Use Registrations import to enrol learners from a CSV or Excel file without creating orders, invoices or payment records. It works for on-demand, blended and scheduled courses. You can also update custom registration fields on existing registrations.
A contact stores the person’s details. A registration stores their place on a particular course and, for a scheduled course, a particular course date. If you need to import purchases, prices or payment records, follow Import Bookings and Orders instead.
Prepare your file
The Settings route requires a System Admin or Course Owner account. If you manage an assigned course as a Facilitator, use its Registrants tab instead.
Use one row per learner and course registration. Put column headings in the first row and, for Excel files, put data on the first worksheet.
Create the courses and any required course dates first. On-demand courses do not need a course date.
Include contact details, preferably the learner’s email address, and the course. A scheduled or blended course also needs the matching course date.
To import custom registration answers, create the Registration fields in Cademy first and include a column for each answer you want to import.
Keep a backup and test a small file before importing the full list. Your plan’s import allowance must cover the uploaded rows.
For updates, use an exact Registration Reference or Registration Code to identify each record. You can instead match by the contact’s email or Cademy ID together with the course and, for a scheduled course, one matching course date. If several registrations match, the row fails rather than choosing one.
Upload and map contact details
Sign in to the admin dashboard. Open Settings, then Imports.
Under Start an Import, select Registrations. The Import Registrations dialog opens.
Drop your file into the upload area or select Select file. After the upload, the contact-mapping step opens.
Map contact fields such as Email, First Name and Last Name. Leave fields you do not want to import unmapped. For updates using an exact registration reference or code, you can leave contact fields unmapped if you do not need to change contact details.
Select Continue. Review Update existing Contact, which is on by default. Keep it on to update matching contacts with your mapped information, or turn it off to preserve their existing details.
Select Continue to open the registration mappings.
If you work from a course, you can open its Registrants tab and select Import. That route preselects the course and the course date you are viewing; check these selections before importing.
Mapping connects a spreadsheet column to a Cademy field. For example, map a column named “Email Address” to Email. Check automatically selected mappings before continuing.
Do not import: leave a field out.
CSV column: select the column under File Column, then choose the matching format where one is offered.
Fixed value: use the same value for every row.
Review Sample Data to check your choices. For dates, select the format that matches your file. For Course, you can match by Course Name, Cademy Course ID or Course Code. Using a course ID or unique course code avoids confusing courses with similar names.
Create registrations or update existing ones
Leave Update Existing Registrations off when you want to create registrations. If a registration that has not been cancelled or deleted already exists for the same contact, course and date, the duplicate row is skipped and reported in the failed rows.
Turn Update Existing Registrations on to update custom Registration fields. Blank cells leave existing registration-field values unchanged. This setting does not move learners, change orders, or update attendance or completion.
Important: When updates are enabled and no registration matches the contact and course details, Cademy creates a registration if the row contains the required details. An unknown exact Registration Reference or Registration Code fails instead. Check your matching columns before importing.
Map the relevant registration fields. They appear alphabetically alongside your custom Registration fields:
Course: required to create a registration. For an update using an exact registration reference or code, it can be left unmapped.
Course Date: required when creating a scheduled or blended-course registration. Leave it unmapped for on-demand courses.
Created date: the original registration date when creating a historical record. Choose the matching date format; the value is interpreted in your account’s primary time zone. If omitted, the registration uses the time it is created. It does not change an existing registration’s creation date.
Registration Code or Registration Reference: use one to identify an existing registration when updates are enabled. These fields do not set codes for newly created registrations.
Role: optional. It defaults to direct; accepted values are direct, booker and guest. Choosing a role does not create or link an order.
Send Confirmation: set a fixed value on, or map a column with true values, to send confirmations for newly created registrations. Leave it off or unmapped to suppress those confirmations. Updating registration fields does not resend the confirmation.
Custom Registration fields: map the answers for each learner’s registration. These are separate from the Contact fields mapped earlier. File Upload and Statement fields are not imported through this mapping.
If you supply extra contact, course or date information alongside a registration reference or code, it must agree with that registration. Conflicting information causes the row to fail.
Check the mappings and sample values, including the difference between updating contacts and updating registrations.
Select Import to start processing.
Lesson access and notifications
Imported learners follow the course’s lesson opening times and deadlines. On a blended course, timing based on the course start or end uses the date on each learner’s registration. Registration dates also matter for lessons that open or become due after enrolling.
Send Confirmation controls the registration confirmation only. Turning it off does not disable lesson opening or deadline notifications for active registrations; those follow the lesson schedules and due dates. Check the course’s lesson settings before importing learners.
Review the result
Keep the import dialog open to see progress, or close it and continue working. An Import Complete result can include failed rows, so check both counts.
Open Settings, then Imports in the admin dashboard.
Find the upload under Your Imports. Review Imported, Failed and Status.
Select the linked Imported count to open the imported records. Use a record’s eye icon to inspect it.
Select the linked Failed count to review Row Number and Reason. Correct those rows and import a file containing only the rows that need retrying.
PROCESSING means work is in progress. PROCESSED means processing finished, including any row failures. FAILED means the overall import failed. Check the displayed error rather than assuming every failure has the same cause.
Cademy sends the import result to the admin who started it, using their account email address. This is separate from participant confirmations. You can also inspect the results in Settings > Imports.
Frequently asked questions
Does this import create an order or invoice?
No. Use Orders import when you need purchase or payment records. Choosing booker as a registration role does not create an order.
Can I update registration fields for learners who booked through an order?
Yes. Enable Update Existing Registrations and identify the existing registration. The update changes the mapped custom Registration fields; it does not change the order or payment.
Can I move someone by importing another course date?
No. An update does not move a registration. Use Move Registration for a move. An unmatched contact-and-course row can create another registration instead.
Why was a duplicate or ambiguous row skipped?
With updates off, Cademy avoids creating another registration for the same person, course and date while a registration that has not been cancelled or deleted exists. With updates on, more than one matching registration is ambiguous. Use a unique registration reference or code and retry only the rows you intend to update.
Can blank cells clear existing registration answers?
No. Blank cells leave those values unchanged during a registration update. Edit the registration directly if you need to remove an answer.