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Set up your semester

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A semester is the foundation of everything in EMStudio — your classes, lessons, grades, and attendance all live inside it. Setting one up takes under a minute and keeps your entire school year organized.

What is a semester?

Before you do anything in EMStudio, you'll create a semester. A semester is a date range that groups everything together — your classes, lessons, students, grades, and attendance all live inside it.

Think of it like a folder for an entire school term. When the term ends, you create a new semester and start fresh. Your previous semester's data stays exactly where it is. Once your semester is in place, you'll create classes to start organizing your teaching.

Example

If you're starting the Fall 2026 term, create a semester called "Fall 2026" with start and end dates matching your school calendar. Everything you create will live inside this semester.

Create your first semester

  1. When you first log in, click New Semester from the semester selector at the top of the sidebar.
  2. Give it a name (e.g., "Fall 2026", "Year 2026", "Term 1").
  3. Set a start date and end date.
  4. Click Create.

That's it. You're ready to create your first class.

Each semester is independent. Classes, lessons, units, and grades are specific to the semester they were created in. Switching semesters gives you a clean slate. Learn more about managing semesters →

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