bc-admissions-create-cohort

name: bc-admissions-create-cohort description: Use when creating a new academy cohort (single certificate or macro with micro cohorts) via the API; do NOT use for listing/updating cohorts, enrolling students, or issuing certificates. requires: - bc-certificate-manage-and-assign-specialties

Skill: Create a Cohort

When to Use

Use this skill when the user asks to start a new class, create a cohort, or create a macro cohort with multiple certificates. All steps are done via the API (POST/PUT). Do not use when the user only wants to list or read cohorts, update an existing cohort's details (unless linking micro cohorts as part of creation), enroll students, or issue certificates.

Concepts

• Single-certificate cohort: One syllabus, one certificate at program end. Created with a single POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort and no micro_cohorts.
• Macro cohort: A container cohort that links multiple micro cohorts (each micro cohort maps to one certificate milestone). A cohort is a macro when micro_cohorts is non-empty on create.
• Never-ending micro cohort: A reusable template cohort (never_ends: true, no ending_date) used as the enrollment target for a certificate track. The UI prefers reusing these instead of creating dated micro cohorts.
• Syllabus string: Always "syllabus_slug.v{version}" or "syllabus_slug.vlatest". Version 1 is marketing-only and cannot be assigned to cohorts.
• Ending strategy: Every cohort must have ending_date or never_ends: true, never both.
• Display order: Macro cohorts store micro cohort order in cohorts_order as a comma-separated string of cohort IDs (e.g. "1277,1278").
• Macro syllabus overrides: The macro cohort's syllabus_version.json may include keys like {micro-slug}.v{version} or ordered N:{micro-slug}.v{version} to customize micro syllabi per program. See SYLLABUS.md — Macro cohort syllabus overrides.

Workflow

Step 0 — Verify prerequisites (both paths)

1. Confirm the academy exists and you have crud_cohort capability.
2. Confirm the target syllabus exists with a published version ≥ 2.
3. For macro micro cohorts: confirm each micro syllabus is linked to a Specialty. If not, load bc-certificate-manage-and-assign-specialties and link the syllabus before continuing.

If any prerequisite fails, stop and fix it before creating the cohort.

Step 1 — Choose cohort type (client-side decision, no API field)

Ask the user or infer from the request:

• Single certificate — students earn one certificate upon completing the full program.
• Macro cohort (multiple certificates) — students earn a certificate at each milestone (micro cohort). Set available_as_saas: true on the macro cohort (the UI requires this; the API defaults from the academy if omitted).

Path A — Single certificate (UI: Syllabus → Cohort Details)

1. List syllabi. Call GET /v1/admissions/academy/{academy_id}/syllabus?owner=me with Authorization and Academy: <academy_id>. Pick the syllabus slug from results.
2. List versions. Call GET /v1/admissions/academy/{academy_id}/syllabus/{slug}/version. Pick a published version ≥ 2 (or use .vlatest on create).
3. Verify specialty (recommended). Call GET /v1/certificate/academy/specialty?syllabus_slug={slug}. If the list is empty, link the syllabus to a specialty using bc-certificate-manage-and-assign-specialties, then continue.
4. Collect cohort details from the user: name, slug, kickoff_date, ending strategy (ending_date or never_ends), optional online_meeting_url, optional available_as_saas, optional schedule.
5. Create the cohort. Call POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort with syllabus: "{slug}.v{version}" (or .vlatest). Save the returned id and slug.

Path B — Macro cohort (UI: Type → Macro Syllabus → Certificates → Cohort Details)

