My Attendance
My Attendance is the University’s online system for recording and monitoring student attendance at timetabled learning activities.
What is My Attendance?
All taught students are required to register their own attendance at the start of all timetabled activities.
Using My Attendance, you can 'check in' to register your own attendance and view your attendance record. If needed, staff can see and edit your attendance record.
Recording attendance will help us see where students might be struggling and offer support. It will also help us make sure everyone is meeting their attendance requirements – for example if your attendance is required for a professional accreditation or your student visa.
Once you've watched the training video above, this written user guide repeats the basics of how to use the system whenever you need a reminder.
Below you can find the answers to frequently asked questions about the system and how it works:
What does the new attendance monitoring system do?
My Attendance is an online system to record and report on student attendance at timetabled learning activities.
This system allows students to register their own attendance by ‘checking in’ at the beginning of activities (whether in-person or online). Staff can also check students in – either to assist students who don’t have access to a device, or for events where they want to confirm which students are present.
You can see your own attendance history within the system on a simple dashboard. Staff can see combined attendance data for students on their courses and programmes.
Why is the University using this system?
Being able to record and review attendance more easily will help us see where students might be struggling and offer support. It will also help us make sure that students who have attendance requirements (for example, to earn a professional accreditation or a student visa) are meeting them.
You'll be able to easily see your own attendance record, so you can check you are meeting any requirements. You'll also be able to see and query any mistakes in your record.
This new system is more efficient than other attendance monitoring such as paper registers and saves resource so we can better support you in other areas.
Does this change my attendance requirements? What happens if I fall below a certain attendance?
This system does not change any attendance requirements you already have in place. For example, you may already be required to attend certain activities, or you may have a DASS support plan that includes recommendations for your attendance.
The University provides many different types of teaching to support your learning, and it’s recommended that you attend everything to support you to achieve your potential. If there are specific attendance requirements, or compulsory sessions, for your programme, your programme team will remind you of any attendance requirements that are in place – and what will happen if you don't meet these requirements.
If you are an international student on a Tier 4 or Student Route Visa, you’ll have additional attendance requirements, and you must make sure you’re familiar with these.
Where your attendance falls below the required level, the University will contact you to see if you need support to improve your attendance.
If you're not sure of your attendance requirements (if any) you should contact your programme team.
Has the system been tested by students?
Yes. A number of staff and students from across the University helped us develop and test the system. Our student testers were extremely positive – they said they found the system effective and easy to use, and thought it would be beneficial to both students and staff.
How does the system work?
How do I access the system?
You can navigate to My Attendance via My Manchester (you will need to login first). You'll see a link in the left-hand menu bar. You can use a smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer to access the system. Every student has access to the system.
You can also add a shortcut to My Attendance on your laptop and smartphone / tablet, so you can access the system quickly and easily.
- On a laptop/ PC: Navigate to the attendance system in your web browser and add a bookmark as you normally would.
- On a smartphone / tablet: On both Android and iOS devices you can add a shortcut icon on your home screen that will go directly to the attendance system, so you can access it quickly and easily. This will appear just like the icons you use to open apps.
The guides linked below show you how to do this in different operating systems and web browsers:
How does the system register student attendance?
Students will ‘check in’ up to 10 minutes before the start of timetabled activities to register their attendance. You can do this via a smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer.
Your lecturer (or teaching assistant) will be able to see all the students and their check-in status on a ‘digital register’, where they can make changes to the check-ins if necessary.
Can I see my own attendance record?
Yes. Within My Attendance you’ll be able to see your own attendance record – this is displayed on a simple dashboard in a few tables and graphs. However, you’ll only see attendance data recorded from when your programme started using the My Attendance system. It will not show older attendance records.
How do you know that students who checked in were actually present?
Your lecturer can use the ‘digital register’ to see the check-in status of all the students and change any if necessary, to ensure everyone who checked in was actually present.
It’s important you use this system honestly and responsibly. Having an accurate attendance record will help us see where students may be struggling and offer them help, and will help us ensure you’ve met the attendance requirements of your course units.
Please be aware: registering attendance for someone else is considered misconduct and may result in disciplinary action.
What if I know I’m going to be absent?
If your course or programme requires you to notify staff when you will be absent, your programme will let you know who to contact. Planned absences will be recorded in the system as ‘notified absences’, so they will not affect your attendance record.