This guide is for course providers who run online or hybrid course dates. It explains how to connect a Zoom account to Cademy, how Cademy creates a Zoom meeting for each date, how learners receive the joining link, and how to use a link from another service instead.
The Zoom app is available on every Cademy plan.
This video goes through the setup and how to use the Zoom app. If a screen in the video differs from the steps in this guide, follow the steps in this guide.
A course date is one scheduled session of a course. A joining link is the web address learners open to join an online session. A block groups several sessions into one booking.
What the Zoom connection does
When a course date is set to use Zoom, Cademy creates a scheduled meeting in the connected Zoom account and saves its joining link on the date. You do not create the meeting in Zoom yourself.
The meeting is named after the course. If the date has its own name, the meeting is named with the course name followed by the date name.
The meeting uses the date’s start time, end time and the course’s time zone. For a course that runs on set dates, when you change the date’s times and save, Cademy updates the same meeting.
The meeting belongs to the Zoom user you connected. That user is the host.
For a course that runs on set dates, Cademy removes a date’s meeting from Zoom when you save the date after switching it to a manual link, clearing its Zoom account, choosing a different Zoom account, or changing its delivery to In-person. This applies to a date that has been saved since it was set to use Zoom. A date that received its meeting when Zoom was chosen for the whole course, and has not been saved since, keeps its meeting in Zoom after such a change. Before you delete that meeting in Zoom yourself, open the date again and check that it no longer uses the old meeting’s link.
When you delete a date, Cademy removes its meeting from Zoom only if the course itself is set to use Zoom. If only that date used Zoom, delete the meeting in Zoom yourself.
For a block, Cademy creates a separate meeting for each session in the block. The block itself has no meeting.
Cademy sends Zoom only the meeting name, start time, length and time zone. It sends no passcode, waiting-room or other meeting settings, so check those in Zoom.
Zoom limits each Zoom user to 100 requests a day to create or update meetings. If you add or change many dates in one day, later meetings can fail to be created until the next day.
Zoom is the only service Cademy connects to in this way. For Microsoft Teams, Google Meet or any other service, paste the meeting link yourself as described in “Using Teams, Google Meet or another service” below.
Connecting a Zoom account
You need a Zoom account, and a Cademy login with the System Admin role. The Apps menu is shown only to System Admins. If you are a System Admin and cannot see Apps, it has been hidden from your menu: look under More.
Select Add Account. In the Add Video Conferencing Account window, select the Zoom logo.
Zoom opens. Sign in if Zoom asks you to, then allow the connection. If Zoom says the app needs approval, ask the owner or admin of your Zoom account to approve it, then start again.
Zoom returns you to Cademy. Cademy shows Successfully connected Zoom! and opens an edit window for the new account.
Enter a name in Display Name, for example the name of the Zoom user, and select Save. Cademy shows Account updated. This is the name you choose later in courses and dates. Without it, the account appears as a blank entry.
The account is now listed on the Video Conferencing page with the status READY. To change its name later, select the cog icon beside it and choose Edit....
If you see Failed to connect Zoom followed by a reason, or Bad response from video conferencing provider. Please try again., start again from step 2. If it fails again, contact Cademy Support with the message shown.
To connect another Zoom account, select Add Account again while signed in to Zoom as the other user. Connecting a Zoom user that is already listed does not add a second entry.
Creating Zoom meetings for course dates
Choosing Zoom is part of a course’s or a date’s delivery settings. The delivery method must be Online or Hybrid.
To change a course or a date you need the Course Owner or System Admin role. A Course Owner can choose a Zoom account that is already connected, but cannot open Apps to connect one.
Use Zoom for a whole course
Select Courses, open the course, then select Edit Course > Pricing & Delivery.
Under Delivery Method, choose Online or Hybrid.
Under How will you host this?, choose Use Zoom App.
In Select Zoom Account, choose the connected account.
Select Save at the top of the course editor.
New dates you add to the course use the course’s Zoom account unless you choose otherwise on the date.
For dates that already exist, the result depends on the course’s earlier setting. When you choose a Zoom account for a course that is not already using Zoom and had no joining link of its own, Cademy creates meetings for its upcoming online or hybrid dates that have no joining link and are not set to a manual link. If the course had its own joining link, those dates keep that link and no meetings are created for them. Changing the course from one Zoom account to another does not change existing dates. Past dates are never changed.
The course editor does not confirm which dates received a meeting. To check a date, open its editor as described in “Use Zoom for one date” and look for Zoom link.
Use Zoom for one date
Select Courses and open the course. On the date you want, open the three-dot menu and select Edit. The date editor opens.
Under Delivery, check that Delivery Method is Online or Hybrid.
Under How will you host this?, choose Use Zoom App, then choose the account in Select Zoom Account. Cademy shows a note that a Zoom meeting will be created and linked to this date.
Select Save. Cademy shows Date updated.
Open the date’s editor again. Zoom link shows the meeting’s joining link, with Copy and Open buttons.
Use Zoom for a course that runs on request
For a course that customers request instead of booking a set date, open Edit Course > Pricing & Delivery. Under the question that begins How will you run this, tick Online, choose the account in Select Zoom Account and select Save. When a request for online delivery becomes a course date, Cademy creates a Zoom meeting for that date.
The editor for a date created from a request does not show the Zoom link or a Zoom alert, and it has no field for a manual link. To confirm that the meeting exists, look in Zoom at the upcoming meetings of the Zoom user you connected.
Later changes to a date created from a request are not sent to Zoom, and saving the date does not make Cademy try again to create a meeting. If you change the date’s time, change the meeting in Zoom as well. If the meeting is missing, create it in Zoom yourself and send its link to the learners yourself, for example by email.
