Custom fields for Courses and Occurrences allow admins to store additional structured information against a Course or a specific Occurrence.
Course custom fields store information that belongs to the Course as a whole. Occurrence custom fields store information that belongs to one specific Occurrence.
These fields are admin-only. They are not displayed directly to customers or learners, but supported field values can be included in exports and emails.
Course and Occurrence custom fields
Course custom fields
Course custom fields store information against the Course as a whole.
Use a Course field when the information belongs to the overall Course rather than one particular Occurrence.
Examples include:
CPD points
Special directions that apply to the Course
A map or information link
Occurrence custom fields
Occurrence custom fields store information against one specific Occurrence.
Use an Occurrence field when the information may be different for each Occurrence of the same Course.
Examples include:
Session budget
Admin contact information
Parking directions for a specific Occurrence
Minimum exam score
Minimum places needed
Caterer information
Each Occurrence can have its own values.
Which should I use?
Create the field under Courses when the value belongs to the whole Course.
Create the field under Occurrences when the value belongs to one specific Occurrence or may change between Occurrences.
For example:
If every Occurrence awards the same number of CPD points, use a Course field.
If parking instructions are different for each venue or date, use an Occurrence field.
If the admin contact changes between Occurrences, use an Occurrence field.
Course fields and Occurrence fields are separate. A field created under Courses is completed on Courses, while a field created under Occurrences is completed on individual Occurrences.
Create and manage custom fields
Admins create and manage Course and Occurrence custom fields from the Fields settings.
Follow these steps to access the custom field settings.
Go to Settings.
Open Fields.
Select Courses to manage Course custom fields.
Select Occurrences to manage Occurrence custom fields.
Create a field from the relevant section, or open an existing field to manage it.
Configure the available field settings.
Save the field.
Available field settings can include:
Label
Internal field name
Description
Placeholder
Field type
Create the field in the correct section before entering values:
Fields created under Courses are available in the Course editor.
Fields created under Occurrences are available in the Occurrence editor.
Supported field types
Supported field types include:
Text
Text Area
Date
Number
True/False
Telephone
Email
Website
File Upload
Address
Multiple Choice Checkboxes
Single Choice Options
Dropdown
Statement
File Upload fields
File Upload fields are supported for both Courses and Occurrences.
Admins can use these fields to store a file against a Course or a specific Occurrence.
File Upload fields are excluded from Order and Registration exports.
Statement fields
Statement fields appear in the editor, but they do not store a value in the same way as standard data-entry fields.
Statement fields are also excluded from Order and Registration exports.
Add custom field values to a Course
Course custom field values are entered in the Course editor.
Follow these steps to enter or update custom field values for a Course.
Open the relevant Course.
Open the Course Editor.
Open the Settings tab.
Open Advanced Settings.
Find the Course custom fields.
Enter or update the required values.
Save the Course.
The saved values belong to that Course.
Add custom field values to an Occurrence
Occurrence custom field values are entered separately for each Occurrence.
Follow these steps to enter or update custom field values for an Occurrence.
Open the relevant Course.
Open the relevant Occurrence in the Occurrence editor.
Scroll to the Custom fields section at the bottom of the editor.
Enter or update the required values.
Save the Occurrence.
The saved values belong only to that Occurrence. Other Occurrences of the same Course can have different values.
Who can see Course and Occurrence custom fields
Course and Occurrence custom fields are admin-only.
Their stored values are not displayed directly to customers or learners in student-facing Course, booking or order areas.
Admins can deliberately include supported field values in an email by adding the relevant mail merge tag. In that case, the email recipient can see the value included in the message.
Export Course and Occurrence custom fields
Course and Occurrence custom fields can be included in:
Order exports
Registration exports
The supported custom fields are available in the export column catalogue or column picker.
When configuring an export, select the required Course or Occurrence fields before generating the export.
Fields excluded from exports
The following custom field types are not available as export columns:
File Upload
Statement
If one of these fields does not appear in the export column picker, this is expected.
Other supported Course and Occurrence custom fields can be included in the exported file.
Use custom fields in emails
Course and Occurrence custom fields can be used as mail merge tags in supported Cademy emails.
Mail merge tags replace a placeholder with the saved value when the email is generated.
For example, an admin could use a custom field to add CPD points, parking instructions or an admin contact to an email.
Where custom field mail merge tags can be used
Mail merge tags can be used:
In email templates
When sending an email from the Course dashboard after selecting the relevant attendees
Mail merge tags do not work:
In the Inbox
When sending an email or message from an individual contact page
If a mail merge tag is used in an unsupported area, the recipient may see the raw tag instead of the saved value.
Add a custom field mail merge tag
Course and Occurrence custom fields are not available as options in the Mail Merge dropdown.
To use a custom field in an email, copy the field ID from the field’s URL and add it manually to the mail merge tag.
Follow these steps to create the tag.
Go to Settings.
Open Fields.
Select Courses or Occurrences.
Open the custom field that you want to use.
Find the field ID in the page URL.
Copy only the field ID.
Add the field ID inside the following tag format:
{{course.FIELD_ID}}
Replace
FIELD_IDwith the ID copied from the URL.Paste the completed tag into the email or email template.
For example, this field URL contains the field ID:
https://admin.cademy.io/settings/fields/6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8?tab=courses
Copy only:
6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8
The completed mail merge tag should be:
{{course.6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8}}
Both Course and Occurrence custom fields use the course namespace.
