> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://harnesscalendar.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Add a student

> Add a new student manually.

Add a student when you take on someone new. The form takes about a minute and sets up everything later features rely on: the student's contacts and who receives which emails. Prefer the family to type their own details? [Invite them with a link](/docs/students/invite-with-a-link) instead.

## Steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="Enter student details">
    Fill in the contact information for the student and choose who the student's primary contact is:

    * **Student**: the student handles their own scheduling and billing. A student email is **required**.
    * **Someone else**: a parent or guardian handles it. The student's own email becomes optional.

    Lesson prices aren't set here: a lesson's rate lives on the calendar event. See [Rate presets](/docs/settings/rate-presets).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add additional contacts">
    Add anyone else attached to the student: up to **6 contacts** besides the student themselves (the primary guardian counts as one of the 6).

    To manage contacts after the student exists, see [Contacts and notifications](/docs/students/contacts-and-notifications).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set notification preferences">
    Choose which contacts receive each kind of email:

    * **Lesson details**: lesson progress and notes.
    * **Lesson schedule**: lesson updates and cancellations.

    Fine-tune recipients later on the student's profile. See [Contacts and notifications](/docs/students/contacts-and-notifications).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a first lesson (optional)">
    A first lesson created here is priced from your first [rate preset](/docs/settings/rate-presets); you can change its rate on the event afterwards.

    No lesson scheduled yet? Click **Skip for now**.

    <Note>
      If you skip the first lesson, the student is created as **Inactive** until you add them to a lesson.
    </Note>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review and create">
    Check the summary, then click **Create**. **Send welcome email to primary contact** is ticked by default; it introduces your studio and links your published [studio policy](/docs/students/studio-policy). Untick it to add the student quietly.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Do I need a student email?">
    Only when the student is their own primary contact. Then their email is required. If someone else (a parent or guardian) is the primary contact, the student's own email is optional.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why is my student Inactive right after I added them?">
    A student with no lesson scheduled is **Inactive**. Add them to a lesson and they become active. See [Create an event](/docs/calendar/create-an-event).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="The Add student button is disabled">
    You've hit the Hobby plan's 5-student cap. See [Plans and limits](/docs/settings/plans-and-limits).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>