If the meeting could not be created for a set date
This section applies to courses that run on set dates. If Cademy cannot create or update the meeting, the date has no joining link and a red alert with the reason appears under Select Zoom Account in the date’s editor. The alert is titled There was an error creating your zoom event when the course is set to use Zoom, and There was a problem generating a join URL for this occurrence when only the date is. Correct the cause, for example by re-authenticating the Zoom account as described in “Fixing a Zoom connection”, then save the date again. If the cause is Zoom’s daily limit, save the date again the next day.
Edit Course > Dates shows a red warning icon beside the delivery details of a date whose own Zoom setting failed. Hover over the icon to read the reason. The icon does not appear for sessions inside a block, or for dates whose meeting failed when Zoom was chosen for the whole course. Open those dates and look for Zoom link to check them.
If someone deletes the meeting in Zoom, Cademy creates a new meeting the next time the date is saved, as long as the date has not ended. The date then shows This date has a new Zoom meeting. Learners who booked earlier can still have the old link, so send them the new one.
Using the Zoom links
After a learner has a course place, whether they booked it themselves or somebody else booked it for them, they can open My Account > My Courses & Bookings > My Courses and select the course. The course opens on Overview.
For an online or hybrid scheduled session, Overview shows Sessions. The learner opens the session they are attending and looks under Joining Instructions. When a joining link is available, they can open the URL or select Join Now.
The next session may already be open and marked Next. Sessions in the same course can have different joining links, so the learner should check the correct session. If Joining Instructions is missing or the link does not work, they should contact the course provider running the course.
For the complete learner journey, share Find Course Dates, Locations, Joining Instructions and Content.
The standard registration confirmation and order confirmation emails for an online or hybrid date include the joining link as Join URL. If the date has no link when the email is sent, the email says “To be confirmed”. An order confirmation for an order with more than one item, for example two courses, does not list joining links.
To add the link to an email template you have written yourself, insert the Zoom / Video Call join link mail merge tag into the template. Create and Reuse Email Templates explains where to edit templates and insert tags.
Using Teams, Google Meet or another service
You do not need Zoom to give learners a joining link. For a course that runs on set dates, open the course’s or the date’s delivery settings. Under How will you host this?, choose Add Join URL Manually and paste the meeting link into Online Call Join Link. Any service’s link works, for example Microsoft Teams, Google Meet or Webex. Then save the course or the date. A course that runs on request has no manual-link field.
Cademy does not create, change or delete meetings in those services. If the meeting’s time or link changes, update the link in Cademy yourself.
Important: Switching a date from Use Zoom App to Add Join URL Manually, clearing its Zoom account, or changing its delivery to In-person can remove its Zoom meeting from Zoom when you save. Choosing Add Join URL Manually also empties the link field. Check which option is selected before changing it.
Fixing a Zoom connection
If Cademy can no longer use a Zoom account, the account’s status on the Video Conferencing page changes to AUTHENTICATION FAILING.
Select Apps, then Zoom.
Select the cog icon beside the account and choose Edit....
Under Authentication Failing, select Re-authenticate. Sign in to Zoom as the same Zoom user the account belongs to, and allow the connection. Signing in as a different Zoom user adds a second account instead of repairing this one.
Cademy shows Successfully connected Zoom! and opens the account’s edit window again. Close it. The account’s status returns to READY. Cademy does not retry failed meetings by itself, so open and save each date that showed an error. “If the meeting could not be created for a set date” explains how to find them.
Removing the Zoom connection
You can remove the connection from Cademy or from Zoom.
In Cademy - select Apps, then Zoom. Select the cog icon beside the account, choose Delete, then select Remove to confirm. Cademy shows Account deleted.
In Zoom - remove the Cademy app from your Zoom account in the Zoom App Marketplace. Zoom’s guide Adding and removing Marketplace Apps for personal use gives the current steps. When Cademy receives Zoom’s notice that the app was removed, it deletes the matching Zoom account. If the account is still listed on the Video Conferencing page afterwards, delete it there as well.
Removing the account in Cademy does not remove the Cademy app inside Zoom. To withdraw Cademy’s access completely, remove the app in Zoom as well.
At the moment of removal, dates keep the joining links they already have and meetings already created stay in Zoom. Cademy can no longer create or update meetings for dates or courses still set to the removed account, and saving such a date shows an error. Before you edit one of those dates or courses, copy its Zoom link if learners should keep using that meeting, then set it to Add Join URL Manually and paste the joining link you want learners to use. For a course that runs on request, choose another connected account in Select Zoom Account instead.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a paid Cademy plan to use Zoom?
No. The Zoom app is available on every Cademy plan. Your Zoom account’s own plan decides Zoom’s limits, such as how long a meeting can last.
Can I connect more than one Zoom account?
Yes. Add each Zoom user with Add Account, then choose the account you want on each course or date.
Does Cademy create one meeting for a block of sessions?
No. Cademy creates a separate meeting for each session in the block, so each session has its own joining link.
Does changing a date’s time update the Zoom meeting?
Yes, for a course that runs on set dates. When you save the date with its new times, Cademy updates the same Zoom meeting instead of creating another one. For a date created from a course request, change the meeting in Zoom yourself.
Can I use Microsoft Teams or Google Meet instead?
Yes, with a link you paste yourself, for a course that runs on set dates. Choose Add Join URL Manually and enter the link in Online Call Join Link. Cademy does not create meetings in those services. A course that runs on request has no manual-link field.
Why does a date have no joining link?
A date has no joining link when it is set to Add Join URL Manually and no link was pasted, when it is a block set to use Zoom (each session holds its own link), or when Cademy could not create the Zoom meeting. For a course that runs on set dates, open the date’s editor and check Delivery. If a red alert appears under Select Zoom Account, fix the cause shown and save the date again. For a date created from a course request, check the meeting in Zoom.