What’s Specialization or Learning Path?
We already understand what a course is in Oracle Learning Cloud. To simplify, a specialization is a collection of related courses, often referred to as a learning path. Specializations are designed to help learners achieve expertise in a specific field.
For instance, consider our course on Digital Marketing Fundamentals. However, someone aiming for proficiency in Digital Marketing needs more than just this fundamental course. They may require knowledge in areas like Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). To streamline the learning process, we configure Specializations in Oracle Learning Cloud. This allows learners to focus on completing courses in the right sequence instead of searching for them individually.
Prerequisite to Configure Specialization
As specialization is solely based on the courses, only prerequisite to configure specialization is course. If you are following along with our oracle learning cloud guide, you may have already configured Digital Marketing Fundamentals course. If not done already, follow the oracle learning cloud implementation guide and configure the course.
As we need few more courses for specialization, please also configure following courses. You should have already configured the first two if you followed the steps to request noncatalog learning items earlier. Nevertheless, regardless of your current progress, please configure these three courses and attach at least one offering and activities to each course.
- Email Marketing
- Social Media Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Learn to Configure a Specialization
Navigation : My Client Groups » Learning » Learning Catalog » Specializations
On Specializations page, click on Create button which will take you to Create Specialization page. Ensure General Information tab is selected and enter details as follows in the Basic Information section.
- Title : Digital Marketing Specialization
- Description : The Digital Marketing Specialization is a comprehensive program designed to transform learners into proficient digital marketers. This specialization encompasses a range of essential topics, including Digital Marketing Fundamentals, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), Email Marketing, and Social Media Marketing.
- Publish Start Date : First day of the current month.
- Publish End Date : <Leave blank>
- Branding Image : https://i.postimg.cc/QC8wjNwc/Digital-Marketing.jpg <You can use this image>
Scroll up and click on Save button.
Learn to Configure Learning Outcome for Specialization
Click on the Learning Outcomes tab to configure learning outcomes. The process to configure learning outcomes for a specialization is exactly same as process to configure learning outcomes for a course already explained. You can refer that article if you haven’t gone through already. As far as this article is concerned we are not attaching any outcomes.
Learn to Configure Prerequisites for Specialization
Click on the Prerequisites tab. The process to configure prerequisite for a specialization is exactly same as process to configure prerequisite for a course already explained. You can refer that article if you haven’t gone through already. As far as this article is concerned we are not attaching any prerequisites.
Learn to Link Specialization to a Community
You can click on the communities tab to link a specialization with any existing community. We will learn about community later.
Once you are done with all steps mentioned earlier, click on Save and Close button. With this Digital Marketing Specialization configuration is completed and you will be back to Digital Marketing Specialization page.
Configure Activities for Specialization
While you are on Digital Marketing Specialization : Specialization page, click on Activities link (side panel). If you are wondering why we are creating activities directly without creating offerings then you have a valid thought and you are an observer!!
For a specialization Activities are nothing but courses. In the Overview section click on Add button and select option Add Section. We have already learned to add sections for activities, process is very much same here.
Enter following details for this new section
- Section Tile : Digital Marketing Basics
- Description : Digital Marketing Basics is an introductory course that provides a solid foundation in the fundamental principles of digital marketing. Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of the core concepts and tools used in digital marketing, making it an ideal starting point for anyone looking to navigate the digital marketing landscape effectively.
We already know the use of following sections, which we can configure later. For now, click on Save button.
- Completion Rule
- Sequencing Rules
- Display Rules
- Assignment Rules
Update Default Section
Click on the Edit icon for Default Section and enter details as follows
- Section Tile : Digital Marketing Advanced
- Description : Participants will gain in-depth knowledge of each facet of digital marketing, mastering the art of optimizing websites, creating engaging email campaigns, and leveraging social media platforms for business success.
- Display Rule
- Place Section After : Digital Marketing Basics
Click on Save button.
Assign Learning Activities : Digital Marketing Basics Section
In the Digital Marketing Basics section, click on the Add button for Learning Activities row. This will take you to Add Course Activity page.
In the Select Learning Item filed, search and select Digital Marketing Fundamentals course that you have configured earlier.
Once done, click on OK button, which will take you back to Digital Marketing Specialization : Specialization page.
Assign Learning Activities : Digital Marketing Advanced Section
In the Digital Marketing Advanced section, click on the Add button for Learning Activities row. This will take you to Add Course Activity page.
- In the Select Learning Item filed, search and select Email Marketing course that you have configured earlier.
- Click on OK button to return to Specialization page.
- Click on the Add button again and search for the course Social Media Marketing to add it.
- Click on the Add button again and search for the course Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to add it.
You should see following three courses added to Advanced section.
- Email Marketing
- Social Media Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Update Digital Marketing Advanced Section
Currently, there are a total of three courses in this section. However, we want to enable learners to complete any two courses to fulfill the specialization requirements. Additionally, we aim to grant learners access to this section only after they have successfully completed the Digital Marketing Basics section. Let’s explore how we can achieve this.
Click on the Edit icon for Digital Marketing Advanced section and update details as follows
- Completion Rule :
- Number of Activities to Complete : 2
- Sequencing Rule :
- Learner Can Access Section : After completing specific section
- Section : Digital Marketing Basics
Click on Save button. You will be back to Specialization page. With this we have completed our Specialization configuration.
Make Specialization Featured
Follow the navigation below and query the specialization we just configured.
Navigation : My Client Groups » Learning » Learning Catalog » Specializations
- In the search result section you will see number of sections and activities this specialization has.
- Check the featured column and you will notice that currently this specialization is not featured.
While the row is still selected, click on the Add to Featured button to feature this specialization on the Oracle Learning Landing page.
Learn to Explore and Complete Specialization
Login as employee and navigate to oracle learning landing page. As the specialization was marked featured you can easily find it if you click on Browse tab and select Featured option.
- Alternatively, you can click on Search tab and search for the specialization Digital Marketing Specialization.
- As you do for the course, click on the specialization name to expand it.
- Click on Learn More button, which will take you to Specialization Details page. Explore following sections on this page
- Overview
- Details
- Activities : You will see two sections you configured earlier with courses assigned to each section as per earlier configuration.
- Related Learning
- Scroll up and click on Enroll button to enroll. You will get a confirmation message – You’re enrolled in this learning item.
- Scroll below to Completion Status section and you will find all courses attached.
- Click on the Launch button against each course. You will have to enroll for each course separately and complete activities of that course as you do normally for any course.
Once you complete all required courses, specialization will be marked as completed. Once you complete a specialization all courses which you completed within the specialization will also be marked completed and you can see them in your learning history.
Specialization Questions
In this article, we discussed specializations and walked through the step-by-step configuration process. We learned how to associate courses with similar objectives within a specialization or learning path, and we explored the attachment of prerequisites and learning outcomes to specializations. If you have any questions or need further clarification, please don’t hesitate to post them in our Q&A forum.
As food for thought, here’s a question for you:
What will happen if prerequisites are assigned to both a course and a specialization? Which will take precedence?