Platform access level: Org Admins, Managers, and Writers (anyone who builds courses).
Building from scratch gives you full control over every word, which is worth it when a course needs a human hand throughout, like sensitive or highly specific content.
1. Name your course on the Create course screen
From the Content page, select Create new, then Start from scratch. Before the editor opens, the Create course screen asks for the course's identity.
Course name: Enter the name that will appear in your course list; it's required.
Course description: Write this one for learners, not your own records: it's optional, but they see it on the self-enrollment and manage-enrollment pages.
Language: Pick the language you'll write in. You can add AI translations later, and it locks once the course has translations or enrolled learners.
Select Save and continue, and your blank course opens in the editor.
2. Look around the blank editor
The editor keeps the course outline on the left and whatever you selected from it open on the right.
A new course starts with a Welcome message, the first thing learners receive, and one empty lesson for you to write. Add content in the outline is how you add every lesson after that. The Details panel holds About course, where you revisit the name, description, and language at any time, alongside Settings and References. See Using the Content Editor for the full tour of the editor.
Note: The References tab splits into Sources (general background material) and Citations (in-text citations for regulated content); see Adding Citations if you need the latter.
The editor has two add buttons, and each one adds to a different place:
Add content: Sits in the outline, below your lesson list. It adds a new lesson, or one of the Course benchmarks.
Add block: Sits inside a lesson you have open. It adds a Multiple choice, Open-ended, or Rating question, or a Media block, to that lesson.
3. Write your lessons
Every course starts with a Welcome message, the first thing a learner sees. Select Add content below it to add a lesson, then open that lesson and select Add block to write its questions and media.
Tip: Creator adds a confidence-lift question at the start and end of every course it builds, and in a course you write yourself you add that question from the Add content block in the outline, under Course benchmarks:
That same Course benchmarks section also holds the NPS survey and Learner sentiment blocks. See Using Question Types and AI Assessment for what each benchmark measures and how to set it up.
4. Save and continue
Your changes save as you go. Once your lessons are written, preview it first in Previewing and Testing Content, or set up delivery in Best Practices for Delivering Courses.
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Note: Need help at any point? Reach out to your Arist Customer Success contact, or email support@arist.co.