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How do Course Imports Work?

This article explains: How courses and sections are imported into DualEnroll The role of your Student Information System (SIS) in the import process What happens automatically versus what requires your involvement How to verify that your course data looks correct after import

Your course and section data is one of the most important components of your DualEnroll platform. Without courses and sections available for students to browse and register for, the registration workflow cannot begin. This article explains how course data gets into DualEnroll, what happens during the import process, and what you can expect as an administrator.

How Course Data Gets Into DualEnroll

For most colleges, course and section data is imported automatically from your Student Information System (SIS) — such as Colleague, Banner, or another system your institution uses. This automated process is set up during your initial DualEnroll implementation and runs on a regular schedule so that your DualEnroll course catalog stays in sync with your SIS.

Here is what the import process typically handles:

  • Course information such as course titles, course numbers, credit hours, and descriptions
  • Section details including section numbers, assigned instructors, meeting times, locations, and start/end dates
  • Term associations so that each section is linked to the correct academic term in DualEnroll
  • Course categories if your institution uses category-based workflows (these are mapped during implementation)

The import is designed to save your team significant manual effort. Rather than entering each course and section by hand, the automated process pulls this data directly from the source of truth — your SIS.

What Needs to Be in Place Before Courses Can Import

For the automated import to work correctly, several pieces need to be in place:

In your Student Information System (SIS):

  • The academic term must be open and active in your SIS. If a term hasn't been created or activated in Colleague, Banner, or your SIS, there is no course data for DualEnroll to pull.
  • Course sections must be scheduled and published for the term. Draft or unpublished sections in your SIS will typically not appear in DualEnroll.
  • Instructor assignments should be in place if your workflow requires instructor information during registration.

In DualEnroll:

  • The corresponding academic term must exist and be active in DualEnroll. DualEnroll needs a matching term to associate the imported sections with. If the term hasn't been created in DualEnroll yet, imported sections won't have a term to attach to.
  • The term must not be set to Inactive or Hidden if you want students to see and register for those courses.
  • See our article on Managing Academic Terms for more details on Terms

The import schedule:

  • Your course import runs on a set schedule configured during implementation. This might be daily, weekly, or on a custom schedule depending on your institution's needs.
  • If you need an import to run outside of its normal schedule — for example, after adding late sections in your SIS — contact the DualEnroll support team and we can trigger an import for you.

What Happens During an Import

When a scheduled import runs, DualEnroll connects to your SIS and pulls the latest course and section data. Here is what happens:

  1. New courses and sections that exist in your SIS but not yet in DualEnroll are created automatically.
  2. Updated information — such as a changed meeting time, room assignment, or instructor — is updated in DualEnroll to match your SIS.
  3. Term associations are applied based on the mapping configured during your implementation.
  4. Course categories and program associations are applied automatically if your import has been configured to include them.

The import does not typically remove or delete courses and sections that already exist in DualEnroll. If a section is removed from your SIS, it may remain in DualEnroll but will generally not be available for new registrations depending on your configuration.

Verifying Your Course Data After Import

After an import runs, it's a good practice to spot-check your course data in DualEnroll to make sure everything looks correct.

To review your courses:

  1. Navigate to the Courses tab in DualEnroll.
  2. Use the Term filter to select the term you want to review.
  3. Browse the course list to confirm that the expected courses and sections appear.
  4. Click into individual courses to verify section details like instructor, meeting times, and location.

Things to look for:

  • Are all expected courses present for the term?
  • Do the section details (instructor, schedule, location) match what is in your SIS?
  • Are sections set to "Allow Registration" if students should be able to register?
  • Are the correct high schools listed under "Allow High Schools" for sections taught at specific locations?

If something looks incorrect, it usually means the data in your SIS needs to be updated. Once corrected in your SIS, the next scheduled import will bring the updated information into DualEnroll.

What the Import Does Not Handle

While the automated import covers the majority of your course data, there are some settings that are managed separately within DualEnroll:

  • Available Seats — Seats remaining is not an available field through the available technical integrations provided by Ellucian/Ethos. 
  • Wish List sections — Placeholder sections used before final schedules are available are generally created manually in DualEnroll.

Manually Adding a Course or Section

In rare cases, you may need to add a course or section directly in DualEnroll — for example, if a late-add course was missed by the import or if a special section needs to be created outside of your SIS process.

You can do this from the Courses tab by clicking the ADD button. However, we recommend contacting the DualEnroll support team before manually adding courses, as manually created entries may be overwritten or duplicated during the next automated import if not coordinated properly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often does the course import run? Your import schedule is configured during implementation and varies by institution. Common schedules include daily or weekly imports. Contact the DualEnroll support team if you need to know your specific schedule or if you need an import triggered outside of the normal schedule.

Can I trigger an import myself? At this time, imports are managed by the DualEnroll team. If you need an unscheduled import, submit a help desk request and we will run it for you promptly.

What if I add a new term in my SIS — will the courses automatically appear? The corresponding term also needs to exist in DualEnroll for imported sections to be properly associated. If you are adding a new term, coordinate with the DualEnroll team to ensure the term is created in DualEnroll as well.

What if I notice incorrect data in DualEnroll after an import? First, verify the data in your SIS. In most cases, discrepancies originate from the source data. Once corrected in your SIS, the next import cycle will update DualEnroll. If the issue persists, contact the DualEnroll support team for assistance.

Will the import delete courses I've manually added? The import process generally does not delete existing courses or sections. However, if a manually created course has the same course or section number as an imported one, there may be conflicts. Coordinate with the DualEnroll support team when manually adding courses to avoid issues.