Study programs & cohorts
Understand study programs as degree offerings, program types and versions, cohorts as intake groups, and how they connect to curricula, Apply admissions, and academic rulesets.
A study program is a degree or qualification offering at your institution — for example, a Bachelor of Business Administration, a Master of Science, or a postgraduate certificate. In FuxamCMS, programs are versioned so you can revise requirements for new intakes without rewriting the rules that earlier students already follow. Within each program version, cohorts group students who share the same intake period and curriculum assignment.
This section covers how to create and maintain study programs and their versions, how cohorts fit under them, and how the model connects to admissions (Apply) and examination policy (academic rulesets). Cohort-level operations — creating intakes, editing cohort details, adding users, and managing cohort curriculum — live in dedicated chapters linked below.
How this fits into Fuxam
Study programs sit inside Programs and planning in OrgHub. They bridge academic structure (what students must study) with operational enrollment (who belongs where), downstream planning (which modules run when), admissions (who is accepted into which intake), and exam policy (which attempt limits and grading rules apply).
| Related area | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Programs and planning | Parent area for study programs, module planning, organizers, and monitoring |
| Curricula | Academic blueprints; a curriculum version is assigned to each cohort |
| Assign curriculum to cohort | How curriculum versions become student study plans |
| Module planning | Plans delivery of modules linked to the program after curriculum is in place |
| Chronology | Organization terms that cohorts can map curriculum study periods to |
| Fuxam Apply | Admissions funnel that places accepted applicants into study programs and cohorts |
| Academic rulesets | Attempt limits, grading schemas, and related exam policy assigned at program, cohort, or user level |
| Continuing education | Separate path for continuing-education offerings when that feature is enabled |
In higher education, a degree program is the lasting institutional offering; an intake or cohort is the group that starts together under a specific set of rules. Fuxam mirrors that distinction: the study program (and its versions) holds the offering and rule snapshots; cohorts hold the living groups of students.
Key concepts
| Level | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Study program | The degree or certificate offering | Bachelor of Business Administration |
| Program type | Classification of the qualification (for example Bachelor or Master) | Bachelor |
| Program version | A snapshot of program rules for a specific intake cycle or regulation set | 2024 intake rules |
| Cohort | A group of students enrolled under one program version with one curriculum and intake dates | BBA 2024 — Winter start |
| Curriculum version | The academic blueprint (modules, study periods, electives) assigned to a cohort | BBA curriculum v2024.1 |
| Study plan | The per-student clone of the cohort’s curriculum structure | Individual obligations and electives |
| Academic ruleset | Policy bundle for attempts, grading, and related exam rules | Bachelor Engineering 2024 rules |
Each cohort belongs to exactly one program version. When you create a new program version for updated requirements, existing cohorts stay on their original version until you create new cohorts under the new version.
Degrees, program types, and what the program represents
A study program is not only a list of modules — it represents the qualification your institution awards. Staff typically capture:
- A clear name students and applicants recognize (for example, “Bachelor of Science in Computer Science”)
- An optional code aligned with catalog, accreditation, or student-information systems
- An optional objective describing the program’s purpose
- A program type that classifies the level of award (for example Bachelor or Master)
- Degree-related metadata and a default study duration used for planning and catalog context
Use Edit a study program to maintain those details after creation. Prefer naming the lasting offering in the program record, and put intake years in versions and cohorts.
Program vs cohort (decision guide)
| Question | Prefer… |
|---|---|
| Are you defining a lasting degree or certificate your institution offers? | A study program |
| Are rules changing for a new intake while earlier students keep old rules? | A new program version — see Program versions explained |
| Are you grouping students by start date and shared curriculum? | A cohort under the correct version |
| Are you changing which modules students must take? | A curriculum version, then assign it to the cohort |
| Are exam attempt limits or grading policy changing for a program or intake? | An academic ruleset assignment (program, cohort, or user) |
Where to find them
Go to OrgHub → Management → Programs. The Study Programs tab lists all study programs. Select a program name to open it, then use the version selector in the header to switch between program versions.
Inside a program version you can manage:
- Cohorts — intake groups for that version
- Users — students enrolled in the program (with or without a cohort, depending on configuration)
- Module Planning and Course Planning — plan delivery for modules linked to the program
- Settings — program details, connected curriculum, responsible users, academic rulesets, and configuration
How programs connect to Apply and exams
| Connection | What happens |
|---|---|
| Apply → CMS | An application program links one or more study programs (and often specific cohorts). Accepted applicants are placed into the matching CMS cohort for enrollment. |
| CMS → study plans | Cohort membership generates each student’s study plan from the assigned curriculum version. |
| CMS → rulesets | Academic rulesets assigned at program, cohort, or user level resolve into the student’s effective exam policy via assignment priority. |
| CMS → planning | After curriculum and membership exist, module planning schedules delivery by term. |
Keep names and intake dates consistent across CMS cohorts and Apply so admissions staff and registry staff talk about the same group.
Typical workflow
- Create the study program (with its initial version).
- Configure details and settings (type, objective, connected curricula, rulesets as needed).
- Build or finalize the curriculum you will assign.
- Add cohorts under the correct program version and assign a curriculum version.
- Add users to the cohort (or receive enrollments from Apply).
- Use module planning for term delivery; follow the intake across semesters — see Cohort lifecycle.
- When requirements change, create a new program version and new cohorts for the next intake — leave existing cohorts on their original version.
Roles and responsibilities
| Role | Typical focus |
|---|---|
| Program or academic administrator | Create and edit programs, manage versions, archive retired offerings |
| Curriculum designer | Maintain curriculum versions in Database; coordinate assignment to cohorts |
| Enrollment or registrar staff | Create cohorts, add users, manage cohort curriculum impact |
| Admissions staff | Link Apply application programs to study programs and place enrolled applicants into cohorts |
| Examination office | Assign and maintain academic rulesets for programs and intakes |
| Planning staff | Use Module Planning and Course Planning once cohorts and curricula are in place |
Exact permissions vary by institution. Creating study programs specifically requires Create Study Programs access.
In this section
Create a study program
Add a new study program with an initial version.
Edit a study program
Update program name, code, type, settings, and connected curriculum.
Archive a study program
Hide a program from active lists while preserving its data.
Manage program versions
Create and manage versions; see which cohorts belong to each version.
Program versions explained
Why versions exist for accreditation and regulation changes, with a worked example.
Create a cohort
Add an intake cohort under a program version with curriculum and dates.
Edit a cohort
Change cohort name, intake dates, or curriculum assignment.
Add users to cohort
Enroll individual or multiple users and generate their study plans.
Manage cohort curriculum
Assign or change the curriculum version and control impact on study plans.
Cohort lifecycle
How an intake progresses from upcoming through active to completed across semesters.
Related topics
- Curricula — create and version the curriculum you assign to cohorts.
- Assign curriculum to cohort — the bridge from Database blueprints to cohort study plans.
- Module planning — plan which modules run in which terms after a curriculum is assigned.
- Continuing education — manage continuing-education programs when that feature is enabled.
- Fuxam Apply — admissions into study programs and cohorts.
- Academic rulesets — exam policy attached to programs and cohorts.