Written by Mark Lauren Baliton, Jun Maoican & Lyndel Andrae M. Riña, ECT
This school year marks a new milestone for the School of Engineering and Architecture as they become the first department in the university to fully automate attendance tracking for events with the electronic attendance monitoring system (EAMS). What was once a series of tests and dry runs done in prior semesters has finally come to fruition. All SEA events’ attendances are now equipped with an automated tracking system for this school year. This was brought about due to the struggles brought about by the pandemic and the preference for contactless interactions, and the EAMS has fit this niche seamlessly.
This is not even its most useful purpose, as its ease of access makes attendance checking for events easier. Thanks to this innovative solution, long queues and manual filling up of attendance sheets are a thing of the past. Another benefit it adds is that it enforces stricter accountability, attendance, and discipline among students, who somehow “cheat” their way to avoid mandatory or required participation in such events. Although unfortunate, this is a common thing that occurs and is sadly inevitable. With that being said, the EAMS also allows for fewer human errors and overall is a more reliable way of monitoring student participation.
But how does all of this even work? – Well, the process behind this is quite simple. The EAMS works with a simple scan of a QR code. Each student is assigned a unique QR code, obtained by registering through the links provided by the SEA Student Administrative Council. These QR codes are presented and scanned upon entering and exiting any venue with an official department-wide event. A reliable third-party application is used. Upon scanning, data is then automatically written and uploaded to an electronic datasheet, which can then be monitored by the SAC.
The information obtained through a QR scan is similar to a digital trail or footprint, this includes the time scanned, the name of the student, and the date. With that being said, it is safe to say that the School of Engineering and Architecture proves once again that they are dependable professionals and innovators of the future. Solutions like this, which allow for a more optimal way to streamline what was once a taxing, time-consuming, and inefficient way of tracking attendance is a hallmark of the innate problem-solver attitude that a UB SEA student should indeed possess.
