Department Codes {GCS-4}

The list of departments, as created in this option is used extensively in all the systems: it is a key aspect in the extraction of management information from the database, as the department is the smallest management unit of the institution.

In the case of normal academic departments, this will not be problematic but interpretations in the case of various supporting activities in an institution can differ between the users of the different systems. These differences can cause inconsistent management reporting and the list of departments should, therefore, be drawn up with care. Furthermore, it must be ensured that all users of these codes use them in a consistent manner.

It should be noted that the departments, as created here, refer to organisational components, which would typically contain at least three or more people and which would have building space, assets and budget allocations linked to them. Departments should not be created merely to deal with funds as this can be done with Cost Centres in the financial system.

Fields in the option:

Panel box 1: Department Codes/Names

Field	Type & Length	Description
Code	N4	A unique code for this department.
Department Name	A30	Enter the name of the department.
Faculty/School Code	N4	The code of the Faculty/School to which the department is linked, as created in option {GCS-3} above. The name will be displayed when the code is entered.
Alternate Department Name	A30	Enter the alternate Department Name.
Password	A8	The use of this facility has been replaced with a better data access control facility in the ITS systems in Maintain User Restrictions {SMNT-5}, TAB - User Restrictions the use of this field is limited to some local software at certain institutions.
Active	Yes/No	This indicator is used to indicate whether a Department has been discontinued. The system will allow only active Department codes to be used.
Level Code	A1	The code of the level on which the department will be defined.
Sort Order	N3	The order in which the records should be displayed.
Full Name	A100	The Full Name of the Department for this code.
Department ID	A2	The Department ID.
Academic	A1	Indicator whether the department is academic or not.

Example(s):

Processing Rules
	No special processing rules.

See Also:

Procedures:

None

History of Changes

Date	System Version	By Whom	Job	Description
11-Oct-2006	v01.0.0.0	Amanda Nell	t134145	New manual format.
11-Mar-2008	v01.0.0.0	Vaughn Dumas	t134145	System owner proof read
08-Sep-2008	v01.0.0.0	Charlene van der Schyff	t152060	Edit language obtained from proof read language Juliet Gillies.
26-May-2014	v04.0.0.0	Nokuthula Mafenuka	t196978	Add new image
24-feb-2016	v04.0.0.0	Lesego Mokoena	T196978	spelling checked.changed block to panel box. update image withnew int4 image
15-July-2019	v04.0.0.0	Sthembile Mdluli	T237499	New field added called "Academic" to indicate if the department is academic or not.