Training FAQs

Blackbaud University classes are available to users who have an active Blackbaud.com account, associated with an active Blackbaud customer. With apologies, Blackbaud University cannot be accessed by individuals without an active Blackbaud.com account associated with an active Blackbaud customer.

Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.

Alternately, from Blackbaud.com, click Training and Support, then BlackbaudU Campus from the top navigation bar.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select Product Catalogs.
3. Select your Product and click View Courses.
4. Review available Learning Paths. Each Learning Path contains courses tied to specific subjects, job roles, and outcomes.

Alternatively, Blackbaud University curriculum lists are available.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select Product Catalogs.
3. Select your Product and click View Courses.
4. Select your desired Learning Path.
5. Select Enroll to add the classes to your transcript page.
6. Click Access this Course to view the courses in the Learning Path.

Once enrolled, courses will also be available from learn.blackbaud.com under My Activities.

Once enrolled in a virtual instructor-led class, please review the course schedule, and select a date and time to attend. To schedule a virtual instructor-led session:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select the desired date and time.
5. Select Enroll.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select More Options (…) from the top-right.
5. Select the Change session enrollment.
6. Choose a new upcoming session.

If you do not find an appropriate session, you can select the Unenroll from session instead and reschedule at a more convenient time.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Locate the My Calendar section of the home page.
3. Your schedule defaults to a Monthly view. Use the navigation buttons to move to different months. Click on a day to see your scheduled courses for that day.
4. To see classes listed sequentially, click Monthly to choose between a Monthly and Agenda view.

• Virtual Instructor-Led courses are live online sessions that take place at a specific day and time. Course lengths are visible when you sign up.
• eLearning courses are self-paced sessions that can be viewed at any time.

No, Blackbaud University no longer enforces prerequisites for its classes, as of January 2023. We recommend that you be prepared for advanced-level courses by reviewing the course description and ensuring you are ready for the class. If you are new to your Blackbaud solution, we recommend starting with Blackbaud University Fundamentals level courses before enrolling in advanced courses.

NOTE: In a small number of cases, there are courses that must be taken in sequence. This is to ensure that all students are prepared with baseline knowledge to maximize time in later courses.

Blackbaud University courses are available to orgs without an active Learn subscription, for a fee for each course for each student. Our Basics level curriculum is available to all Blackbaud customers at no cost.

NOTE: Each individual purchase must be made using the login credentials of the student for whom it is intended Purchased courses cannot be transferred to other users.

To purchase an individual Blackbaud University course if you do not have an active Learn subscription:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select Product Catalogs.
3. Select your Product and click View Courses.
4. Select your desired Learning Path.
5. The price for the full Learning Path will be visible. To purchase all courses in the Learning Path, click Buy full learning path, then Add To Cart.
6. To purchase individual courses in the Learning Path, click Select courses to buy, then Select Courses.
7. Click the checkbox next to the courses you wish to purchase. When completed, click Add To Cart.
8. Click View Cart to complete the transaction. You can also click the shopping cart () button to return to your cart.
9. Click Checkout.
10. Enter your billing information. Agree to Terms and Conditions. Click Confirm Order.
    NOTE: Please add your State/Province as a two-letter postal code.
11. Enter your payment information.

NOTE: Blackbaud University accepts Visa and Mastercard for individual course transactions. Individual course transactions cannot be invoiced.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select Product Catalogs.
3. Select your Product and click View Courses.
4. Select your desired Learning Path.
5. The price for the full Learning Path will be visible. To purchase all courses in the Learning Path, click Buy full learning path, then Add To Cart.
6. To purchase individual courses in the Learning Path, click Select courses to buy, then Select Courses.
7. Click the checkbox next to the courses you wish to purchase. When completed, click Add To Cart.
8. Click View Cart to complete the transaction. You can also click the shopping cart () button to return to your cart.
9. Add your coupon code. Click Apply Coupon to update price.
10. Click Checkout.
11. Enter your billing information. Agree to Terms and Conditions. Click Confirm Order.
    NOTE: Please add your State/Province as a two-letter postal code.

If your coupon does not reduce the price of your course to $0.00, enter your payment information.
NOTE: Blackbaud University accepts Visa and Mastercard for individual course transactions.

To ensure a superior experience in virtual instructor-led courses, Blackbaud University limits attendance to individual sessions. With apologies, courses that are full are not available to be waitlisted. Check the schedule for other dates and times!

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Click Access the Course.
5. You may leave and return to eLearning courses at any time. Courses in progress will appear in My Courses on https://learn.blackbaud.com.

Prepare Microsoft Teams. Blackbaud University uses Microsoft Teams for our virtual classes. For the best experience, we recommend downloading the Microsoft Teams application (you can also join from supported browsers). Please ensure that you have speakers or a phone connection to Microsoft Teams audio.

