Does a pathway replace assignment?

No. You still assign the pathway (or its courses) to people or groups. A pathway defines order and structure; assignment decides who must take it.

Can I assign the same courses without a pathway?

Yes. Assigning courses individually works for unrelated requirements. Use a pathway when order, a shared programme, or a learner-facing journey matters.

Pathways vs Assigning Courses

When a Learning Pathway is better than assigning several courses individually

The decision

You have several learning or compliance activities that belong together — such as e-learning, an instructor-led session, a risk assessment, and final manager approval. You can assign each course separately, or wrap them in a Learning Pathway so learners see one programme with a clear order and shared progress.

Pathways organise existing course records (and can include calendar sessions and self-assessments). They do not replace Course Management or assignment.

Note

Do not create a pathway simply to bundle unrelated mandatory courses. If items do not form a journey, assign them individually (or via a group) instead.

Choose A when / Choose B when

Choose	When
Learning Pathway	Activities should be taken in sequence or as one programme — onboarding, a role curriculum, or a multi-step track mixing e-learning, ILT, risk assessments, and approvals
Assign courses individually	Requirements are unrelated, one-off, or you only need a single course on someone’s list
Pathway + Dynamic Group	A whole role or department should follow the same ordered programme and stay up to date as people join

Tip

Build (or import) the courses first, then create the pathway, then assign it to a Dynamic Group for that role — not the other way around.

Common mistakes

Creating a pathway but never assigning it — nobody is enrolled
Using a pathway only to dump unrelated mandatory courses into one list
Assigning five related steps separately when learners need a fixed order and a single journey
Expecting a pathway to fix who sees courses in the catalog — that is still visibility vs assignment

Recommended setup

Create or import courses via Adding Courses; add sessions under Sessions & Calendar if the journey needs ILT
Assemble the journey in Creating Learning Pathways
Decide how people are selected — usually a Dynamic Group (Dynamic Groups vs Static Groups vs Individual Assignment)
Assign with Assigning Courses

Related guides

Creating Learning Pathways — build and configure pathways
Assigning Courses — enrol people and groups
Group Training Assignment — bulk assignment
Adding Courses — course records pathways depend on

Pathways vs Assigning Courses

When a Learning Pathway is better than assigning several courses individually

The decision

Pathways organise existing course records (and can include calendar sessions and self-assessments). They do not replace Course Management or assignment.

Note

Do not create a pathway simply to bundle unrelated mandatory courses. If items do not form a journey, assign them individually (or via a group) instead.

Choose A when / Choose B when

Choose	When
Learning Pathway	Activities should be taken in sequence or as one programme — onboarding, a role curriculum, or a multi-step track mixing e-learning, ILT, risk assessments, and approvals
Assign courses individually	Requirements are unrelated, one-off, or you only need a single course on someone’s list
Pathway + Dynamic Group	A whole role or department should follow the same ordered programme and stay up to date as people join

Tip

Build (or import) the courses first, then create the pathway, then assign it to a Dynamic Group for that role — not the other way around.

Common mistakes

Creating a pathway but never assigning it — nobody is enrolled
Using a pathway only to dump unrelated mandatory courses into one list
Assigning five related steps separately when learners need a fixed order and a single journey
Expecting a pathway to fix who sees courses in the catalog — that is still visibility vs assignment

Recommended setup

Create or import courses via Adding Courses; add sessions under Sessions & Calendar if the journey needs ILT
Assemble the journey in Creating Learning Pathways
Decide how people are selected — usually a Dynamic Group (Dynamic Groups vs Static Groups vs Individual Assignment)
Assign with Assigning Courses

Related guides

Creating Learning Pathways — build and configure pathways
Assigning Courses — enrol people and groups
Group Training Assignment — bulk assignment
Adding Courses — course records pathways depend on