See what online appointments change at your institution
Before vs. after adding online appointments to iVake
Where you are today
Holding you back
The front desk phone never stops
Parents ring to ask when the principal is free, and most calls end in a promise to call back that nobody writes down.
Pain point
Messages back and forth for one slot
A parent and a class teacher swap messages for two days to fix a meeting, then the parent turns up unannounced and waits.
Pain point
Two bookings for the same half hour
Two counsellors book the same family into overlapping visits on a shared spreadsheet, and one meeting is cut short at the door.
Pain point
Queues on meeting day
Parents queue outside classrooms on PTM day with no order, and working parents leave before their turn comes.
Pain point
- 3+Calls and messages to fix one meeting
- 2+Calendars kept by hand
- HoursSpent waiting on meeting day
Your institution, transformed
Everything connected
Families book the slot themselves
Free slots show in the app by service and staff member, and a booking takes a few taps, at any hour.
Solved
Reminders before every visit
Confirmations and reminders go out by WhatsApp, SMS or email, with a link to reschedule or cancel.
Solved
One calendar, no clashes
Every office books from the same availability, so a slot that is taken is gone for everyone.
Solved
Timed slots on meeting day
Each family gets a time with each teacher, so PTM day runs to a schedule instead of a queue.
Solved
- 1Calendar for every office
- 0Double bookings
- 1Record of every visit and its notes
Ready to make the switch? See how it works for your institution.
Self-service booking that ends phone tag
When every appointment starts with a phone call, the front desk becomes the bottleneck. Let families and students choose a free slot themselves, and staff know the reason for the visit before it starts.
- Slots by service, staff member, campus or office, booked from the app or a link
- Questions before booking capture the reason for the visit and the documents to bring
- Each appointment type keeps its own length, gap between meetings and booking window
Reminders and no-show tracking that protect staff time
A counsellor who keeps an hour free for a family that never arrives has lost an hour someone else needed. Reminders cut the missed visits, and the history shows where they keep happening.
- Reminders by WhatsApp, SMS or email ahead of the visit, with confirm and cancel links
- Missed appointments recorded against the student or applicant
- Each staff member’s appointments for the day, with visit reasons, every morning
One shared calendar that ends double booking
When the accounts office sends a parent to admissions and admissions sends them back, nobody gets seen. One calendar shows who is free across every office, and which room is free with them.
- Weekly availability, one-off slots, blocked time and gaps set by each staff member
- Rooms booked alongside the person, so two meetings never share one space
- Bookings shared across a team by turn, by the family’s choice or by a team lead
Online appointment features
Everything you need to manage appointments effectively
Appointment types
Each service with its own length, gap, booking window and cancellation rule.
Parent & student app
Free slots booked from the app, with one login per family.
Booking reports
Bookings, visits and missed appointments by office, staff member and type.
Role-based access
Who can see a booking and its notes is set by department and role.
Demand analytics
Busy hours, slot use and waiting time by office, to plan staffing.
Reminders
Confirmations and reminders by WhatsApp, SMS or email, each logged.
Audit trail
Every booking, change, cancellation and note logged with who made it.
Online meetings
Online appointments carry the meeting link; in-person ones carry the room.
Frequently asked questions
Get answers to common questions about online appointments
Can each office set its own appointment rules?
Yes. Each appointment type has its own length, gap between meetings, how far ahead it can be booked, cancellation rule, questions before booking and way of assigning staff. Admission counselling can need a day’s notice while a quick fee office query can be booked the same morning, and neither affects the other.
How are repeated no-shows handled?
Each missed appointment is recorded against the student or applicant with the date, the staff member and the type. Heads of office can see who misses visits repeatedly and at which times, and choose a different approach, such as a call to confirm before the next booking or a limit on open bookings.
Can parents book on behalf of their child?
Yes, for the appointment types you open to parents, such as parent-teacher meetings, fee office visits and admission counselling. The parent and the student are both told about the booking. Types that should stay private to the student, such as a counselling session, can be limited to students only.
What happens when a staff member is suddenly absent?
Blocking their time flags every appointment affected. Families are told and offered another slot or another staff member, and a team lead can move or cancel the affected bookings together. Planned leave can be blocked in advance, so no new bookings are taken for those days.
Do appointments work for online meetings?
Each appointment type can be in person, online, by phone, or the family’s choice. Online appointments carry the meeting link and in-person ones carry the room, so nobody is unsure where to go.
Can applicants book campus visits during admissions?
Yes. Campus visits and test slots sit on a shared calendar in admission management, and the booking stays on the applicant’s record alongside the counselling history.
How do we know whether online booking is helping?
Reports show bookings by office, the time from booking to visit, missed appointments before and after reminders, slot use by staff member and the busiest hours. They export for a management review or a staffing request.
Cloud, hosted in your region
REST API & webhooks- SSO: Google, Microsoft & SAML
Encrypted, backed up daily- Built for the DPDP Act
- Full security details
Built for your institution type
See how this feature works for your specific institution
CBSE, ICSE & state-board schoolsParent-teacher meeting slots booked from the parent app
UniversitiesCounselling and office hours across campuses
Degree collegesFaculty office hours and placement cell appointments
ITIs, polytechnics & skill centresCounselling visits booked ahead of a batch start
Playschools & pre-primaryAdmission visits and parent meetings on one calendar- Residential & international schoolsOnline parent meetings, with the link in each booking
Integrations, comparisons & tools
Extend online appointments with integrations, see how iVake compares, and run the numbers
Related features
Admission Management
Enquiries, counselling, visits and applications on the record that becomes the student.
Parent Portal
Attendance, results, fees and bookings for every child on one login.
Notice Board
Notices and circulars to the classes, staff and parents they concern.
Helpdesk
Questions from students, parents and staff raised and answered as tickets.
Event Management
Events announced, registered and attended, on the same records.
Faculty Management
Teaching load, substitutions and duties, visible rather than assumed.
More in engagement & outreach
Explore other features in this category
Ready to transform your appointment booking?
See how iVake lets families book the time they need, so your front desk spends its day on visitors instead of the phone.
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