Quick Start: From Zero to Your First Simulation

A step-by-step walkthrough to create, configure, test, and distribute your first CESURA simulation in under 30 minutes.

Step 1: Log In and Explore the Library

Navigate to app.cesura.ai and log in with your credentials. You will land on the Library page, which serves as your central hub for all simulation activity. Here you'll see simulation cards displaying your existing simulations, along with two ways to get started: the New Simulation button, which opens the AI builder, and New Simulation (Manual) in the ⋮ menu next to it, for building from a blank editor. The Library is where you'll manage, test, and monitor all your educational simulations.

Step 2: Create Your Simulation with Professor CESURA

Click New Simulation to open Professor CESURA, an AI assistant that builds the simulation with you through conversation. This is the recommended path for all users, regardless of technical experience.

Describe your simulation idea, and Professor CESURA works through it one part at a time: the persona (who the learner will interact with), the scenario (the situation or challenge), learning goals (what participants should gain), and feedback criteria (how you'll evaluate their performance). For each part it shows a draft you can Approve, edit in place, or change by replying. When you're ready, click Create simulation, choose the language the simulation is written in, and Professor CESURA builds it — or click Create simulation earlier to let it complete the remaining parts on its own. See Create a simulation with AI for the full walkthrough.

Step 3: Review and Fine-Tune in the Editor

Once Professor CESURA finishes, your simulation opens in the Editor, where you can review and refine every detail. The editor's sidebar is organized into five key sections:

General contains your simulation's basic metadata and the Access & Privacy controls for managing who can view and edit your work.

Simulation Display houses Delivery Mode (text chat, voice call, or the learner's choice), Activity steps (everything the learner goes through before and after the conversation, in order), the Simulation Chat interface, the Realtime Guide, the Debrief, Report Display (what feedback learners receive), Feedback Chat Intro, and PDF Export.

Simulation Instructions is where you configure the core simulation logic: the Persona (character name, age, background, and personality traits), the Scenario (the narrative or challenge), the Theory (educational frameworks), and supporting Documents (reference files that give the AI extra context during the simulation).

Feedback Instructions controls how the simulation evaluates learner performance, including the Feedback Report criteria and the Feedback Chat, the conversation in which learners discuss their feedback with an evaluator.

Technical Definition holds platform settings such as the AI model, and is visible to system administrators only.

Review the key sections—especially Persona, Scenario, and Feedback Report—and make any adjustments to align with your educational goals. When satisfied, click Save to preserve your changes.

Step 4: Test Your Simulation

Return to the Library and locate your simulation card. Open the card's ⋮ menu and choose Create Testing Space to spin up an automated testing environment. (In the editor, the Testing Space button in the toolbar does the same.)

The Testing Space runs your simulation with an intelligent test bot that mimics learner behavior. Select a bot personality (such as Authentic, Professional, or Hostile) and specify the number of conversation turns you want to simulate. Run the test and observe the bot's interactions with your simulation. This reveals whether your scenario plays out as intended, whether feedback triggers correctly, and whether the learning experience flows smoothly.

Review the bot's conversation and responses. If you notice issues or want to refine the experience, return to the editor, make adjustments, and run another test. Iterate until you're confident your simulation works well.

Step 5: Set Up Access & Privacy (Optional but Recommended)

Open your simulation in the editor and navigate to the Access & Privacy tab to configure sharing and visibility settings.

The Global Template switch, which makes a simulation discoverable and usable by all users across all organizations in the CESURA platform, is shown to system administrators only.

Under Manage Access, you can control precisely who can view and edit your simulation. Add specific users from your organization and assign appropriate permissions. This allows you to collaborate with colleagues while protecting your intellectual property.

Enable Advanced Privacy if you want to control what instructors and learners see in reports. When activated, instructors view only aggregate scores and summary metrics, while learners see their full detailed report and complete chat history within 24 hours of completing the simulation.

Step 6: Create a Workspace and Add Your Simulation

Navigate to Spaces in the sidebar to access your workspace management area. Click Create Space to establish a new container for organizing your simulations and managing participant access.

Enter a descriptive Name and Description for your workspace. The title should reflect the course, training program, or educational context. Once created, add your simulation to the workspace so it's available to the intended audience.

Inside your workspace, click the Access & invitations tab to configure distribution. Here you can generate a shareable workspace link that you'll distribute to participants.

Share the workspace link via your preferred channel: paste it into an email message, embed it in your learning management system (LMS), or share it directly via messaging. Participants who open the link see your simulation card and can click to begin. Whether they must sign in depends on the access level you choose: by default participants sign in to a Cesura account (or create one), while Anonymous (no sign-in) lets anyone with the link take part without an account.

Step 8: Monitor Results

Once participants start running your simulation, you can track their progress and outcomes. Inside your workspace, click Results on the simulation's card and open the Participants tab to see every participant's runs. For each run, you'll see the current status (Completed, Abandoned, or In Progress), participant scores, and duration (how long the simulation took).

Inside your workspace, use the three-dot menu next to a simulation card and select Export Data to download results in Excel format. CESURA offers three export formats to match different analytical needs:

Simple Table presents one row per submission with human-readable text, making it ideal for quick review, instructor grading, or sharing results with stakeholders unfamiliar with data analysis.

Coded Forms encodes responses and scores numerically, enabling statistical analysis and quantitative research at scale.

Full Report exports a multi-sheet Excel workbook containing complete conversations, detailed evaluations, scoring rubrics, and all supporting data—perfect for comprehensive review, detailed feedback preparation, or archiving.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to create a simulation? With Professor CESURA, you can build and configure a complete simulation in under 30 minutes. The AI assistant handles all the technical complexity, so you focus only on the educational content and learning goals.

Can I edit my simulation after publishing it to participants? Yes, absolutely. You can edit your simulation at any time—before, during, or after participants run it. Changes are applied to future runs. Existing submissions and historical data remain unchanged, so your results stay intact.

How do I know if my simulation is working well? Use the automated test bot in the Testing Space to run your simulation and observe how it behaves. The test bot can mimic different learner behaviors and personalities, revealing whether your scenario flows naturally, whether feedback is appropriate, and whether the learning experience achieves your goals.

What if I need to share my simulation with another organization? Share a space with them: add the simulation to a space and send its link, choosing an access level that fits (see Step 7). Your simulation stays under your control, and the space's results stay with you. Making a simulation available to every organization (Global Template) is reserved for system administrators.

Do I need technical knowledge to create and deploy a simulation? No. Professor CESURA is designed for educators, subject-matter experts, and instructors—no coding or technical background required. The AI assistant builds all the infrastructure and configuration automatically, so you can focus entirely on content and pedagogy.

CESURA AI — User Guide | v1.0