Use the same tag format for fields created under Courses and Occurrences:
{{course.FIELD_ID}}
If Cademy cannot find a saved value for the custom field, the value is left blank in the generated email.
Examples of how to use custom fields
Store CPD points against a Course
Create a Number field under Courses for the number of CPD points awarded.
Enter the value in:
Course Editor > Settings > Advanced Settings
The value can then be included in supported emails or exports.
Store a map link against a Course
Create a Website field under Courses.
Enter the map or information link in the Course custom field.
Use this when the same link applies to the whole Course.
Store parking instructions for each Occurrence
Create a Text Area field under Occurrences.
Open each Occurrence and enter the parking instructions that apply to that specific location or date.
Each Occurrence can contain different instructions.
Store an internal session budget
Create a Number field under Occurrences.
Enter the budget separately for each Occurrence.
Because the field is admin-only, the stored value is not displayed directly to customers or learners.
Store caterer information
Create an appropriate field under Occurrences, depending on the information being stored.
For example:
Text or Text Area for notes
Telephone for a phone number
Email for an email address
Website for a website or ordering link
Good to know
Course fields store Course-level data.
Occurrence fields store data for one specific Occurrence.
Each Occurrence can have different custom field values.
Course and Occurrence custom fields are admin-only.
Supported custom fields can be included in Order and Registration exports.
File Upload and Statement fields are excluded from exports.
Course and Occurrence custom fields are not listed in the Mail Merge dropdown.
The field ID must be copied from the field URL to create a mail merge tag.
Both Course and Occurrence fields use the
coursenamespace in emails.Statement fields do not store a normal field value.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a Course field and an Occurrence field?
A Course field stores information against the Course as a whole.
An Occurrence field stores information against one specific Occurrence.
Use an Occurrence field when the value may change between Occurrences.
Where do I create Course custom fields?
Go to: Settings > Fields > Courses
Where do I create Occurrence custom fields?
Go to: Settings > Fields > Occurrences
Where do I enter Course custom field values?
Go to: Course Editor > Settings > Advanced Settings
Where do I enter Occurrence custom field values?
Open the relevant Occurrence in the Occurrence editor. The Custom fields section appears at the bottom of the editor.
Can each Occurrence have different values?
Yes.
Occurrence custom field values are stored separately against each Occurrence.
Can I use a Course field when the information changes for each Occurrence?
A Course field stores one value against the Course.
Create an Occurrence field when the information needs to be different for individual Occurrences.
Can customers or learners see these fields?
Not directly.
Course and Occurrence custom fields are admin-only and are not displayed in student-facing Course, booking or order areas.
A customer or learner can see a value when an admin deliberately includes it in an email using a supported mail merge tag.
Can Course and Occurrence custom fields be exported?
Yes.
Supported fields can be included in Order and Registration exports.
Why is my custom field missing from the export column picker?
Check the field type.
File Upload and Statement fields are excluded from exports and do not appear as export columns.
Also check that the field was created under the correct Courses or Occurrences section.
Can File Upload fields be used for Courses and Occurrences?
Yes.
File Upload fields can store files against Courses and Occurrences.
They are excluded from Order and Registration exports.
Why is my Statement field not saving a value?
Statement fields do not store a value like standard input fields.
They can appear in the editor, but they are not treated as normal saved data-entry values.
Can Course and Occurrence custom fields be used in emails?
Yes.
Custom field tags can be used in email templates and emails sent from the Course dashboard.
The field ID must be copied from the field URL and added manually to the tag.
How do I find a custom field ID?
Go to Settings > Fields, select Courses or Occurrences and open the field.
The field ID appears in the URL after /fields/ and before the next ?.
For example:
https://admin.beta.cademy.io/settings/fields/6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8?tab=courses
The field ID is:
6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8
What is the format for a custom field mail merge tag?
The format is:
{{course.FIELD_ID}}
Replace FIELD_ID with the ID copied from the field URL.
For example:
{{course.6a4ede4c-9fa4-42b6-b5c5-df5140d76ea8}}
Do Occurrence custom fields use an occurrence mail merge tag?
No.
Both Course and Occurrence custom fields use the course namespace:
{{course.FIELD_ID}}
Why is the email showing the raw mail merge tag?
Mail merge tags do not work in the Inbox or on an individual contact page.
Use the tag in an email template or when sending an email from the Course dashboard.
Also check that the complete field ID was copied correctly and that the tag follows this format: {{course.FIELD_ID}}
Why is the custom field blank in the email?
The field may not have a saved value for the relevant Course or Occurrence.
If Cademy cannot find a value for the field, the generated value is left blank.
Why can I see the field in Settings but not in the Course editor?
Check where the field was created.
Fields created under Courses appear in:
Course Editor > Settings > Advanced Settings
Fields created under Occurrences appear in the Occurrence editor instead.
Why can I see the field on the Course but not on an Occurrence?
A field created under Courses belongs to the Course and does not become an Occurrence field.
Create the field under Settings > Fields > Occurrences when a separate value is needed for each Occurrence.
Why can I see the field on an Occurrence but not under Advanced Settings?
A field created under Occurrences appears in the Occurrence editor.
Only fields created under Courses appear in Course Editor > Settings > Advanced Settings.