Absence Database
Student Absence Tracking
Absence.uwaterloo.ca
This tool is the primary mechanism at UW for students to submit absences (doctor's notes, etc) for easy administration and instructor access. Through this tool we've streamlined absence verification, documentation vetting, and distribution of information to necessary parties (advisors and instructors.)
Software History
Science Computing has maintained this tool for several years. Before the current version of the tool existed, the Faculty of Science used a simple tool that wrapped MySQL to provide similar functionality.
The Science Computing Development Team later rebuilt the tool to include auto-populating student information, class lists, and added email notifications for instructors.
During the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020 QUEST added the ability for students to self-declare absences centrally for influenza-like symptoms. Working together with the Registrar's Office we added daily processes to mirror these records into VIF.uwaterloo.ca, enabling instructors to access all absences consistently in a single location.
The software is now maintained by Science's Integrated Planning office.
Data Sources
The service relies on data from the OAT web-api for student information, as well as from Quest (via Data Lake) for self-declared absence. These data-sharing agreements are available via their respective data stewards.
Support
As a campus-wide tool, Absence.uwaterloo.ca is supported by FAST members to ensure no single point of failure. In the event that the primary maintainers or group is unable to provide service, contact a FAST representative to determine a backup support protocol.
Project Contacts
