Canadian Federation of Students

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Nurturing The Relationship

The Canadian Federation of Students has provided students with a powerful united voice, both provincially and nationally, for over 30 years. Today, the CFS represents over 600,000 students from more than 90 university and college students' unions across Canada.

With such a large constituency, communication between all the student unions that comprise the CFS is crucial – so we built a flexible web-based platform to help them facilitate the diverse goals and needs of their student members nationwide. Over the past seven years, we've become an integral part of the services, issues and passion that define the CFS, helping them generate web ideas and turn them into solid communication tools. We've been there for everything from referendums and student demonstrations to pub nights, car pools and tax clinics. We've even helped CFS members sell and trade used textbooks no matter where they're studying.

The CFS Website Service

Nationally Connected, Locally Focused
The CFS National Website Service is offered to local, provincial, and national members. In order to centralize and pool resources, we've provided them with a system that allows every local student union to offer a variety of important and helpful services within their communities that also connects to other CFS student unions across the country.

Key Technology:

  • Automatic set-up and deployment of new accounts for service administrators
  • Development of a theme engine to dynamically change the look and feel of service websites
  • 100% customizable template deployment
  • Specialized components to allow for finite management of specialized content: home page layout editor, mailing list form set-up and member management, polls, external rich media integration (YouTube API integration and embedding, Flickr API access, Twitter feed listing as well as external website integration)
  • Full bilingual support offered by content management console
  • Drag and drop website section management
  • WYSIWIG form editing

National Services Application

With over 600,000 members, the CFS represents a huge built-in community of users for the core services offered by the National Services application:

  1. Book Exchange allows students represented by local unions to sell and exchange textbooks. Additionally, students are able to sell/trade their texts to students attending other schools represented by the CFS
  2. Classified System allows students to post goods and services to sell, trade or give away
  3. Housing Registry maps lease, rental and for-sale properties in the vicinity of universities or colleges attended by represented students
  4. Tutor Registry allows students to post their tutor services and connect with students looking for help
  5. Ride Share service allows students to post their cars for availability and to connect with other students to help split the cost of getting to and from their schools
  6. Student Saver Discount Card Listings of businesses locally and nationally that accept the Student Saver discount card
  7. Tax Clinic Sign-up for clinics offered by local unions during tax season

The National Services App fulfills two primary functions:

  • Offers CFS constituents value and exceptional services that rival the services of existing players in the market
  • It allows the CFS to pool resources, connect schools and expand local services nationally

As a result, this extended community enables students to connect with others outside their school to exchange textbooks, acquire or exchange items or services, take full advantage of their Student Saver card and get more out of their student experience.