1. Select macro syllabus. Use the same list/version endpoints from Path A steps 1–2. Pick the macro syllabus slug and version.
2. Derive suggested certificate order. Read the macro syllabus version JSON. Keys like web-ui-fundamentals.v2 or 0:web-ui-fundamentals.v2 indicate which micro syllabi (and order) the program expects. Use this list as the default order for certificate configuration.
3. Configure certificates — reuse existing never-ending micro cohorts first. For each micro syllabus in the suggested order:
   • Call GET /v1/certificate/academy/specialty?syllabus_slug={micro_slug} to confirm the specialty exists.
   • Call GET /v1/admissions/academy/cohort?syllabus={micro_slug}&ending_date_isnull=true (paginated) to find reusable template cohorts.
   • Pick one cohort id per certificate milestone. Save each id in display order.
4. Fallback — create missing micro cohorts. Only when no reusable cohort exists for a micro syllabus, call POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort once per missing certificate with that micro syllabus, never_ends: true, and available_as_saas: true. Save each returned id.
5. Collect macro cohort details from the user: name, slug, macro syllabus, kickoff_date, ending strategy, optional online_meeting_url, and available_as_saas: true.
6. Create the macro cohort. Call POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort with micro_cohorts set to the list of micro cohort IDs from steps 3–4 and cohorts_order set to a comma-separated string of those IDs in display order (e.g. "1277,1278"). Save the returned macro id and slug.
7. Optional — link or change micro cohorts later. If the macro was created without micro_cohorts, call PUT /v1/admissions/academy/cohort/{cohort_id} with micro_cohorts and optionally cohorts_order.
8. Optional — sync users after linking. If users were already enrolled in the macro before micro cohorts were linked, they are not automatically added to new micro cohorts. Ask affected users to call POST /v1/admissions/me/micro-cohorts/sync/{macro_slug}, or inform the user that a bulk sync may be required.
9. Optional — macro syllabus overrides. To customize micro syllabi for this program, edit the macro SyllabusVersion JSON with {micro_slug}.v{version} blocks (see SYLLABUS.md). Verify with GET /v1/admissions/academy/{academy_id}/syllabus/{syllabus_slug}/version/{version}?macro-cohort={macro_slug}.

Step final — Verify creation (both paths)

Call GET /v1/admissions/academy/cohort/{id_or_slug} and confirm name, slug, syllabus_version, dates, and (for macros) micro_cohorts match the intent.

Endpoints

All /academy/ endpoints require the Academy header with the academy ID. List endpoints are paginated (limit, offset; response has count and results). Send Accept-Language (e.g. en, es) to receive translated error messages.

List syllabi — response (GET, paginated subset):

{
  "count": 12,
  "first": null,
  "next": null,
  "previous": null,
  "last": null,
  "results": [
    {
      "id": 5,
      "slug": "full-stack-web-development",
      "name": "Full Stack Web Development",
      "duration_in_hours": 400
    }
  ]
}

List syllabus versions — response (GET, paginated subset):

{
  "count": 2,
  "results": [
    {
      "id": 10,
      "version": 2,
      "status": "PUBLISHED",
      "syllabus": {"id": 5, "slug": "full-stack-web-development"}
    }
  ]
}

List specialties — response (GET):

[
  {
    "id": 3,
    "slug": "full-stack-web-development",
    "name": "Full Stack Web Development",
    "syllabuses": [{"id": 5, "slug": "full-stack-web-development"}]
  }
]

List cohorts (find never-ending templates) — request query:

GET /v1/admissions/academy/cohort?syllabus=web-ui-fundamentals&ending_date_isnull=true&limit=20&offset=0

List cohorts — response (GET, paginated subset):

{
  "count": 1,
  "results": [
    {
      "id": 1277,
      "slug": "web-ui-fundamentals-never-ending",
      "name": "Web UI Fundamentals With Tailwind",
      "never_ends": true,
      "ending_date": null,
      "syllabus_version": {
        "version": 2,
        "syllabus": {"slug": "web-ui-fundamentals"}
      }
    }
  ]
}

Create single-certificate cohort — request (POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort):

{
  "name": "Full Stack - Miami 2026",
  "slug": "full-stack-miami-2026",
  "syllabus": "full-stack-web-development.v2",
  "kickoff_date": "2026-06-05T12:30:00Z",
  "ending_date": "2026-12-15T18:00:00Z",
  "never_ends": false,
  "online_meeting_url": "https://zoom.us/j/123456789",
  "available_as_saas": true,
  "stage": "INACTIVE"
}

Create single-certificate cohort (never-ending) — request:

{
  "name": "Self-Paced Web Dev",
  "slug": "self-paced-web-dev",
  "syllabus": "web-dev-basics.vlatest",
  "kickoff_date": "2026-06-05T12:30:00Z",
  "never_ends": true,
  "online_meeting_url": "https://meet.google.com/abc-defg-hij",
  "available_as_saas": true
}

