Bulk Uploading Cohort Using CSV

This article walks through how to create multiple cohorts using a CSV file uploaded from the Cohort List screen, including a full reference of all available template columns.

Use this process when you need to create cohorts in bulk from the Cohort List screen. Each row in the CSV creates a new cohort record with its subject, completion date, and optional rater details. This is separate from adding respondents to an existing cohort, which is covered at the end of this article.

Note: Before setting up cohorts, make sure you understand the different Cohort Types (360, Group, or Individual) and Initiation Methods. See Cohorts Overview for details.

Step 1: Navigate to the Cohort List screen

From the main menu, go to Cohorts. This is where the CSV template is downloaded and uploaded.

Step 2: Download the Cohort CSV Template

On the Cohort List screen, click Cohort Template. A CSV file will download with predefined column headers.

Step 3: Complete the Cohort CSV Template

Open the downloaded CSV file and enter one cohort per row. The table below lists all available columns.

Important rules:

Only one assessment can be loaded per file.
Do not change the column headers.
Date format must be DD/MM/YYYY.
If your file includes non-Western European characters (for example Chinese, Japanese, or Russian), save the file as CSV UTF-8 before uploading to prevent character corruption. This is not required for accented characters in Spanish, French, etc.

Required fields

Column	Description
AssessmentName	Must match the assessment name exactly as configured in your site, including the version number (e.g., `Leadership.1`) See here for Assessment Name.
Email	Email address of the subject (for 360/Individual cohorts) or the contact (for Group cohorts)
SubjectFirstName	Subject's first name (e.g., `John`) For Group cohort type, enter the group name here. (e.g., `Operations Team`)
SubjectLastName	Subject's last name (e.g., `Smith`) For Group cohort type, leave this field blank.
CompletionDate	Closing date for responses. Format: `DD/MM/YYYY` The cohort report is produced after this date, provided the minimum number of responses have been received.

Optional fields

Column	Description
CohortReportName	Must match a valid Cohort Report linked to the specified assessment. The system will default the report name if one is configured on the assessment/iteration.
BusinessName	Business name
CustomerTypeCode	Single-character code for the Customer Type. For 360s, this is often set from the Cohort Role, so leave blank.
GroupName	Group code, if applicable
CopyInAddress	BCC address for the cohort report. Also copied to responses if feedback reports are emailed.
SuppressEmails	Set to `1` to prevent Welcome Cohort email from being sent.
OrganisationLevel1-5	Organization hierarchy levels. Each level requires the one above it to be set (e.g., Level 2 requires Level 1).
MinRespondents	Minimum number of responses required for the report to be produced.
Assessor	Assessor name, if applicable
Role	Role name of the subject or contact. Must match an Assessment Role.
ContactFirstName	Only for Group cohorts - the contact person's first name. The email address is used with this name as the group contact.
ContactLastName	Only for Group cohorts - the contact person's last name.
SendInvitations	Set to `1` to automatically send respondent invitations and create response records for the subject and all raters. This is for respondents only - you don't need it if only inviting subjects, as the email to the subject sends automatically.
Iteration	Iteration name, if applicable. Only needed if iterations are configured and a specific iteration is required. Defaults to Iteration 1.
Report Password	PDF password for the automated cohort report. Not applied to On Demand reports.
[Classifiers]	Any classifiers configured for the assessment will appear as columns. Leave blank for unrelated classifiers. Values populate all response records linked to the cohort.
RequestDate	Not used
BCCEmail	Not used

Adding raters (360 and Group cohorts)

The template includes columns for up to 10 additional raters beyond the subject. Each rater has four columns:

Columns	Description
Rater1Email	Email address for the first additional rater (other than the subject)
Rater1FirstName	First name for the first additional rater
Rater1LastName	Last name for the first additional rater
Rater1Role	Role name from the Assessment Roles

The above four columns are repeated for Rater2 through Rater10 (40 rater columns total).

Step 4: Upload the CSV

Return to the Cohort List screen, click Upload, and select your completed CSV file.

Step 5: Validation and processing

The system validates the file before processing. If errors are found, the upload will stop and an error file will be provided so you can correct the issues and re-upload.

If validation succeeds, cohort records are created. If SendInvitations column is set to 1, welcome emails are sent to respondents automatically.

Note: You cannot schedule cohort invitations for a future date. The system sends them immediately when SendInvitations is set to 1, or you can send them later manually by clicking Send Invitations within the cohort.

Step 6: Confirm the upload

Your new cohorts will now appear on the Cohort List screen. Click View on any cohort to review its details, respondents, and settings.

Common upload messages

After uploading, the system may display one or more messages. If no message appears and you can see your cohorts on the Cohort List screen, the upload was successful.

+ "There was a problem reading your file. Please check all columns are filled out correctly using the template"

This usually means one or more column headers in the CSV have been renamed, reordered, or removed. The system cannot process the file if the headers do not match the expected template format.

Check that you have not changed any column header names. If you are unsure, download a fresh template by clicking Cohort Template on the Cohort List screen and copy your data into the new file.

+ "The following cohort report(s) were not found during upload"

This message appears when the CohortReportName column in your CSV is empty or does not match a valid cohort report. The cohorts are still created successfully - this message is informational only.

You can assign the cohort report manually after upload by opening the cohort and updating the report name in the Options tab. See Cohort Reports for details on setting up cohort reports.

+ "No email found to send!"

This message means your cohorts were uploaded successfully, but no Welcome Cohort email template is set up for the assessment. The system had no email to send to the cohort subject or group contact.

This is only a problem if you plan to have the cohort subject or group contact invite their own respondents. If so, set up the email template before uploading. See Choosing the Right Email Template for guidance.

If you are managing respondent invitations yourself (rather than having the subject do it), you can safely ignore this message.

+ "1 survey(s) were skipped as we couldn't match the survey name or you don't have permissions to that survey"

This means the system could not find the assessment specified in the AssessmentName column. The most common cause is a name mismatch.

Go back to your CSV and check that the AssessmentName value matches the assessment name exactly as it appears in the system, including the version number (e.g., Leadership.1).

+ "The page cannot be displayed because an internal server error has occurred" when viewing a cohort

If cohorts were created but you see this error when clicking View, it usually means a field in the CSV contained an invalid value. The most common cause is the Iteration column.

The Iteration column requires the exact iteration label (e.g., Iteration 1), not just the number. If the Iteration Label column on the Cohort List screen is blank, the system was unable to match the value you entered.

In the example above, the first cohort has a blank Iteration Label because the CSV contained an incorrect value. The second cohort shows Iteration 1 populated correctly. To fix this, correct the Iteration value in your CSV and re-upload.

Adding respondents to an existing cohort

If you need to add respondents to a cohort that already exists (rather than creating new cohorts), you can upload respondents from within the cohort itself:

Go to Cohorts and click View on the existing cohort.
Open the Respondents tab.
Click CSV Template to download the respondent template.
Complete the file. The template has a simpler structure with just four columns:
- Email
- FirstName
- LastName
- Role
Click Upload to import the respondents.
Once uploaded, click Send Invitations to send the welcome emails.

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Step 1: Navigate to the Cohort List screen

Step 2: Download the Cohort CSV Template