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How to Create and Manage Courses

This article helps you understand how to create, customize, and manage courses in Opus.

Ben Brunken avatar
Written by Ben Brunken
Updated this week

Table of Contents

What is a Course?

A course is the actual training experience your learners go through—whether it’s part of a module or a stand-alone assignment.

Courses are made up of:

  • Screens – the main content (text, images, videos, quizzes, etc.)

  • Course Breaks – full-screen dividers to break up sections

  • Question types – quizzes or interactive prompts to reinforce learning

🎯 Quick facts:

  • Average recommended completion time: 3–5 minutes

  • Typical length: 15–20 screens + 1–3 quiz questions

  • Include a title screen with an overview (outline, summary, or “Employee Will Be Able To…” statement). The title screen is not part of the in-app learning experience, so think of it as your internal trailer—it’s a preview of what’s coming and why it matters.

  • Mix in media (images, GIFs, video) to boost engagement and keep learners’ attention

How to Create a Course

Go to the Courses page in the Opus dashboard.

  • Click + New Course: Choose how you want to start:

    • Blank Course – start from scratch.

    • Template from Marketplace – start from a pre-built structure.

    • AI Assist – generate an outline or content based on your prompt or uploaded files (handbooks, SOPs, role guides, etc.)

  • Start building and customizing your course.

  • Add a cover image to give learners a visual preview.

Using AI Assist for Courses

AI Assist helps you speed up course creation and enhance your content. You can:

  • Generate outlines based on prompts or uploaded files

  • Suggest edits for clarity, tone, and grammar

  • Recommend media (images, GIFs, videos)

  • Create quiz or text screens from existing content

💡 AI suggestions are a starting point. Review for accuracy, adjust to match your brand, and ensure they meet your training objectives.

Learn more about Opus AI Assist here!

Course Screens

To add a new screen, click the + button in the builder grid, or hover between screens to insert one.

Available screen types:

  • Text – for explanations, context, and instructions (supports media)

  • Course Break – full-screen divider with your brand color

  • Image Choice – quiz with images instead of text answers

  • Multiple Choice – single or multi-answer quizzes, including “select all that apply”

  • True/False – simple two-option questions

  • Short Response – short typed answer with a correct response required

  • Open-Ended – no right/wrong answer; great for feedback or reflection

  • Matching – match terms, tools, or processes (text-to-text or text-to-image)

  • Ordering – put processes or items in the correct sequence

Copying and Reusing Screens

  • To copy, select the screens and press Cmd/Ctrl + C or use the “Copy to clipboard” option in the ... menu.

  • To paste, use Cmd/Ctrl + V into another course.

  • Duplicate a screen to instantly clone it in the same course.

  • Hold Shift to multi-select screens for copying or moving.

Merge Fields

Merge fields are placeholders you insert into a course. When the course is assigned, Opus fills in the field with the right info for each learner based on their profile or your org setup.

  • {{name}}: Pulls in the learner’s first name. Great for greetings and check-ins to make the tone more conversational.

  • {{company}} or {{org}}: Inserts your company name as listed in Opus. Use this for referencing policies or values that apply across the org.

  • {{brand}} – Inserts the brand name tied to the user’s location. Useful when training content is shared across brands but needs to feel brand-specific (e.g., uniforms, menus).

Adding Media and Emojis

You can add media to any screen using the Add Media button in the builder or by uploading when creating a screen. The more contextualized and brand-specific the media is, the more meaningful it will be to your learner. It will also help them make visual connections back to their specific position.

Supported media include:

  • Library resources

  • Links (websites, docs, YouTube/Vimeo embeds)

  • Stock photos and videos

  • GIFs

  • Files from your device

The maximum file size is 400 MB. If you are having trouble uploading your video file, try an online converter to convert it to .mp4.

Use emojis to:

  • Reinforce ideas

  • Make text scannable

  • Replace bullets or punctuation for a visual break

Using AI to Edit and Generate Images

Use the AI image generator in Opus to quickly create, enhance, or refresh visuals right within your course or Opus Doc. Whether you’re editing an existing image, uploading one from your device, or generating something entirely new from a text prompt, it’s a simple way to keep your content visually engaging and on brand—without leaving the platform.

Read our full guide for step-by-step instructions.

Course Settings

In the Manage tab, you can:

  • Set a due date (specific date or days after assignment)

  • Enable awarding a certificate after completion

  • Allow retry of wrong answers

  • Set passing grade (percentage)

  • Add tags for organization

  • Generate a QR code for assigning via scan

Course Status

  • Draft – Not visible to learners; can’t be assigned

  • Published – Ready for assignment or to add to a module

  • Unpublished Changes – Edits made but not re-published; learners still see the old version until updated

Publishing a Course

  • Click Publish in the top right corner.

  • Confirm settings (due date, retries, access, etc.).

  • Click Publish again to finalize.

  • Assign directly or add to a module.

Unpublishing a Course

Opus doesn’t currently allow you to revert a published course or module back to draft. Depending on your desired outcome, you can use one or more of these workarounds:

  1. Remove library access: Prevent users from accessing the course via their library.

  2. Disable automations: Turn off any automated assignments associated with the content.

  3. Remove assignments: If the course was assigned, unassign it from users.

  4. Archive completed content: For users who have already completed the training, it cannot be removed from their profiles, even if no library access has been granted. Archiving keeps it out of active content lists.

Choose the steps that match your goal, whether that’s stopping new learners from accessing the content, pausing automations, or cleaning up active assignments.

Stand-Alone Courses vs. Courses in Modules

  • Stand-Alone Course – Assigned directly to learners; ideal for quick lessons or single-topic refreshers

  • Course in a Module – Part of a structured multi-topic training flow with resources, check-ins, and sections

FAQ

Can I reuse the same course in multiple modules?

Yes. A single course can appear in multiple modules without duplicating your work.

What happens if I edit a published course?

Learners will see the previous version until you republish. Unpublished changes stay saved in the draft state.

Can learners skip questions in a course?

Only if you allow it in the course settings. You can require correct answers before continuing.

What’s the max number of screens I can have in a course?

There’s no hard limit, but we recommend keeping it short (under 20 screens) for engagement and retention.

Can I track course completion separately from a module?

Yes, completion data is available both at the course level and within the module it’s in.

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