Academic year setup

School Admin

This page gives the order to set up academics: first for a brand-new institution, then again at the start of each new academic year. Each step depends on the ones before it. If you skip a step, the later screens show empty lists or greyed-out buttons, often without saying why. Each stage below explains why it comes where it does and what you will see if it's missing.

TIP

The Setup Checklist (Institution Setup → Setup Checklist) links to these screens, but it doesn't track progress. Use this page to check each stage yourself.

The order at a glance

The bell schedule (4) and leave types (11) don't depend on a session. You can do them any time.

Part 1: setting up a new institution

1. Check the levels

Institution Setup → Institution Structure, Levels card.

• Name each level, for example Zone / Branch / Standard / Division, or Course / Batch for a coaching institute.
• Set what each level Behaves as. Then click Save levels.
• Why first: every unit you create must match a level. The Behaves as setting is locked once any unit exists at that level. If you get it wrong later, you have to delete units to fix it.
• If skipped: changing a type later fails with "Units already sit at that level. Move or remove them before changing it."

See Institution structure.

2. Build units down to the bottom level

On the Units card, add the top unit, then use the + button on each row to add the units below it, until every branch of the tree reaches the bottom level. For example: Main Campus → Grade 8 → 8-A.

• Why: classes live only at the bottom level. Teaching assignments, the timetable, attendance and class posts all attach to divisions. Students are placed there too, and the unit codes are what bulk import uses.
• If skipped:
  • The Units card warns "Required: no division yet."
  • The timetable says No division selected or keeps asking Which division?.
  • The Division list in teaching assignments is empty.

3. Make sure a session is current

Institution Setup → Academic Sessions. One session is normally created during setup. Check its name and dates, and that it has the Current badge.

• Why before subjects: subjects, teaching assignments, groups, student placements, fees and exams all belong to a session. They are always saved into the current one.
• If skipped:
  • Screens show "This institution has no current academic session yet."
  • The timetable shows No academic session yet.
  • Teachers see no classes at all.

See Academic sessions.

4. Add the bell schedule

Institution Setup → Bell Schedule. Add every period in order, with breaks unticked from Lectures can be scheduled in this period.

• Why: periods are the rows of every timetable. There is one bell schedule for the whole institution, and it doesn't depend on the session. Periods can't be edited, so get the times right first.
• If skipped: the timetable shows No bell schedule yet, and the one-off lecture Period list is empty.

See Bell schedule.

5. Add subjects

Institution Setup → Subjects, then Add subject.

• Why before assignments: a teaching assignment is teacher + subject + division, so the subject must exist first. Subjects can't be edited or deleted, so check the spelling.
• If skipped: on Teaching Assignments, Assign a teacher is greyed out, and the page says "Add subjects first — an assignment ties a teacher to a subject in a division."

See Subjects.

6. Rooms and student groups (optional)

• Rooms can be added any time. You need them only if the timetable should stop two classes booking the same room.
• Student groups need a current session and a unit. Their members must be students already placed in that unit, so fill membership after step 9.
• If skipped: the schedule dialog simply has no Room or Who sits it field. Electives and lab batches can't share a period.

See Rooms and student groups.

7. Give teachers access

Teachers & Staff → Teachers → Add teacher. Give each teacher an account with a teaching role.

• Why before assignments: the teacher must have an account before they can be chosen in the Teacher list.
• If skipped: the person doesn't appear in the Teacher list.

See Add a teacher.

8. Add teaching assignments

Academics → Teaching Assignments (or step 3 of Add teacher). For each teacher, choose their subjects and a division. Assignments can't stop at a campus or standard.

• Why before the timetable: a lecture can only be scheduled for a teacher, subject and division that have an assignment. The assignment is also what lets a teacher see that division's students and attendance.
• If skipped:
  • The schedule dialog says "Nobody is assigned to teach this division yet."
  • The teacher's top-bar picker is empty and they see no students.
• There is no remove button for an assignment in the app, so double-check before saving.

See Teaching assignments.

9. Place students in divisions

Add students (one by one, by bulk import, or through admissions) and place each one in a division for the current session.

• Why: a student's timetable, attendance and fees follow their placement. Group membership needs it too.
• If skipped:
  • Students have an empty My Timetable.
  • The group members dialog says "Nobody is enrolled here yet".
  • Placing a student with no current session fails with "This institution has no current academic session yet."
  • Bulk import with no current session creates the students but silently leaves them unplaced.

WARNING

The placement list offers every unit, not only divisions. Always choose a division; students placed on a standard or campus don't appear in class registers.

See Add a student, Bulk import and Placement and promotion.

10. Build the timetable

Academics → Class Timetable. Pick a division in the top bar and click + in a cell to add each lecture.

• Why last: a lecture needs a division (2), a current session (3), a period (4), and a teaching assignment (5, 7, 8). Groups and rooms (6) are optional.
• If skipped: My Schedule and My Timetable stay empty, and staff leave shows no affected lectures.

See Class timetable.

11. Add leave types

Institution Setup → Leave Types. You can do this any time; it doesn't depend on a session.

• If skipped: on My Leave, Apply for leave is greyed out with "Your institution hasn't set up any leave types yet…".

See Staff leave.

Part 2: starting the next academic year

Carries over automatically: levels, units, bell schedule, rooms, leave types, people and their accounts.

Starts empty in every new session: subjects, teaching assignments, student groups, student placements, timetable, fee setup. There is no copy-from-last-year option.

1. Adjust the structure if needed. Add new divisions (for example 8-C) before promoting anyone into them. Deactivate units you no longer use.
2. Add the new session in Academic Sessions, leaving Make this the current session unticked. Why: ticking it switches the whole institution immediately, and this term's timetable, subjects and assignments disappear from every screen.
3. Promote students into the new session while the old one is still current. The Promote dialog only offers sessions that start after the current one. If skipped: it says "There is no later academic year to promote into…". See Year-end promotion.
4. Make the new session current on the first day of the new year: Make current on its row.
   • Until you add teaching assignments for it (step 6), teachers see no classes.
   • Nothing from the old session is deleted. Make current on the old session brings it back.
5. Add subjects for the new session. Subjects only go into the current session.
6. Add teaching assignments again for every teacher.
7. Create student groups and add their members, if you use them.
8. Build each division's timetable.
9. Set up fees, exams and anything else that belongs to a session.

Partially implemented

The Class Timetable has a Session picker for preparing next year's grid in advance. But subjects and teaching assignments can only be added to the current session, so next year's grid has nothing to schedule until you switch. Plan a short changeover window (steps 4 to 8) when teachers will see empty schedules.

Quick check before you go live

Check	Where
Every campus and standard has divisions under it, and there is no "Required" warning	Institution Structure
One session has the Current badge, with the right dates	Academic Sessions
Periods and breaks are listed in the right order	Bell Schedule
Subjects are listed with correct names	Subjects
Every teacher has assignments in each of their divisions	Teaching Assignments
Students show a division on the roster	Students
Each division's grid is filled	Class Timetable
A teacher sees their week	Sign in as the teacher: My Schedule
At least one leave type exists	Leave Types

Related

• Institution structure
• Academic sessions
• Class timetable
• Teacher onboarding
• Student admission
• Year-end promotion