How do I create the breakout room .CSV file?

In Zoom, you can set up breakout rooms ahead of time for your Zoom class meeting, and assign students to those rooms.  When doing this, you can either manually assign the students to the rooms, or create a .CSV file in a specific format to add them to the rooms.

Zoom usernames are formatted like an email address, but unlike an email address, they are case sensitive. Also, your participants may have Zoom usernames that are not in the typical [email protected] format. For these reasons, you must first generate a report from Zoom to find out your participants actual usernames.

NOTE: This type of Zoom report can only be run on meetings you have previously held on Zoom. Members of your class who did not attend that particular meeting will not be in the report.

Log into Canvas, navigate to the course, go to the Zoom tool, and open the "Previous Meetings" tab

Click "Report" next to the name of the meeting whose report you need

Click "Export as CSV File"

NOTE: If need be, you can also generate this report in tufts.zoom.us as a usage report.  Contact [email protected] if you have questions. 

Edit the .CSV file to format it properly for importing back into Zoom

Open the .CSV file in Excel. Edit the two columns as follows:

  • Column A: Edit the column label to:  "Pre-assign Room Name". The entries where the room names are listed must contain no spaces
  • Column B: Edit the column label to:  "Email Address". Match your students' Zoom usernames with the breakout room to which you would like to assign them. This column must be formatted as text (not as a set of email links).

NOTE: a .CSV file can be created, opened, and edited in Excel (and other spreadsheet apps). When a .CSV file is opened in Excel, it functions similarly to an Excel document.

When you're done editing the file in Excel, be sure to save it in .CSV format. Choose "Save As", and select .CSV from the available file types. 

Import Into Your Zoom Scheduled Room Settings Page

Once you've created the .CSV file, you can import it back into your Zoom meeting settings to pre-assign participants to breakout rooms. See this user guide for further instructions: Creating Pre-assigned breakout rooms

Please review these important tips on managing breakout rooms during your Zoom class meeting: For Hosts: Managing Pre-Assigned breakout rooms during the session