Policy 074: Student Route Attendance and Engagement Policy

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Policy 074: Student Route Attendance and Academic Engagement Policy

1. Introduction
2. Academic Engagement
3. Attendance and Engagement Monitoring
4. Authorised Absence
5. Withdrawal of Sponsorship
6. Policy Review 

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. ACM is required to monitor the engagement of all Student visa students, in line with UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) as well as the Immigration Rules.

1.2. This policy regulates ACM’s approach to the attendance and engagement requirement put on Student visa sponsors by the Home Office.

1.3. The policy should be reviewed alongside the ACM’s Student Visa Compliance Policy.

1.4. The policy has been created in line with the UKVI’s Student Sponsor Guidance.

2. ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT

2.1. All students must adhere to the Student Engagement and Participation policy.

2.2. Student visa students are subject to Student visa requirements and must follow this policy to protect their current visa and their immigration status until the end of their programme or the duration of their visa, whichever is earlier.

2.3. All students are expected to fully participate in the life of ACM and attend timetabled lectures as well as other activities like tutorials, workshops and masterclasses offered by their programme of choice.

2.4. All Student visa students are expected to remain in the UK during term time to complete the academic requirements for their programme of study, as per the conditions of their Student visa. 

2.5. It is the Student visa students’ responsibility to familiarise themselves with ACM’s term times and to plan their travel arrangements accordingly to avoid breaching the Student visa requirement outlined in point 2.4. of this policy.

2.6. In the event of any online delivered activities, Student visa students are required to undertake them from the UK. In cases where ACM is made aware of a student participating in an online activity from outside the UK, the student’s visa sponsorship may be withdrawn.

2.7. In cases where a student is unable to participate in the activities on the required level due to disabilities or chronic illness, alternative and fluctuating minimum attendance requirements may be agreed with a student based on Reasonable Adjustments that must be requested, assessed and approved by the Pathway Leader, Registry Team and the Additional Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (ANDCo).

2.8. If a student is not engaging for two consecutive weeks without previously being granted an authorised absence (see point 4 of this policy), the student will be contacted by the Head of International Student Affairs to establish reasons for non-engagement.

2.9. If a student’s overall attendance falls below the expected minimum this will be escalated as per point 8 of the Student Engagement and Participation policy and an Individual Learner Agreement may be arranged.

2.10. If a student fails to re-engage in their studies, the student’s visa sponsorship may be withdrawn.

2.11. If a student is unable to attend a learning session on campus for an exceptional circumstance, for example for medical reasons, the student must notify a Pathway Leader and an appropriate note in a student record must be provided. 

2.12. In the event of a student requiring an extended period of absence that exceeds the period of authorised absence, regulated in point 4 of this policy. In that case, the student may need to return to their home country and return to their studies in the next academic year or the next suitable entry point. ACM will be required to withdraw Student visa sponsorship and the student’s status will be changed to ‘interrupted’.

2.13. Student visa students no longer required to attend academic activities in person will be advised to leave the UK and their Student visa sponsorship will be withdrawn. 

2.14. In case when a serious attendance concern arises it will be escalated to the Designated Safeguarding Lead to ensure the student’s safety.

2.15. Student visa students are not required to engage in their studies during designated holiday periods and they do not need to stay in the UK during that time.

3. ATTENDANCE AND ENGAGEMENT MONITORING

3.1. All Student visa students will be monitored in the background every week by the Head of International Student Affairs. 

3.2. Attendance will be recorded either through the use of a Student ID Card Reader or by manual marking by the tutor.

3.3. The Head of International Student Affairs will check if Student visa students engage in at least one ‘contact point’ a week.

3.4. Activities considered as a ‘contact point’ include, but are not limited to:

•  attending required lectures;
•  seminars, workshops, masterclasses or tutorials;
•  submitting essays;
•  assignments and attending examinations.

3.5. The Head of International Student Affairs will keep a record of the academic attendance of every Student visa student in a form that allows evaluation of a student engagement level.

