University Course Scheduling and Classroom Assignment

This paper studies a real-life course timetabling and classroom assignment problem found at Universidad de La Sabana, Colombia. The problem is characterized and modeled using integer linear programming. Because of its complexity in the number of decision variables and constraints, a hierarchical two-phase solution approach is proposed: course timetabling firstly, and classroom assignment, secondly. The approach is validated using real data from the first semester of year 2012. Results show that the proposed approach obtains a better utilization of classrooms satisfying both hard and soft constraints of the original problem. A sensitivity analysis is finally carried out, in which it was possible to verify the possibility of reducing both the number of classrooms to be assigned and the number of course groups. Both analyses allow an increase in teaching resource availability and a reduction of total cost.

• Autores: Torres-Ovalle, Camilo; Montoya-Torres, Jairo R.; Quintero-Araújo, Carlos L.; Sarmiento-Lepesqueur, Angélica; Castilla-Luna, Mónica
• Tipo de recurso: Article of journal
• Fecha de publicación: 2014
• Institución: Escuela Colombiana de Ingeniería Julio Garavito
• Repositorio: Repositorio Institucional ECI
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repositorio.escuelaing.edu.co:001/1919
• Acceso en línea: https://repositorio.escuelaing.edu.co/handle/001/1919
• Palabra clave: Class periods; classrooms - programming; Periodos lectivos – programación,; salones de clase - programación; Course timetabling; classroom assignment; integer linear programming; Programación de clases; asignación de salones; programación entera
• Rights: openAccess
• License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/