COMPASS Direct Certification Enrollment Upload

Working with .CSV (Comma Separated Value) files

When uploading enrollment data to COMPASS, there are strict data and file formatting requirements that must be followed. This document is intended to provide assistance to COMPASS users who may be having difficulty with the technical aspects of this upload process.

There are three data elements that are required in the enrollment upload:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Date of Birth (DOB)Note: DOB must be formatted with a twodigit month, two digit day, and four digit year.

► Note: To correctly format the DOB field

1)Highlight the DOB column on the spreadsheet.

2)Click on Format and select Cells.

3)On the Number tab click on Custom from the category list.

4)Scroll through the list until you find the format that shows m/d/yyyy and click it once so the format displays in the Type area.

5)Place your cursor in the type area and add an additional M and an additional D so the formatting looks like this mm/dd/yyyy.

6)Click the Ok button.

7)Save your formatting changes.

Upon uploading the data to the COMPASS web site, a validation scan will check for:

  • File Format – Must be .csv.
  • File Size – Must be less than 20 MB.

► Note: If any errors occur regarding “file format” or “file size”, an “Invalid File” window will appear and the “Enrollment Upload”processing will not begin.

Additionally, the following checks will also be performed when a file is uploaded:

  • Virus Scan – The enrollment data file will also be scanned for viruses before processing.
  • Record Errors – Improper field formatting, missing required fields, corrupt data,incorrect record length or field length, etc. will also cause an error.

► Note: For further file guidelines, please review the training manual section pertaining to the “Enrollment Upload Template."

If you should encounter errors in the formatting of the file or the data, and need to edit the CSV file, there are two options for modifying the file. Each option is discussed in detail below.

1. Microsoft Excel

The Microsoft Windows operating system automatically associates a file with a CSV extension with Microsoft Excel; therefore, when opening the file, it will be openedin Excel by default. While working with a CSV file using Microsoft Excel,there are two pop-up windows that you will receive. These two windows are explained below.

The first window is an information window explaining that there are Excel features in the file that are not compatible with the CSV form (see screen print below). Whenmodifying a CSV file using Microsoft Excel, you will receive this information window, as shown below,when you save the changes or when you close the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet:

If you made changes to the file and want to save them, click on the Yes button (circled in red above). When you click on the Yes button, the information window will close, and the CSV file will remain open. If you are finished working with the CSV file and need to close it, click on the button to close the spreadsheet,which is located in the upper right corner of the Excel window .

When you click on the close button for the CSV worksheet you will receive the Microsoft Excel alert windowshown below:

Click on the Yes button to save your changes. The information windowshown previouslywill appear again, even if you have made no other changes to the file. Click the Yes button on the information window and the window will close and then the file will close.

Note: If you click on the button to close Microsoft Excel (the red button with the white X shown in the above screen print), you will see the alert window shown above, which prompts you to save the changes made to your CSV file. If you click on the Cancel button, the window will close and you can now click on the close button for the spreadsheet and continue to follow the directions provided above.

2. Microsoft Notepad or Microsoft WordPad

Another option to view and modify your CSV (Comma Separated Value) file is to use Microsoft Notepad or Microsoft WordPad.

To view your file using Notepad or WordPad, position your mouse pointer over the CSV file on your desktop, then click on the right mouse button. When you click with the right mouse button, you will receive a menu (shown in the picture below), you will select the Open With option from that menu. A print screen is provided below for your reference.

Select the ‘Open With’ option and another window will appear. From this window select either Notepad or WordPad.

The file will now open in text format. You can make any changes necessary and save the file when you are done. You will not receive any Microsoft Excel information windows when working with Notepad or WordPad.

Below is a sample of a correctly formatted upload using Notepad to view the file.

1/23/09