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Canvas: Merge Course Manager

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6.0 - Updated on 08-29-2023 by Vilma Shu (vbs5182)

5.0 - Updated on 03-15-2021 by Daniel Travis (drt82)

4.0 - Updated on 06-12-2020 by Daniel Travis (drt82)

3.0 - Updated on 04-23-2020 by Daniel Travis (drt82)

2.0 - Updated on 08-13-2019 by Daniel Travis (drt82)

1.0 - Authored on 08-08-2017 by Vilma Shu (vbs5182)

A merged course is a new course that is created by combining two or more other courses. Each of the original courses will become a course section in the new course.

From your Canvas Dashboard, click the Merge Course Manager button to have multiple courses merged into one.

Merge Course Manager button.


Click the Merge Course Manager button.

You must be enrolled as a teacher or course admin in each course that you wish to merge. The courses cannot be published or have any student submissions, and they should be empty of course content. A new window will open that spells out acceptable and unacceptable instances for merging sections:

Merge Course pop-up window.













Merge Course pop-up window with information to review

The instructor of record for the course must acknowledge understanding of acceptable instances to merge sections and provide consent by clicking Yes in the pop-up window. If the reason to merge does not meet the criteria, the instructor of record will click Cancel to exit.

For questions about FERPA and online course sites that involve more than one enrollment section, please contact the Office of the University Registrar at 814-863-3681 or registrar@psu.edu. Additional information can be found on the FERPA Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the University Registrar website.

Time to Create Merged Course: The new course is created automatically, but it may take a day or two for the entire roster from each course to populate the new course.

Important Notes:

Visit Course Sandbox, Merge Courses, and Master or Manually Enrolled Courses for an overview of the three types of course spaces in Canvas that faculty and staff may request.