Engagement is widely recognised as being essential for successfully achieving your full potential when studying. Attending your lectures, seminars and workshops, having regular supervisory meetings with your supervisory team, or practical training, provides you with opportunities to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to successfully achieve the outcomes of your programme.
We are keen to support you to maximise your potential, and by monitoring attendance we can identify patterns and provide support with any issues that may be affecting your ability to attend so that you can stay on track.
Where circumstances are such that you are unable to continue studying, we can provide early intervention support and explore appropriate options with you.
The University has a Student Attendance Policy which aims to:
- improve the engagement and attendance of all students
- ensure a proactive approach to providing support when you need it
- enable you to maximise your full potential, increasing success and achievement
Attendance - what do we ask of you?
You are expected to engage according to the requirement of your programme of study:
- Students on Taught programmes – You are expected to attend all timetabled face-to-face teaching sessions along with seminars, workshops and tutorials.
- Students on Taught Postgraduate programmes at Project/Dissertation Stage – You are expected to have fortnightly meetings with your supervisor, which are evidenced by the completion of an online form every 2 weeks.
- Students on Postgraduate Research programmes – You are expected to maintain regular contact with your supervisory team every month and record this via the PULSE system.
- Students on Degree Apprenticeship programmes – You are expected to attend all timetabled sessions, along with all off-the-job training.
- Students on Distance Learning programmes – You are expected to engage with your studies in line with the expectations of your individual programme of study.
- Students on Work placement – You are expected to maintain regular contact with your placement tutor or Faculty placement team on a 2-week basis.
- Students on Clinical/Professional placement – You are expected to attend all placement sessions agreed with your placement setting in keeping with your programme requirements.
- International Students (on a study visa)- In addition to the above, your attendance and engagement will also be monitored in line with visa sponsorship regulations.
All students are expected to respond to communication regarding your engagement.
Please check your attendance records and your University of Greenwich email account regularly.
How we monitor attendance
We will measure your attendance according to your programme of study – these are called 'Contact Points'.
- Students on Taught programmes – Attendance will be recorded across a range of in-person teaching sessions, including lectures, workshops, lab/studio sessions etc. Attendance will be recorded in all seminars/tutorials. An entire week with no attendance at any module will be considered as a missed contact point.
- Students on Taught Postgraduate programmes at Project/Dissertation Stage – Each supervisory meeting in person or online is considered as a point of contact. You are expected to engage with your supervisor on a fortnightly basis and record this by completing an online form. Failure to engage fortnightly, or to complete the form, will be considered as a missed contact point
- Students on Postgraduate Research programmes – Each supervisory meeting in person or online is a point of contact. You are expected to attend a supervisory team meeting on a monthly basis. You will be expected to record a minimum of one supervisory meeting per month on the PULSE system. An entire calendar month without a point of contact will normally be considered as a missed contact.
- Students on Degree Apprenticeship programmes – Attendance with university-based study days will be monitored in accordance with Taught programme engagement monitoring. Degree Apprenticeship students are also required to have a minimum of 85% attendance with timetabled sessions. Engagement is also monitored through off-the-job (OTJ) training, which includes teaching of theory, practical training such as shadowing, mentoring, industry visits and participation in competitions along with learning support and time spent writing assessments. Apprentices are expected to record non-timetabled sessions in their OTJ Moodle and these are reviewed at tripartite reviews.
- Students on Distance Learning programmes – Your engagement will be determined and monitored by the programme team based on the structure of your programme.
- Students on Work placement – Where a taught student is undertaking a work placement, regular contact with the placement tutor or Faculty placement team will serve as evidence of ongoing attendance and engagement. Such contact is usually expected to take place on a fortnightly basis. No contact within a 2-week period will normally be considered as a missed contact point.
- Students on Clinical/Professional placement – Where a student is attending a clinical or other professional placement (e.g. nursing, social work, teaching) in order to satisfy a PSRB professional practice requirement, attendance will be monitored on a weekly basis (in accordance with published programme regulations).
Missed Contact Points
A missed contact point will normally trigger the attendance escalation process. More information on this is available in our article: Meet the Retention Team.
Escalations
The attendance policy is there to identify low levels of attendance and ensure you have access to support. We know receiving an escalation may cause concern, but the Retention team is here to help. There is lots of support available at each escalation stage, so we encourage you to engage in the process and respond to communications in a timely manner.
Persistent non-attendance may result in withdrawal from your studies. We hope to avoid this action and help you get back on track at the earliest opportunity, or consider support options with you, such as interruption, where applicable.
Appeals against a withdrawal decision
You have the right to appeal a decision relating to a withdrawal made on attendance grounds. Your appeal must be submitted within 14 calendar days of the date of the email informing you of the withdrawal.
You will need to set out the reasons why you believe that the withdrawal was not justified with evidence, where applicable
And provide a compelling reason why the information and evidence on which you are basing your appeal, could not have been made available before the decision to withdraw you was reached.
For full details of how to submit an appeal and the procedure for consideration of your appeal, please refer to Section 7 of the Student Attendance Policy.
For further support, you can contact the GSU Advice Service here.
Appeals are processed by the Academic Registry. Please contact engagementappeals@gre.ac.uk with any questions.
Support during your studies
Academic Support
If you believe your absence might affect your academic performance, you should read our guidance on Extenuating Circumstances in case you need to make a claim.
You can also contact your Faculty Support Adviser to discuss any impact on your studies.
Wellbeing Support
If you need personal support at any time, the University’s support services include a Wellbeing team, a Counselling service, and Spectrum Life (with Spectrum Life available to students 365 days a year, 24 hours a day).
Interrupting your Studies
In some cases, where attendance may be impacted for a long period of time or circumstances cause ongoing academic impact, you may decide to request to interrupt your studies. Students will normally interrupt from the current academic year (which normally runs from Sept- July), so that you can return the following September to re-start your current academic stage.
Example -If you interrupt your second year of studies, you will return as a second-year student next September. This break from your studies will hopefully help address circumstances and you can return with additional support in place. Please note, interruption will delay graduation.
The Retention Team can guide you through the application process and support your return, but please seek academic advice from your Faculty and any financial advice, where applicable, before applying.
Reporting Absence
We recognise that occasionally attendance may not be possible due to external factors. If you do need to notify the University of an absence, you should use the appropriate procedure.
Absence up to 3 calendar days= Click here, or access the link via your Student Portal - My Learning - Notify staff of non-attendance.
Absence of 3 or more calendar days= Submit an Authorised Absence here.
Frequent absence reporting and/or absences for long periods may result in additional support being triggered, including the need to consider interruption.
Contacting the Retention and Success Team
Please contact the team if you have any questions or concerns relating to your attendance. You don’t need to have received an escalation email to get in touch.
Email: student-retention@greenwich.ac.uk
Please include your Faculty (FEHHS, FES, FLAS, GBS) and your student ID in the subject title.
FEHHS- Faculty of Education, Health, and Human Sciences
FES- Faculty of Engineering and Science
FLAS- Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences
GBS- Greenwich Business School
Drop-in: The team hosts a range of drop-in sessions throughout the academic year subject to room availability. Please visit the Bookings calendar and click on ‘In Person’ for details: SAS-Retention and Success - Support Meetings