# Create a course

> Title, description, cover, level and how it shows on your website.

Source: https://paatya.net/docs/courses/create-a-course

Creating a course takes two steps. First you write the course details: title, description, cover and what students will learn. Then you build the curriculum. This page covers the first step.

## Before you start

- Have your course title and a short description ready.
- Optional: a cover image, as a JPG or PNG up to 5 MB. A wide 16:9 picture looks best.
- Your academy needs some balance to create courses. See [Add balance](https://paatya.net/docs/billing/add-balance).

## Create the course

1. In the menu on the left, click **Courses**.
2. Click **Create Course** at the top right. On a phone, tap the round **+** button at the bottom of the screen.
3. Under **Basic information**, fill in:
   - **Course title** (required), such as "Python Programming for Beginners".
   - **Subtitle**: one line that says what the course is for.
   - **Description**: what the course covers, who it is for, and what students should already know. Up to 2,000 characters.
4. Under **Categorisation**, fill in the parts you want:
   - **Category**: type one, such as "English". Categories you have used before are suggested as you type.
   - **Language**: the language the course is taught in.
   - **Level**: who the course is for: **Beginner**, **Intermediate**, **Advanced** or **All levels**. It's shown on the course's card and page on your website.
   - **Tags**: type a word and press Enter. You can add up to 8.
5. Optional: under **Access**, fill in **Default access period**: how many days students keep the course once they're enrolled, such as 180. Leave it empty if students should keep the course with no end. See [Access end dates](https://paatya.net/docs/enrollments/how-enrollment-works). To let any student take the course at no cost, turn on **The whole course is free**. See [Free courses and free lessons](https://paatya.net/docs/courses/free-courses). To make students finish each section before the next opens, turn on **Students must finish earlier sections first**; it's off by default, so students can open any section.
6. Under **Learning outcomes**, click **Add a learning outcome** for each thing a student will be able to do by the end. Use the arrows to reorder them.
7. Click **Save as Draft**. Paatya saves the course and opens it on its **Details** tab.

![The Create Course form with its cards and the live preview on the right](https://paatya.net/docs/img/courses-create-a-course-1.png)

The **Live preview** on the right shows how the course card will look as you type.

## Set a price

Once the course is saved, a **Price** card appears on its **Details** tab. If your academy sells courses online, click **Edit** on that card and set the MRP and any discount there. See [Sell a course](https://paatya.net/docs/course-payments/sell-a-course).

## Add a cover image

You can add a cover once the course has been saved.

1. Open the course's **Details** tab. On the **Course cover** card, click **Edit**.
2. Drag an image onto the box, or click **browse**.
3. Wait for the upload to finish. The cover is saved straight away.
4. Click **Done**.

## Public website

These settings decide how the course appears on your academy's website once it's published. On a saved course, click **Edit** on the **Public website** card to change them.

- **Show on your website**: on at first. Turn it off to keep the course off your website entirely, for example a batch run for one company. Enrolled students still see it as usual.
- **Instructor**: who teaches the course, chosen from your [faculty](https://paatya.net/docs/academy/faculty). Their card appears on the course's public page.
- **Show the curriculum**: on at first. Turn it off to show the course's page without its list of sections and topics. Course pages only open when **Show course details** is on. See [Show course details](https://paatya.net/docs/public-website/course-details).

![The Public website settings on a course: Show on your website, Instructor and Show the curriculum](https://paatya.net/docs/img/courses-create-a-course-2.png)

## Move on to the curriculum

Click **Save & Continue**. Paatya saves the details and opens the **Curriculum** tab, where you add sections and topics.

![Video: creating a course from start to finish](https://paatya.net/docs/video/courses-create-a-course.mp4)

## What you'll see

- The new course appears on the **Courses** page with a yellow **Draft** badge.
- Only admins can see a draft course. Students and visitors can't see it until you [publish it](https://paatya.net/docs/courses/publish-archive-delete).
- A saved course opens on two tabs, **Details** and **Curriculum**. The top of both tabs shows the course's name and status, with **Course health**, **Preview**, **Publish** and a **⋮** menu.

## Change a course's details later

A saved course's details are shown as read-only cards: **Basic information**, **Categorisation**, **Access**, **Price**, **Course cover**, **Public website** and **Learning outcomes**. You change one card at a time.

1. Click **Courses**, then click the course's card. The course opens on its **Details** tab.
2. On the card you want to change, click **Edit**.
3. Make your changes.
4. Click **Save**. Or click **Cancel** to put the card back as it was.

> **Note:** While one card is open, the other cards' **Edit** buttons are greyed out. Save or cancel the card you are editing first.

> **Note:** If you leave the page with unsaved changes, Paatya asks **Leave without saving?** first. Click **Keep editing** to stay, or **Discard and leave**.

## If something goes wrong

- **"Save the course first, then add a cover".** Click **Save as Draft** once, then upload the cover.
- **The cover image won't upload.** Check it is a JPG or PNG and no bigger than 5 MB.
- **"Someone else saved this course since you opened it."** Another admin saved the course while you had it open. Click **Load the current version** and make your change again.
- **You can't create a course at all.** Your academy may be out of balance. See [When your balance runs out](https://paatya.net/docs/billing/when-balance-runs-out).

## Next step

[Build the curriculum](https://paatya.net/docs/courses/curriculum): add sections and topics.