diff --git a/src/welearnbot/utils.py b/src/welearnbot/utils.py
index 3fe8669..03ff9af 100644
--- a/src/welearnbot/utils.py
+++ b/src/welearnbot/utils.py
@@ -111,6 +111,7 @@ def download_resource(
 ) -> Tuple[str, str]:
     """Helper function to retrieve a file/resource from the server"""
     filename = resource["filename"]
+    subfolders = [subfolder.strip() for subfolder in subfolders]
     course_dir = os.path.join(prefix, course, *subfolders)
     fileurl = resource["fileurl"]
     _, extension = os.path.splitext(filename)