Locating Blackboard Courses

There are three primary reasons that instructors have difficulty locating a course in the Courses area of Syracuse University Blackboard. This article will detail all three with solutions for each. The video below also shows how to resolve them.

Long Course Lists

For instructors with many courses, it can be difficult to find a course in the course list. The best solution is to use the search function to shorten the list. 

The following searches are the most effective for locating a course.

• Three-letter department code
• Three-number course code
• Semester name, i.e. "Fall22" or "Spring23" 
• Term or Semester code from the Course ID, i.e. "1231" for Fall 2022 courses

Once you've located your course, clicking the star button will set it to the top of your courses list as a "Favorite." Clicking the purple star will remove the designation and remove it from your "favorites" list.

Edited Course Dates

Courses in Blackboard are located under term labels based on a duration set within the course. The duration is automatically populated upon creation with a default start date four weeks before the start of main campus classes and a default end date of the final day of the month following the term. If an instructor has adjusted these dates, a course will move to a new area within the system. 

1. Move to the "Current Courses" area and enter a search term that should return the course such as its course code.
2. With the search in place, click the button to browse back through prior semesters, examining each page for the missing course.
   
   
   
   
3. Once located, enter the course by clicking the title.
4. Click Customization > Properties and locate the "Set Course Duration" area.
5. Adjust the Start and End dates to align with the semester where you want it to appear. 
   
   
   
   
6. Click Submit.
7. Click the "Refresh" button in your browser to update your view of the courses list.

Hidden Courses

Instructors are able to hide courses from their own view. This does not impact the view for other instructors or for students. Students are not allowed to hide courses they are enrolled in. To locate a hidden course:

1. Change the "Filter" setting by clicking the dropdown menu and selecting "Hidden Courses."
   
   
   
   
2. With the filter settings in place, use the arrows to navigate between semester and look for hidden courses. 
   
   
   
   
3. Once you've located a hidden course, click the menu button for it and choose the "Show Course" option 
   
   
   
   
4. Change the "Filter" setting by clicking on the dropdown menu again and choose "All Courses."