Use this article to export items from a Cirrus collection to Excel or IMS QTI v2.1. Exports are useful for backups, sharing content between tenants, or moving items into another platform.
For richer integrations, consider the Cirrus API instead of file-based export.
How to export
- Open the source collection.
- Tick the items you want to export.
- Select Export.
Cirrus downloads a .zip containing the Excel or QTI file.
- Up to 100 items per export.
- Only items whose type supports the chosen export format are included; mixed selections silently drop unsupported types.
Excel export
Supported item types:
- Multiple choice
- Multiple response
- Either or
- Order
- Short answer
- Essay
- Section
Editing the exported file in Excel is fine for content changes, but do not change the question type column. Importing the file back into Cirrus with a changed type breaks the item.
Example: exporting a Fill in the blank item, switching it to Select from list in Excel, and re-importing will not work. Keep the item type, or duplicate the item and rebuild it as the new type inside Cirrus.
IMS QTI v2.1 export
QTI (IMS Question and Test Interoperability) is a portable format for sharing question sets across assessment platforms. Supported item types:
- Multiple choice
- Multiple response
- Either or
- Select from list
- Fill in the blank
- Short answer
- Essay
- Numeric
- Match
- Order
Fixed-form item export
You can export an Excel of items from a Fixed form, the exact set of items that delivered to a specific cohort. Useful when you need a record of what each candidate actually saw, not just the pool the form drew from.
Topics column in collection Excel export
The collection-level Excel export includes a Topics column. Topics attached to each item appear in their own column, alongside learning objectives and taxonomies.
Who can export
The Export action is part of the collection role. Configured under Admin > Roles > Collection.
Exporting items with media elements
Inline images and inline audio are included in the export. Larger media attached via Add resource or Add media file are referenced by URL in the export rather than embedded. To preserve them across a tenant boundary, download the media files separately and re-upload them on the target tenant before importing.