Documentation & Support Guides

The Udemy Business APIs provide integration functionality in a variety of different methods to provide you with more flexibility in your software development.  This article outlines some of the potential uses for each and recommendations on which to choose.

• Review the Partner Integration use cases that Udemy supports

Table of Contents

• Courses and all learning objects
• Reporting
• Learning paths
• Single sign on (SSO)
• Legacy Courses API
• Recommended best in-class integration

Courses and all learning objects

GraphQL Courses API - Protocol: GraphQL 

• The next generation and evolution to the traditional courses API. In GraphQL, for each course, we allow you to obtain only the course metadata that you specify. Additionally, utilizing the query system of GraphQL, we enable returning courses that fit your specified criteria. 

Please note: To learn more about the general technology behind GraphQL, visit the GraphQL Organization Page.

GraphQL All Learning Objects API - Protocol: GraphQL 

• Udemy has a variety of ways to learn, beyond courses.  We expose all learning objects via API for integration into your system.  This API allows you to obtain courses, labs, or badges.  As with the other GraphQL services, you are able to use queries to obtain just the objects and fields you specify.

Documentation:  You must have access to Udemy Business to obtain GraphQL documentation. View the Developer Portal at this URL: https://{your_subdomain}.udemy.com/dev-portal/api-reference/

Reporting

Reporting API - Protocol: RESTful 

• This API contains all collected user data around the progress, completions, and actions within learning.  You can choose to get all user reporting data or specify a set of users. Due to the quantity of data, there is a delay in user actions to be collected and reported against.

Documentation: Udemy Business API Documentation - RESTful APIs

xAPI - Protocol: xAPI

• Real-time reporting, delivered over a webhook, built following the xAPI EdTech standards.  Udemy enables real-time progress and reporting data to be pushed to you as it happens.  The data contained in these real-time events have less scope when compared to the RESTful reporting API.

Documentation: Udemy Business xAPI Documentation

Learning paths

Learning path API - Protocol: RESTful 

• Udemy allows learners and L&D admins to create learning paths, a collection of several courses, and any other kind of learning object, or even external links. We expose these learning paths via API and return all paths and the items contained within them.

Documentation: Udemy Business API Documentation - RESTful APIs

Single sign on (SSO)

Udemy Business is able to connect to all SAML 2.0 single sign on services, which includes most SSO providers. Additionally, custom SSO integrations are available as long as they follow the SAML 2.0 standard.

Protocol: SAML 2.0+

Documentation: Overview of Udemy Business SSO & Core Features

SCIM User Provisioning APIs - System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) Provisioning allows you to both provision and deprovision user licenses. This system allows your IT teams or custom integrations to automate license management functions.

Protocol: SCIM

Documentation: ​​System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) Provisioning

Legacy Courses API 

Courses API - Protocol: RESTful 

• The courses API follows traditional EdTech norms. It obtains all course metadata for either a single course or all courses.

Please note: This is our legacy courses API and we will not be releasing any new functionality to this API.  All new features will be released in our GraphQL APIs which contain not only courses but also all learning objects.

Documentation: Udemy Business API Documentation - RESTful APIs

Recommended best in-class integration

We know that each Udemy customer and partner is different and may have different needs. For the best in-class integration, we would recommend incorporating the following APIs:

1. Courses and learning objects: Utilize GraphQL API for access to all learning objects

2. Reporting: Utilize REST API for the full scope of data and complement that by using the xAPI for real-time data

3. SSO: Should be utilized with the addition of SCIM to automate both provisioning and deprovisioning users

4. Learning paths: Utilize the Learning Path API to allow L&D admins and program leads to create learning pathways for the end-user.

Udemy Business - Improving lives through learning

Access Udemy’s learning engine and deliver professional development content across your networks and ecosystems through the scale of connectivity solutions and best version Apps, whichengage people with your online platforms and services, and Udemy learning services. 

