To help speed up the enrollment process, you can create a file with information for multiple users and upload it to Blackboard Learn. The system then enrolls users based on the information you included in the CSV or TXT file. You can also use batch enrollment files to enroll users in organizations.

You can also use batch files to create users in Blackboard Learn.

Enrollment batch files

Enrollment batch files must contain a course ID and username for every record. You can also include a course role and the user's system availability and course availability status.

Enrollment batch files must use the required heading format and sequence shown here:

"Course ID","Username","Course Role","System Availability", "Course Availability"

Note the following when creating an enrollment batch file:

  • Blackboard Learn supports TXT and CSV file types. Microsoft Excel versions 2003 and later automatically insert double quotes around every field if the worksheet is saved as a CSV file.
  • Batch files must be in DOS format. Convert files in MAC or UNIX format to DOS before uploading.
  • Enclose each field in double straight quotation marks. For example: "ENG_201"
  • If quotation marks appear in a field, precede them with a backslash (\) to indicate that the next character does not mark the end of the field. This guideline does not apply to enrollment batch files, as course IDs and usernames cannot contain quotation marks.
  • Course ID and Username are required fields.
  • Separate each field with a delimiter such as a comma, colon, or tab. Use the same delimiter in every record. For example: "ENG_201","jbell" or "ENG_202":"jbell"
  • Put each record on a separate line. For example:
    "ENG_201","jbell"
    "ENG_202","jbell"
  • Do not exceed 500 records. This size limit is due to timeout restrictions associated with most browsers.

Required valid values for enrollment batch files

If you include the optional attributes in the enrollment batch file, you must use the following required valid values:

  • Course Role: "B" for course builder, "G" for grader, "P" for instructor, "S" for student, "T" for teaching assistant, "U" for guest. If you do not specify a course role value, Blackboard Learn assigns the default role of student.
  • Course Availability: Y (Yes, available to the user immediately) and N (No, unavailable to the user until you make it available). If you do not specify a course availability value, Blackboard Learn assigns the default value of Y.
  • System Availability: Y (Yes, the user has access to Blackboard Learn) and N (No, the user does not have access to Blackboard Learn until you make it available). If you do not specify a system availability value, Blackboard Learn assigns the default value of Y.

Special characters

The course description, name, and announcement text can contain special characters such as : " ' / \ . % & # < > = + * ? |

No other attributes in the course batch file can use these special characters. When creating attributes, use only alphanumeric characters, underscores, dots, and hyphens. Do not use spaces.