Engagement Monitoring

Both the School of Health in Social Science and the University as a whole will monitor your engagement.

Student Engagement Monitoring

The School of Health in Social Science, and the University as a whole, understands the investment that you make, both in time and money, in choosing to take a programme of study here.

You are an autonomous learner and we want you to take ownership of your learning and development and actively participate in your studies. We as a School have a responsibility to ensure that you receive appropriate support and enable you to succeed.

Engagement monitoring is undertaken by Schools and includes the monitoring of small group teaching events, submission of summative assessment, and engagement with formal scheduled meetings with key members of staff (e.g. Personal Tutors, Programme Directors and Supervisors).

How will the School of Health in Social Science monitor engagement?

Students are expected to:

• Attend and engage with all scheduled teaching sessions.
• Prepare for and participate in classes or carrying out your own research.
• Use the School’s Virtual Learning Environment (Learn) and wider resources within and outside of the University to support your studies.
• Complete the required assessment and examinations within your programme of study.
• Participate in meetings with your Personal Tutor, Supervisors, Course Organisers, and Tutors as applicable.
• Take the initiative in seeking timely support when necessary from the School, or from the wider University.
• Keep in touch with the School and respond to formal communications if you are studying away (e.g. if you are abroad or on a placement).

We will monitor the engagement of students at certain small group teaching events (e.g. tutorials and small group lectures) and at scheduled meetings with key members of staff, including research supervision. We will also monitor engagement with summative assessment, including submission of coursework.

The University expects all students to attend all their University classes, lectures and tutorials etc., whether or not these are described as “compulsory” by the School.

All data is gathered and stored in line with the University policies and guidance on data handling and you can view the privacy statement at: https://www.ed.ac.uk/student-systems/use-of-data/policies-and-regulations/privacy-statement

If you are studying in the UK with a Tier 4 visa

You will be aware that the University has an additional legal duty to monitor your engagement under the UK Visa and Immigration Office’s (UKVI) points-based system.

If you have a Tier 4 visa, you can find out more about your responsibilities and the University’s responsibilities here.

The University’s Tier 4 Student Attendance and Engagement Policy can be found here.

Although we monitor all engagement throughout the year, we have identified a number of specific contact points that we will particularly monitor to ensure that we meet our compliance duties. These specific points of contact can be found on the following website:

Engagement Monitoring Procedures

What happens if there are concerns about attendance and engagement?

If we have concerns about your engagement, we will address this with you. The School will contact you via your University email account, in line with the University’s Policy on use of email as a method of contacting students. You must access and manage your University email account regularly, as it will be assumed that you have opened and acted on communications. Failure to do so will not be considered an acceptable excuse for actions or inactions, or as a ground for appeal.

Information about what the School deems to be unsatisfactory attendance and the different levels of escalation can be found here.