3.6. The Head of International Student Affairs will contact a student and the student’s Pathway Leader in case any student engagement concerns arise. This can be escalated further as per points 2.9 and 2.10 of this policy.

4. AUTHORISED ABSENCE

4.1. Authorised absence is a short temporary absence approved by a student’s Pathway Leader and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

4.2. Authorised absence can be approved only in exceptional circumstances that include, but are not limited to: 

• serious illness or injury;
• death or serious illness of a close relative;
• significant adverse personal/family circumstances;

4.3.   A student applying for an authorised absence is required to provide sufficient evidence of the exceptional circumstance that has occurred.

4.4. The absence can be granted for a maximum of 3 weeks and only if the student is still able to finish their course by the official end date of the course.

4.5. Any such absence must be formally approved by the Academic Department and the Pathway Leader, who is responsible for informing the Head of International Student Affairs about the period of absence and the reason. 

4.6. The Head of International Student Affairs will cease engagement monitoring for a student who is on a period of authorised absence.

4.7. If a student is travelling outside the UK, they need to obtain a letter from the Registry department confirming the dates of the absence. The student should travel with the letter as they may need to show it to Border Officials when re-entering the UK. This is the student’s responsibility to obtain the letter and to make sure they have it with them when crossing the border.

4.8. A Student visa student coming back from the period of authorised absence needs to report to their Pathway Leader on the agreed return date and the adequate note has to be made in the student’s record.

5. WITHDRAWAL OF SPONSORSHIP

5.1. The decision of Student visa sponsorship withdrawal will be made by the Head of International Student Affairs after a thorough review of the data from across the different engagement modes regarding the overall contact points met, submission of the student’s coursework, consecutive missed contact points, any evidence provided by the student’s Pathway Leader regarding their engagement in their programme of study and arrangements of the Individual Learner Arrangement.

5.2. In the event of withdrawal of a student’s visa sponsorship, the Head of International Student Affairs will submit an adequate notification to the UKVI and will contact the student via email at the email address detailed in the student’s record. The communication will contain information about the undertaking actions. ACM will not take responsibility if the email is not delivered due to a change of the student’s email address and not informing ACM about this.

5.3. A student whose sponsorship has been withdrawn has the right to appeal. The sponsorship withdrawal can be revoked up to 8 working days after the initial notification has been made.

5.4. The appeal will only have a positive outcome if the student can provide satisfactory evidence of their engagement, otherwise the decision will not be reversed.  

5.5. Students whose Student visa sponsorship has been withdrawn will have to leave the UK as a consequence of this withdrawal and will have to provide the Head of International Student Affairs with sufficient evidence that they have left the country (eg. a boarding pass).

5.6. Not leaving the UK within the timeframe provided by the Head of International Student Affairs may result in overstaying. Overstaying is a criminal offence that will impact a student’s immigration record, potentially resulting in a ban from re-entering the UK and affecting future visa applications to the UK and other countries.

6. POLICY REVIEW

6.1. The policy will be reviewed on a regular basis to ensure it remains compliant with the Sponsor Guidance and Immigration Rules as well as good sector practice.

7. RELATED POLICIES AND DOCUMENTS

7.1 Internal: 

• Student Charter
• CAS Issuing Policy
• Student Visa Compliance Policy
• Finance Policy 
• Criminal Convictions Policy 

7.2 External:

• Student Sponsor Guidance
• UK Immigration Rules

8. RESPONSIBLE PARTIES

8.1  The policy lead is responsible for the cyclical monitoring and review of the policy in liaison with the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Manager. The policy lead for the CAS Issuing Policy is: 

• Head of International Student Affairs

8.2 Decisions and appropriate actions in support of the implementation of the Policy will be authorised by the following designated staff:

• Head of International Student Affairs
• Head of Admissions
• Senior Executive team
• Quality Assurance and Enhancement Manager 

        Download this policy: POL_074_Student Route Attendance and Engagement Policy_AY2526