Prepare to join your student sample product environment. Many classes include access to student sample product environments. Please check that you are using a computer that meets Blackbaud’s System Requirements. Your instructor will detail the solution-specific steps to connect to your sample environment before class begins.

For Raiser’s Edge and Financial Edge Database View classes, Citrix Workspace App is required to access the student sample environment. Please confirm that Citrix is installed before class. IT assistance from your organization may be required to complete installation. Follow these instructions to install Citrix prior to class.

NOTE: When installing Citrix, do not click “Add Account” when prompted by the installer; just click Finish when prompted to complete installation.

For Microsoft Product Courses, you must provide your own environment if you wish to participate in the hands-on activities. Blackbaud University does not provide a sample environment for these courses. To participate in class, you must have one of the following Microsoft Office versions:

• Microsoft Office 2016
• Microsoft Office 2019
• Microsoft Office 2021
• Microsoft 365

Prepare for a new class experience. In 2024, Blackbaud University transitioned from WebEx to Microsoft Teams for our virtual instructor-led courses. For the best experience, we recommend downloading the Microsoft Teams application (you can also join from supported browsers). Please note that the process of launching your Blackbaud University class will remain the same. For more information on preparing for class, please review the FAQs below or reference this Knowledgebase article.

In March 2024, Microsoft introduced a new Teams client for users still on the classic version. This may require users to install the new Teams client. For more information, please visit Microsoft’s website for updates and detailed information.

Yes! Course Materials are designed to supplement the instruction and demonstrations you’ll see in your virtual instructor-led class, with the goal of active participation and note-taking in mind. Use this resource however you’d like, whether to highlight impactful takeaways, write down answers to activities, or make note of whatever you think will be useful later. You can access your class handout before, during, or after class.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Click My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select the CONTENT tab.
5. Select the title of the file to download.

Your virtual instructor-led class is available to join up to 30 minutes before scheduled start time. Please join your class as early as possible to be ready for class.

You can launch your class directly from BlackbaudU Campus:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Locate your course under the My Calendar section of the homepage.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select Join the Training.

Blackbaud University virtual instructor-led courses begin promptly at the time listed when you enroll. All times listed are U.S. Eastern Time. Please plan to join as early as possible to be ready for class.

No! If you have completed setup and are ready for class, you can feel free to do other things before class starts. Feel free to answer email, get a snack, or watch fun cat videos on YouTube. Just be sure to return for the class start time. We appreciate your commitment to being ready for your Blackbaud University class.

Participants must be present and active in the session for at least 90% of the class to receive credit. See our Training Policies page.

We’ve listed answers to common questions about instructor-led online events. Check the sidebar under Training Help for more frequently asked questions, like signing up for courses, becoming Blackbaud Certified®, and more! Don’t see your question? Select Knowledgebase from the Support menu, enter your question, and click Ask.

Your virtual instructor-led class is available to join up to 30 minutes before scheduled start time. We recommend you join your class as early as possible to be ready for class.

You can launch your class directly from BlackbaudU Campus:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Locate your course under the My Calendar section of the homepage.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select Join the Training.

Before joining a session, you will be prompted to set your audio and microphone settings. If you are experiencing audio issues during class, follow the instructions below. Please note there are two different versions of Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft Teams classic or browser:

1. Go to the More icon at the top of the screen.
2. Choose Settings and then Device Settings.
3. Ensure your Speaker setting matches the correct audio device.

New Microsoft Teams:

1. Go to the More icon at the top of the screen.
2. Choose Audio settings.
3. Ensure the Speaker option matches the correct audio device.

Alternatively, you can use phone audio in either version of Teams by using the More icon at the top of the screen, choosing Call Me, and entering your phone number.

Course Materials are designed to supplement the instruction and demonstrations you’ll see in your virtual instructor-led class, with the goal of active participation and note-taking in mind. Use this resource however you’d like, whether to highlight impactful takeaways, write down answers to activities, or make note of whatever you think will be useful later.

Course Materials are available before or after class from BlackbaudU Campus. To download Course Materials:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Click My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Go to Course Content and select the title of the file to download.

Many Blackbaud University classes include access to a student sample product environment. Please check that you are using a computer that meets Blackbaud’s System Requirements before class to prepare to use these training environments. Your instructor will detail the solution-specific steps to connect to your sample training environment before class begins.

For Raiser’s Edge and Financial Edge Database View classes, Citrix Workspace App is required to access the student sample product environment. Please check that Citrix is installed before class. IT assistance from your organization may be required to complete installation. Follow these instructions to install Citrix prior to class.

