help me with this.
We have a set of modules to be studied within three semesters. Those models can be represented by various different courses, which are already planned by other departments that our students can join.
I have no influence on their timing. I have a list of all possible courses within those modules. I would need FET to filter a list of possible courses that do not overlap within one semester but show that all modules can be studied by exemplifying the specific courses FET selected. So, all times would be pre-set, but different options for the respective models are possible, and I need only one.
Can I accomplish this task with FET? And if so, where would you suggest I start? In my perception, this is a bit different than the normal introductory videos I saw, which focus on optimal scheduling while, in my case, optimal selection is needed.
Thanks for any feedback and suggestions!
Hello, Goku,
Could you please provide some documents, and some previous examples? I need to make an idea of your problem.
Hi, thanks for the quick reply!
I am doing this for the first time, so no previous example from my side exists.
This would be an example setup.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EPDj-MFz6GPe82FICsroHyC4yJP6aL2UGkmw8G_wVRU/edit?usp=sharing
Does this help, or what other info would you need?
Hello,
You are welcome!
Your document seems:
1) It is too short to be a complete list of courses to choose from. So, maybe you only wrote a small example, or
2) You wrote the final choice of the timetable, but this is not possible, since on the 1st semester Wednesday 10-12 is double booked.
I assume (1).
The following approach might be possible:
Add the required days per week, and hours, but also add more "overflow" hours, so that all the list of courses has enough slots.
Maybe you could define the duration of each activity = 1, and consider it is in reality 2 hours.
Add a single students set (year Y for instance).
Add the activities without teachers, or add also a single teacher T, so that FET won't complain at each activity you introduce that you have no teachers and ask for confirmation.
Each activity will have more allowed slots: its exact scheduled slot, but also allowed in all the overflow hours.
You will use a progressive approach, using the constraint activities occupy max time slots from selection (also, you could use instead the min occupy in a reverse mode - I am not exactly sure which is more efficient, maybe the max). You will select with X (red) all the overflow hours, and begin with say max occupied = 100, and then lower to 90, then 80, 85, 84, until you cannot generate the timetable anymore. This should be a satisfying result.
Hi Liviu Lalescu,
Sorry, I did not explain well.
The Gdoc was an example of the courses we have. I wanted to avoid problems by sharing the direct courses. So I made a minimalist example. We have different amounts of courses which can represent each module. They are mostly at different times. In the example, I named four different courses which could represent Module "Introduction 1". Similarly, there are several courses which could represent Module "Topic 1 Semester 1".
I will have longer lists in the real modulation, with 10-20 course possibilities for each Module. Since I am waiting on the feedback from different faculties, I do not have that yet and have sent the simplified version above.
Would that still make the overflow hours necessary?
You said: "Add the required days per week and hours, but also add more "overflow" hours so that the entire list of courses has enough slots."
If I understand you currently, you think that I could use FET for making my schedule/course selection despite its unusual approach, right?
That would be amazing!
Best,
Goku
Hello, Goku,
Please call me Liviu, if you want.
The overflow hours are for activities which cannot be chosen.
Yes, I hope you can use FET. There were several unusual requests and in some cases FET could do it.
Thanks, Liviu, that is making me hopeful!