Udemy Business features thousands of courses created and updated at the speed of market change (i.e., the Learning Engine).  From coding to business skills to personal development and much more, Udemy features high-quality, in-demand online courses that help individuals achieve their professional goals and business outcomes.

With a purpose-built integration to Udemy Business, your Services will offer users Search and Discovery of top rated Udemy Business courses (and learning paths) natively from your Platform, with the ability to launch to a dedicated Udemy Business site for the full course experience.  

Table of contents:

Use Case 1: Content Integration

Key benefits of Content Integrations:

Use Case 2: User Progress & Analytics

Key benefits of Tracking and Analytics:

Integration Timeline & Milestones

High Level Reference Architecture

A Udemy Business integration enables the following two core use cases: 

Use case 1: Content integration

Content integrations extend access to Udemy Business online learning (i.e., courses and learning paths) and amplifies your core online Service offerings.  With Udemy Business Content Integration, Partners can offer Searchable and Discoverable access to Udemy Business online courses and learning paths (structured learning goals) directly on Partner Native Web and/or Native Mobile Apps.  Your users will discover and engage curated Udemy content (or Learning Paths) in a familiar native experience.  Integrated Udemy Business content benefits users (and Partners) by offering a seamless engagement interface with Partner Site and Services.  The Content Integration is enabled via modern Web Services (i.e., APIs) that connect to a powerful online Learning Engine.  Udemy supports Partners through scope and design of the Content Integration Connector, including guidance on build, test, deployment and lifecycle management of the Connector in support of Partners native Web (or Mobile) App experience. 

Key benefits:

• Access the latest online learning content for professional and personal development directly from your Web and native mobile Apps
• Increase engagement with current content through seamless automatic syncing
• Navigate content easily with an intuitive search and discovery experience
• Monitor learning progress near real-time and support employee development
• Easy and secure access through single sign on (SSO) services
• Take learning into your Native Mobile and Mobile App for on on-the-go learning experience

Use case 2: User progress & analytics

Gain insight into your users learning needs by integrating Udemy Business learner data. By incorporating user course engagement, progress and completions into your analytics, you can continuously personalize and develop guided experiences acknowledging individual needs and key concepts (e.g., purpose-built learning paths).  Learning Analytics leverages a rich data set of user engagement signals, enabling our Partners to build composite learning patterns of their users across unique data sets to continuously improve user learning experience. 

Key benefits:

• Develop composite learning analytics to uncover key signals in the learning needs of your users
• Use learning insights to tailor Udemy Business content to your audience
• Amplify your Service Offerings with machine intilligence to identify the unique  needs and interests of your Users
• Continuously measure and develop a comprehensive learning experience that promotes a holistic learning experience and bundled Service

Built with Udemy Business Services and powerful Udemy Learning Engine, explore the Udemy Partner ecosystem 

Integration timeline & milestones

On average, we see Partners spend 4 weeks in the design, development and deployment of an API-based Connector in support of the above use cases.  Udemy Business dedicates a Partner Lead and Solution Engineer through the Connector development project to guide and advise Partners on best practices to optimize an integration with Udemy APIs.  

High level reference architecture

The basic components of the Integration are depicted below.  The data synchronization is powered by the Udemy Business APIs, and orchestrated by the Partner-built Connector.  Search and Discovery of Udemy courses and learning paths are enabled via the Connector directly on Partner native Web and Mobile Apps.  

With optional single sign-on, users are seamlessly connected to a Udemy Business site directly from Partners  learning platform. 

A quick-start guide for your integration

We want your integration to go live quickly, so we can both open up new markets for our mutual-customers. 

Udemy Business Integrations Page, pictured below

Prerequisite steps

• Partnership application submitted and approved
• Udemy provisions sandbox environment for Udemy Business
• Udemy admin invites additional users

If any of these items are missing, please refer to the (Getting Started Guide) to complete them first

Partner integration use cases: If you would like to review the high level use-cases that these integration steps support.  If not, let's move into development.

