How do I configure Breakout Rooms in Zoom?

This article explains Zoom Breakout Room basics.
 

Overview

  • Breakout rooms allow hosts to partition their class into smaller subsections or collaboration groups
  • These breakout rooms are a great way for hosts to allow for smaller discussions or working groups during a Zoom Meeting
  • Users joined into the Zoom meeting from the Zoom Desktop Client, Zoom Mobile App, or H.323/SIP devices can participate in breakout rooms.
  • Breakout room participants have full audio, video and screen share capabilities

Breakout room icon highlighted within in-meeting control bar. Icon located to the left of Closed Captioning and to the right of Reactions.

Limitations

  • Up to 100 breakout rooms can be created in a single meeting
  • Max 200 total participants across all breakout rooms
  • Must use the Zoom Desktop Client to manage breakout rooms
  • Users joined via the web client and Zoom Rooms are unable to join Breakout Rooms, but the main room can be used as an alternative session for these users.

Recording

  • Cloud Recording: If the meeting is being cloud recorded, it will only record the main room, regardless of what room the meeting host is in.
  • Local Recording: If local recording is being used, it will record the room the participant who is recording is in. Multiple participants can record locally. 

Enabling

Check out Zoom support for more information about how to enable breakout rooms for personal use. 

NOTE: Breakout rooms are enabled by default for all UIC Zoom accounts.

 

Assigning Participants Breakout Rooms

In meeting: Randomly (Automatically)

  1. During a meeting, click the "Breakout Room" button in the Meeting controls bar.
  2. Select automatically, then click create rooms at the bottom of the pop up.  This will start the breakout rooms and randomly assign participants, equally, to the number of rooms you selected. 

Breakout room pop up. Automatically clicked

In-Meeting: Manually

  1. During a meeting, click the "Breakout Room" button in the Meeting controls bar.
    Breakout room icon highlighted within in-meeting control bar. Icon located to the left of Closed Captioning and to the right of Reactions.
  2. Select the number of rooms you want and then click "manually" as shown below. The click create room.
    Breakout room pop up. Manually assign clicked
  3. A new window will pop up.  Select the assign button to the right of the individual breakout room.  Place participants into rooms as you see fit.
    Breakout rooms manually assigned.
  4. After you have assigned the rooms to your liking click Open All Rooms to start the rooms.
    Breakout rooms manually assigned complete

Pre-assigning Participants:

  • You can only pre-assign users that have a Zoom account
    • if you wish to pre-assign users using the web portal, they must be U of I Zoom account members
    • you can pre-assign non U of I Zoom account members using a csv file

Pre-assign using Web Portal

  1. Sign in to uic.zoom.us
  2. Click Meetings and schedule a meeting
    Zoom profile menu bar with meetings highlighted.
    Schedule a New Meeting icon.
    • Make sure to enable Join Before Host
       
  3. In the settings pane for the new meeting, scroll down until you find the Meeting Options.  First check the box "Breakout Room pre-assign", highlighted by the arrow and then click "+ Create Rooms" highlighted by the box below.  
    Meeting options with Breakout Room pre-assign checked. Create rooms button located right below Breakout Room pre-assign is highlighted.
  4. Click the "+" symbol to the left of "Rooms" to begin adding breakout rooms to your meeting.  Once you have enough rooms, you can select the room on the left side of the window, then a search bar labeled "Add participants" will appear on the right. Search for the names of the users you want to add.  IMPORTANT: These users must be U of I Zoom account holder to add to breakout rooms using the "+ Create Rooms" button. If you would like to add users who are external to U of I Zoom do so using the Import from CSV option.
    Breakout room pre-assignment using web portal
  5. From this screen you can completely delete breakout rooms by selecting the room on the left column and clicking the trash can icon that appears to the right.  This icon is highlighted using a red box in the image below.  Or if you need to move any participant to a different room, hover over that participant's name in the listing on the right and select "Move to" highlighted below using the red arrow.  If you would like to completely remove the participant from all breakout rooms select "Remove" highlighted using a blue arrow in the image below.
    Breakout room pre-assignment using web portal
  6. Then click save.  
  7. Now during the meeting, when you select "breakout rooms" you will see this pre-assignment listing.

Pre-assign using CSV

  1. Sign in to uic.zoom.us
  2. Download the Zoom Breakout CSV Template file.  Fill it out according to the format specified in the document.
  3. Click the Meetings tab on the upper left side of the screen:
    Zoom profile menu bar with meetings highlighted.
  4. Click "schedule a new meeting"
    Schedule a New Meeting icon.
  5. In the settings pane for the new meeting, scroll down until you find the Meeting Options.  First check the box "Breakout Room pre-assign", highlighted by the arrow and then click "Import CSV" highlighted by the box below.  
    Meeting options with Breakout Room pre-assign checked. Import from CSV below Breakout Room pre-assign is highlighted.
  6. Click and drag your formatted CSV file from step 2 into the grey box shown below:
    Breakout room pre-assignment using CSV
  7. Check that everyone was placed into the rooms accordingly.  From this screen you can completely delete breakout rooms by selecting the room on the left column and clicking the trash can icon that appears to the right.  This icon is highlighted using a red box in the image below.  Or if you need to move any participant to a different room, hover over that participant's name in the listing on the right and select "Move to" highlighted below using the red arrow.  If you would like to completely remove the participant from all breakout rooms select "Remove" highlighted using a blue arrow in the image below.
    Breakout room pre-assignment using csv
  8. Click Save when finished.
  9. Now during the meeting, when you select "breakout rooms" you will see this pre-assignment listing.

Starting a meeting with your pre-assigned breakout rooms:

  1. Start a meeting after pre-assigning participants using one of the methods above
  2. Click the breakout rooms in the meeting controls to access the breakout rooms you created
    Breakout room icon highlighted within in-meeting control bar. Icon located to the left of Closed Captioning and to the right of Reactions.
    • Note: 
      • If a participant joins before you (the host), they will be automatically assigned to the breakout room you specified when scheduling the meeting. 
      • If a participant joins after you (the host), they will not be automatically assigned to the breakout room you specified when scheduling the meeting. 
      • Revert to pre-assigned breakout rooms to assign participants to their pre-assigned breakout rooms.
  3. Click "Open All Rooms" to start the breakout rooms
    Open All Pre-assigned rooms
    • Note: 
      • If a participant joins after you started the breakout rooms, they won't be pre-assigned to the breakout room you specified when scheduling the meeting.
      • If a participant is in their pre-assigned breakout room and they leave the meeting and rejoin, they won't rejoin their pre-assigned breakout room.
      • You can manually assign participants using the in-meeting breakout room controls, or revert to pre-assigned breakout rooms.

 

 

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