Create micro cohort (fallback, macro path) — request (POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort):

{
  "name": "Web UI Fundamentals With Tailwind",
  "slug": "web-ui-fundamentals-never-ending",
  "syllabus": "web-ui-fundamentals.v2",
  "kickoff_date": "2020-01-01T00:00:00Z",
  "never_ends": true,
  "available_as_saas": true,
  "stage": "STARTED"
}

Save the returned id (e.g. 1277) for the macro's micro_cohorts.

Create macro cohort — request (POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort):

{
  "name": "Full Stack - Miami 2026",
  "slug": "full-stack-miami-2026",
  "syllabus": "full-stack-web-development.v2",
  "kickoff_date": "2026-06-05T12:30:00Z",
  "ending_date": "2027-06-05T18:00:00Z",
  "never_ends": false,
  "online_meeting_url": "https://zoom.us/j/123456789",
  "available_as_saas": true,
  "micro_cohorts": [1277, 1278, 1279],
  "cohorts_order": "1277,1278,1279"
}

Create cohort — response (201, single or macro):

{
  "id": 1280,
  "name": "Full Stack - Miami 2026",
  "slug": "full-stack-miami-2026",
  "syllabus_version": {
    "id": 10,
    "version": 2,
    "syllabus": {"slug": "full-stack-web-development"}
  },
  "kickoff_date": "2026-06-05T12:30:00Z",
  "ending_date": "2027-06-05T18:00:00Z",
  "never_ends": false,
  "stage": "INACTIVE",
  "available_as_saas": true,
  "micro_cohorts": [1277, 1278, 1279],
  "cohorts_order": "1277,1278,1279"
}

Always store id and slug from the response.

Update cohort (link micro cohorts) — request (PUT /v1/admissions/academy/cohort/{cohort_id}):

{
  "micro_cohorts": [1277, 1278],
  "cohorts_order": "1277,1278"
}

Edge Cases

• missing-syllabus-field: Include syllabus in the POST body using "slug.v{version}" format.
• cohort-without-ending-date-and-never-ends: Set ending_date or never_ends: true — one is required.
• cohort-with-ending-date-and-never-ends: Remove one — they are mutually exclusive.
• assigning-a-syllabus-version-1: Use version ≥ 2 or .vlatest (resolves to highest published version).
• micro-cohort-syllabus-must-have-specialty: The micro cohort's syllabus has no linked specialty. Link it via bc-certificate-manage-and-assign-specialties, then retry.
• micro-cohort-syllabus-required: A micro cohort ID in micro_cohorts has no syllabus. Pick a different cohort or create one with a valid syllabus.
• No reusable never-ending cohort found for a micro syllabus: Create a micro cohort with never_ends: true and available_as_saas: true (Path B step 4), then use its id.
• Micro cohort IDs from another academy: All IDs in micro_cohorts must belong to the same academy. Re-list cohorts scoped to the current academy.
• Users already in macro before micro cohorts linked: New micro cohorts do not auto-enroll existing macro users. Inform the user about the sync endpoint or bulk sync.
• available_as_saas omitted on macro: API defaults to the academy's setting. Set available_as_saas: true explicitly for macro cohorts.
• Academy cohort list has no never_ends filter: Use ending_date_isnull=true as a workaround to find template cohorts.

Checklist

1. Verified academy, syllabus, and published version ≥ 2 exist.
2. Chose cohort type: single certificate (Path A) or macro (Path B).
3. Path A: Listed syllabus and version, verified specialty, collected details, and called POST /v1/admissions/academy/cohort.
4. Path B: Selected macro syllabus, derived certificate order from syllabus JSON, found or created never-ending micro cohorts, collected macro details, and called POST with micro_cohorts and cohorts_order.
5. Confirmed creation via GET /v1/admissions/academy/cohort/{id_or_slug}.
6. Path B only: If users were already in the macro before linking, informed the user about user sync.
7. Path B optional: If using macro syllabus overrides, verified merged JSON via GET .../version/...?macro-cohort=....