For Microsoft Product Courses, please be aware that you must provide your own environment if you wish to participate in the hands-on activities. Blackbaud University will not be providing a sample environment for these courses. In order to participate in class, you must have one of the following Microsoft Office versions:

• Microsoft Office 2016
• Microsoft Office 2019
• Microsoft Office 2021
• Microsoft 365

Please only use Blackbaud University-provided student sample environments for course exercises. If you select your production database to complete this training, you may make irreversible changes to your database. You acknowledge that you are responsible for selecting the Blackbaud University sample database for your training, and that Blackbaud is not responsible for any changes you make to your production database if you fail to select the Blackbaud University sample database for this training.

Upon initial sign-in to the Microsoft Teams meeting, the screen will include icons across the top, and the instructor will be sharing instructions for class preparation. Use the chat icon at the top of the screen to open the chat panel, where you can interact with the instructor and other students.

Additionally, you can turn on live closed captions by clicking the More icon at the top of the screen. Choose Language and speech and select Turn on live captions.

Once class is underway, you’ll be switching between Microsoft Teams and the sample database for your Blackbaud product. If you have a single monitor, you can use the icons in your taskbar to switch between Microsoft Teams, your sample environment, and course handout. Using multiple monitors can help your class experience but is not required. During student exercises, the instructor will leave instructions for the exercise onscreen for you to refer to; you won’t miss anything in class when you switch to your sample database to take part in class exercises. Your audio connection will always remain active, so when the instructor moves to another section you will be made aware.

• If it’s before your scheduled class time, make sure you’re ready for class!
• Ask your instructor questions during class! Every instructor is an expert in their solution, and online instruction. We love hearing from our students in class.
• Keep an eye on the classroom chat. Seeing what other students are asking about is part of the learning experience. Learning from peers is just as valuable as learning from your instructor.
• Minimize your distractions. Turn off email and chat, and silence your phone. We know you are busy, and taking a class only takes up more of your valuable time. Consider your time an investment that pays dividends; our students tell us they save six hours a week from the knowledge they’ve gained by taking Blackbaud University courses.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Go to Course Content and click the Training Evaluation.

Click Begin the Survey. We appreciate your feedback!

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Rewards to see your Rewards.

For more information about reward, see Blackbaud University.

Yes! Students can retake any course for any reason. To retake a completed virtual instructor-led course:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Select More Options (…) from the top-right.
5. Select the Change session enrollment.
6. Choose a new upcoming session.

Recordings of Blackbaud University instructor-led courses are not made available. If you wish to revisit an instructor-led course, you may schedule a new time to take the courses again in the future.

1. https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Course Title.
4. Go to Course Content and click the course file listed. You will return to the course and can navigate to any section to continue to learn.

Request a training report at any time by submitting a Blackbaud University Support Ticket.

Yes! Please request a training transfer by by submitting a Blackbaud University Support Ticket and including your past and present email addresses and organization names. We can transfer all course and certifications completed as far back as 2019.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Click the Ribbon button () to download your certificate.

For more information about getting Blackbaud Certified®, see Getting Certified FAQs.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select Product Catalogs.
3. Select your Product and click View Courses.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the course catalog page and choose the option to Get Certified.

If you have already enrolled in the Certification Exam, you can launch it from your transcript at any time:

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Activities.
3. Select the Exam Title.

Select Begin.

Fundamentals exams consist of 20–25 questions. Professional exams include 50 questions. You have 90 minutes to complete once started. The exam can be taken an unlimited number of times until passed.

• A score of 80% or higher is necessary to pass.
• Exams are standardized tests, and as such you cannot see which questions you get wrong.
• Exams are “open book.” Feel free to use any resources at your disposal, including your database Help menu, your class notes and handouts, and the Blackbaud Knowledgebase.

1. Go to https://learn.blackbaud.com.
2. Select My Rewards.
3.  Select the Certificate Badge from your list of courses and certificates.
4. Click Share Badge, and then either Facebook, LinkedIn, or copy the link to share anywhere.
5. For Facebook and LinkedIn, follow the prompts to complete your post.

For more information, see Blackbaud University Rewards.

Many of our products have Certifications available. You can see the full list at: https://www.blackbaud.com/training-support/training/blackbaud-certification.

Many of our courses offer either CRFE and/or CPE credits for continuing education.

More information is available at: https://www.blackbaud.com/training-support/training/continuing-education.

We’re excited to announce a new look for our course information pages. Each page is redesigned with a modern, streamlined interface to enhance your learning experience. The updated design improves accessibility, including full keyboard navigation, and makes it easier than ever to find the information you need. We’ve reorganized our course-related information into accessible sections, including a section for continuing education. We’ve also upgraded our eLearning course platform, for a more user-friendly experience.

Visit learn.blackbaud.com to start learning today!

As always, we’re here to support you—reach out to Training Help if you have any questions.