Development steps

Our recommended best practice is to mitigate technical risk, by connecting to all Udemy APIs first, and then begin software development after all endpoints are confirmed working.

• Connect to Courses API, return at least 10 courses
• Connect to Course API, return 1 course
• Log into your Udemy Business site and enroll in a course, watch a lecture for at least 1 minute (you can increase the speed of playback)
• Connect to Reporting API (user-activity)
• Connect to Reporting API (user-course-activity)
• Connect to Reporting API (learning-activity-attempt)

Configurations

With the majority of the APIs all working, you can move to configuration steps.

• Single Sign On (SSO) configuration is done directly inside the your Udemy Business Settings page.  You will need to have administrator credentials to access these settings.  Setup out-of-the-box SSO with one of our many providers.  Or create a custom connection with SAML 2.0.  (link to SSO documentation)
• Go through the rest of the settings within the [Udemy Business: Manage: Settings] and customize to your liking

Enhancements

Learning Paths - Allows users to create a curriculum containing a large variety of learning resources, with a start and end to guide the learner.

• Log into your Udemy Business site and create a Learning Path (documentation), open a course and add that course to the learning path you just created
• Connect to the Learning Path API; return the learning path you created
• Connect to Reporting API (learning-path-activity)

Real-time reporting via Webhook

• Setup xAPI - Udemy’s webhook for reporting data of the learner’s progress and completion events (documentation).  You will add parameters into the Udemy admin settings page.
• Once setup, watch a short lecture at maximum playback speed and see if you received the progress data.

Query or search course data - Using Udemy’s GraphQL API, we allow queries to our course catalog, returning only the data you need for that specific use case.  Additionally, we also provide a Search API that takes your input and filters and returns relevant course results.

• Obtain GraphQL API credentials
• Call GraphQL function GetAuthToken()
• Use the [authToken] to call the Courses API
• Call the CourseSearch API

Note: A Udemy Business login is required to access GraphQL Documentation. The applicable URL features the subdomain for your organization's Udemy account followed by .udemy.com/dev-portal/api-reference/. 

For example:

https://{your_subdomain}.udemy.com/dev-portal/api-reference/.

Core software development

With all of the Udemy credentials working, all APIs connected to, and additional configurations setup, the technical risk has been removed.  Most partners will next move to planning or head right into development.  One way to get started is to take a list of user stories or supported use-cases and map the Udemy APIs needed for each use-case.  Best of luck to your software engineering from here!  

Error handling, exceptions, and best practices

Harden your software by incorporating error handling, exceptions, and edge-cases.  To handle unexpected IT issues, we have a variety of error-handling recommendations.  

• Log error responses returned by APIs
• Add retry logic to API calls
• Handle rate limits by using page_size best practices
• Implement other best practices contained in the document

For additional support, feedback, or upon completion of your new integration, please contact us at partnersupport@udemy.com.  We are looking forward to opening new markets together with our new mutual functionality.

Udemy Business technology partners leverage Platform APIs to enable automatic syncing of the UB content collection and learner activity data into the partner platform. Integrations are available for mutual customers only. Ready to start building an integration with Udemy Business? Find documentation below to help you get started.

• Summary of available APIs
•  Udemy Business Web APIs: Use Cases and Best Practices
• Partner Integration Use Cases
• Integration Steps for Techonology Partners

With Udemy Business Web APIs (REST/GraphQL/xAPI), easily connect your admin tools, LMS platform, and HR suites with Udemy's catalog of courses (via metadata), and learner engagement data.

Empower workplace learning through:

• Automated user data syncing between Udemy Business and your employee directory (e.g., Okta, Azure)
• Embed search, discovery, and launch of Udemy Business courses and course lectures in your HR systems.
• Pull real-time course engagement analytics for your org straight from your apps

Please note that the guide referenced and linked below is published in the Udemy Business Help Center.

• Learn more: Udemy Business Web APIs: Use Cases and Best Practices