Academic Sessions
Academic Sessions help organize your courses into specific time periods, such as a calendar year or term. While Programs are not tied to a specific Academic Session, Courses must be linked to a single session and cannot span multiple sessions.
Accurate Academic Session dates are essential for organizing courses in the Transcript Generator, so be sure to set them correctly to maintain accurate student records. The structure of your Academic Sessions depends on how your institution organizes its courses:
- Year-long courses → Create one Academic Session for the entire year.
- Term-based courses → Create separate Academic Sessions for each term (e.g., Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall).
This setup ensures courses and student progress are properly tracked within their respective timeframes.
Every ampEducator account includes a Continuous Enrollment Academic Session by default. This session is designed for courses without set start and end dates, allowing students to begin at any time. If your institution offers self-paced or rolling admission courses, this built-in option provides flexibility without needing to create new sessions.
To create a new Academic Session, go to Institution Config / Academic Sessions and click Add Academic Session.
In the modal, enter the Session Name, select the Start and End dates, and check Make Default if you want this session to be automatically selected when adding new courses.
Click Add, and the new Academic Session will appear in the list, where you can edit and customize it as needed.
To edit an existing Academic Session, click the Edit Academic Session icon next to the session in the list.
This opens the Academic Session Profile page, where you can customize various aspects of the session, including details, fees, program intakes, holidays, and the calendar. Each section allows you to configure specific settings, which we'll go through next.
The Details section of the Academic Session Profile contains key settings for session performance, registration, and attendance requirements.
- Default – Indicates whether this session is the default selection for new courses.
- Status – Can be set to Active (for ongoing sessions) or Completed (for sessions that have ended).
- Session Name – Enter the name of the session (e.g., Summer 2025).
- Session Start and Session End – Set the start and end dates for the session.
- Registration Start and Registration End – Define the period when students can register for courses in this session.
- Academic Threshold – The minimum session average a student must maintain for good standing.
- Academic Marginal – Students with session marks between this value and the threshold will have a marginal standing.
- Attendance Threshold – The minimum attendance rate a student must maintain for good standing.
- Distinction Group – An optional setting that allows you to categorize sessions based on specific criteria your institution may use for tracking or recognition.
- Notes – An optional field for any additional information about the session.
These settings help define the session’s structure, academic requirements, and registration periods, keeping everything organized.
If your institution has fees associated with an Academic Session, you can add them in the Fees section. To add a new fee, click New Fee.
- Description – Enter a name or brief description of the fee.
- Revenue Account – Select where the fee revenue should be categorized. Options include Tuition, Registration, Materials, and Other.
- Fee Class – Choose a fee class based on the ones your institution has set up (e.g., Domestic or International).
- Amount – Enter the fee amount.
Once added, the fee will appear in the list, where you can edit or delete it as needed.
The Program Intakes section allows you to organize students into defined groups based on their start date. When enrolling a student into a program, you’ll select an intake, which helps track different cohorts and ensures consistency in start and expected end dates.
To add a new intake, click New Intake.
- Intake Code – A short identifier for the intake (e.g., "WIN2025" for Winter 2025).
- Intake – The name of the intake (e.g., "Winter 2025 Cohort").
- Intake Date – The start date for students in this intake.
- Expected End Date – The anticipated completion date for students in this group.
Click Add Intake to save. The intake will now appear in the list, where you can edit or remove it if needed.
The Holidays section allows you to add scheduled breaks where there will be no school. When setting up courses for the session, you can choose to automatically skip these holidays, ensuring no classes are scheduled on those days.
To add a holiday, click New Holiday and enter the following details:
- Holiday – Enter the name of the holiday (e.g., "Winter Break" or "Labor Day").
- Start Date – Select the first day of the holiday.
- End Date (Optional) – If the holiday spans multiple days, enter the last day of the break. If it's a single-day holiday, leave this field blank.
Once added, the holiday is applied to the session, ensuring no classes are scheduled on those days. You can edit or delete a holiday at any time using the icons next to it in the list. There is no limit to the number of holidays you can add.
The Calendar section provides a unique URL that can be used with any application supporting the iCalendar (iCal) format, such as Google Calendar, Outlook, or Apple Calendar. This calendar includes all course events for the academic session, making it easy to stay updated on important dates.
Each academic session has its own Calendar URL, which can be copied and added to an external calendar application for real-time access to course schedules.
Setting a default Academic Session is important, as it is required in several parts of the application, including course setup, program enrollment, and student registration.
To set a default Academic Session, go to Institution Config > Acad Sessions. In the Academic Sessions list, find the session you want to make the default and click the checkmark icon under the Default column.
Once selected, it will show Yes to confirm it is now the system default.
