Cohort import
Cohort import
Cohort import (sidebar → Data → Import → Cohort import) adds existing users to existing groups in bulk, from a CSV listing a username and one or more cohort (group) names per row. Like Password import, this writes directly to the database as soon as you start it — there's no provisioning queue and no undo.
What it does and doesn't do
- It only works with users and groups that already exist in the school. Use Import users and cohorts first if you need to create either.
- Unlike the main user import, cohort import never creates a group for you. If a cohort name in your CSV doesn't match an existing group exactly, that row is reported as "not found" and skipped — nothing is auto-created. Create the group first via Groups if it doesn't exist yet.
- Memberships added this way are marked as a protected membership, so a later MIS sync won't automatically remove them — they'll show up for a human decision if they're ever reviewed in end-of-term tidy-up.
- A user already in a listed cohort is simply left alone — no duplicate membership, no error.
Before you start
- You need the data-import permission for the school.
- Select the school first. Cohort import always runs against the school you're currently in — switch to it before you start. (You can't run this while viewing all schools in MAT mode.)
- Make sure the groups you're targeting already exist — check Groups if you're not sure.
CSV format
One row per user, with the username first and one or more cohort names after it. A header row is expected but its exact wording isn't checked — the first line is always skipped, so any header text is fine as long as there is one.
username,cohort,cohort
jbloggs,Year 7,7A
asmith,Staff,
- Column 1 (username) — required. If you paste an email address here, only the part before the
@is used as the username. - Columns 2+ (cohorts) — one group name per column; add as many columns as the most cohorts any one row needs. Blank cells are ignored, so it's fine for some rows to have fewer cohorts than others.
Steps
Step 1 — Open Cohort import {#step-1}
With the right school selected, open Import in the sidebar, then choose Cohort import.
Step 2 — Upload your CSV {#step-2}
Select your CSV file. The header row is skipped automatically and the remaining rows are parsed into a username plus a list of cohort names each.
Step 3 — Start the import {#step-3}
Select Start import. For every row, the user is looked up in this school and — for each named cohort that already exists — added to it (if not already a member). This happens immediately, row by row.
Result
You'll see a summary: how many users were updated (had at least one new membership added) and how many rows had a problem, plus a list of the specific errors:
- "User not found:
username" — no user with that username exists in this school. - "Cohort not found:
name(forusername)" — that group name doesn't match any existing group in this school; it was not created, and that particular membership was skipped (other cohorts on the same row, if found, are still added).
Troubleshooting
- Every row says "Cohort not found" — check the exact spelling of your group names against Groups; matching is exact (case-insensitive) but not fuzzy, and cohort import won't create the group for you.
- "User not found" for someone you know exists — check you're in the right school, and that the username column doesn't have extra whitespace or the full email where only the username part is expected.
- A user isn't showing the new group afterwards — confirm the row's cohort name matched by checking the summary error list; a silently-skipped "not found" cohort won't add anything.