When are course shells created in Blackboard?
- Mariann Hawken
- Josh Abrams
- John Fritz
As of Summer 2025, Blackboard shells will be available for all courses listed in the UMBC Schedule of Classes (SOC), regardless of designation as lecture, lab, etc or instructor assignment. RT requests are no longer needed for research, independent study, or practicum courses. As new course sections are added to the SOC by Department Scheduling Coordinators, corresponding Bb shells are automatically generated overnight.
Tell Me
Courses are initially created in Blackboard about 4 weeks before the semester starts:
Term | Approximate Creation Date |
|---|---|
Fall | Late July |
Winter | Late November |
Spring | Late November |
Summer | Late April |
After the courses are created for a given semester, new course shells will be created once daily (at approximately 4 AM). For example, if a new course or course section is added to the SOC at 9 AM, the Bb shell will be created later that night.
Why Do I See More Than One Blackboard Course Shell?
Instructors who teach multiple sections of the same course will see a separate Blackboard course shell for each section or course component. Courses will no longer be merged by default. Instructors planning to use split shells will no longer need to submit an RT request.
Course shells may be merged upon request via RT ticket, which we recommend submitting at least one week before the semester starts, if not as soon as courses are created in Blackboard. NOTE: Courses should not be merged or split after student grade data and engagement activity is recorded since it will be purged as part of the split/merge process. Instructors can also request via RT ticket to merge their courses.
If you do not see your course or need to request a new course shell in Blackboard, please check with your department scheduling coordinator and review these FAQs:
Are you missing a course?
Before you open a ticket about a missing course shell, PLEASE confirm that your Departmental Scheduling Coordinator has correctly entered your name in the schedule of classes. Once you are listed in the SOC, you should have access to your course shell within 24 hours.
If you still don't see it, proceed to the next step: How do I request a Blackboard course or organization shell?