Add a New Family and Student

1. Go to Families in the left menu and click Add New.
2. Enter the first and last name of the guardian. Only one guardian name is required. The other fields are optional.
3. Save the guardian, then click the blue Action button in the upper-right corner to add a student.

Change Dance Studio Manager Mode

If your school serves adults, or a mix of adults and children, review this setting early.

• Go to Settings > Global Settings > Common > DSM Mode.
• Switch to Adult or Combined mode.
• If you choose Adult mode, the Families link will disappear from the menu.

Add Instructors

It is usually best to add instructors before creating classes, since classes often need an instructor assigned right away.

1. Go to Instructors in the left menu and click Add New.
2. Assign a username and password for the instructor.
3. Choose whether the user should be an Administrator or an Instructor.
4. Only the username, password, first name, and last name are required. You can add more details later.

Add Classes

When adding a new class, you will see preloaded options for class names, levels, locations, programs, and billing schedules.

To add or edit those lists, go to Settings > Categories, then click the button next to New Category. If you do not use locations, programs, or levels, you can add a value such as N/A. For more detail, see the Categories Settings Guide.

1. Go to Classes in the left menu and click Add New.
2. Select Group Class.
3. Enter a class code of your choice.
4. Fill out the rest of the form and save.

A Few Notes About Classes

Optional Fields

Fields such as Min/Max Age and Max in Class can be turned off if you do not need them.

• Go to Settings > Global Settings > Required Fields.
• If you disable those fields, they may still appear on the form, but they will not be required.

Payment Methods on the Class Form

When adding a class, you will see two main payment method options.

1. Billing Schedule

• Use this option to bill students in the class on a regular basis.
• It connects to the Finance section.
• Students enrolled in that class can be billed using that schedule.
• To add your own schedule, such as weekly or bi-monthly, go to Settings > Categories, click the button next to New Category, and choose Billing Schedules.

2. Sales Items

• Use this option if you sell passes or packages for classes.
• It connects to Settings > Sales Items.
• After saving a class with Sales Items as the payment method, create the passes or packages students will use for that class.

Set Up Your Discounts

1. Go to Settings in the left menu.
2. Click Fees and Discounts.
3. Choose the discount structure that fits your studio.

There are many ways to customize discounts in DSM. If you want a broader overview of the available options, visit our Discounts guide.

How Discounts Are Applied

Discounts are typically applied when you go to Finance > Tuition > Run Global Tuition.

Before running tuition, you can view the list first to make sure everything looks correct.

If you make a mistake after running tuition, go to Finance > Charge History and click the bold X in the Action column to reverse the tuition charges.