# Certificates

> How to enable a product's certificate, choose when the student can issue it and change how it looks. With the questions support gets most.

The certificate belongs to the product. Each product decides if it has a certificate, when the student can issue it and how it looks. The student issues it on their own, in the student area. Cademí never issues a certificate automatically.

## How it works

- The **criterion** tells when the student can issue the certificate. You choose it in **Available in**.
- When the student meets the criterion, the **Issue certificate** button shows for them.
- The **certificate** exists only when the student clicks that button.

**The most important rule:** the default when you turn the certificate on is **Always available**. With it, the student can issue the certificate on the first day. If the certificate must come at the end of the course, change the criterion.

### When the student can issue it

| Option in **Available in** | The student can issue it when | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| **Always available** | They have access to the product. Cademí does not look at lessons, progress or exams | The certificate proves participation, or the access is the achievement |
| **1 week after start** to **2 months after start** | That time has passed since their access started. A new purchase does not restart the count | You want a minimum course time, without looking at the study |
| **On reaching 75% completion** to **On reaching 95% completion** | Their progress in the product reaches the percentage. There is no 100% option | Most of the course must be done |
| **On passing an exam** | They passed the exam selected in **Select an exam…** | Mastery counts more than watching everything |

- **There is no "finished the course" criterion.** The nearest is 95% or an exam on the last lesson.
- **The progress that counts is the current one.** If you hide or publish lessons, the percentage changes. This can open the certificate without the student doing anything new.
- **After the first issue, the criterion stays met.** This is true also if the progress drops or the exam result is removed. Only deleting the issuance sends the student back to the criterion.

The path from the criterion to the certificate:

```mermaid
flowchart TD
    accTitle: From criterion to certificate
    accDescr: If the criterion is not met yet, the student must meet it. Once it is met, the Issue certificate button becomes available. The student clicks to issue and can view or download the PDF. If the QR Code is on, opening it leads to the certificate validation page.
    criterio{"Criterion met?"}
    aguardar["Meet the criterion"]
    botao["Issue certificate button"]
    pdf["Certificate issued<br/>View and PDF"]
    validar["Certificate validation page"]
    criterio -->|Not yet| aguardar
    criterio -->|Yes| botao
    botao -->|Student requests it| pdf
    pdf -->|If the QR Code is on| validar
    classDef destaque stroke:#ff005c,stroke-width:2px
    class botao destaque
```

Meeting the criterion shows the button. The certificate exists only when the student clicks it.

### Single issuance

- With **Single issuance** on, a new request returns the certificate the student already has. Cademí does not create a second one.
- With **Single issuance** off, each request creates another valid certificate, with a new number.

### What gets printed

The certificate is a snapshot of the moment of issue. If you later change the student's profile, the template or the course, the certificate does not change.

**Heads up: this is where most errors happen.** Pedro's name came out wrong on his certificate. A profile fix does not change a certificate that already exists. Fix the profile, delete the issuance and ask Pedro to issue it again.

On the front:

- the **Student name**;
- if on, the **Document**, the **Date** and the **Sequence** (the certificate number, counted per product or across the whole platform);
- the **QR Code**.

On the back, if on:

- the start and completion **Dates**;
- the **Product name**, **Taught by** and the **Workload**;
- the **Back content**. If this text is empty, the back lists the modules and lessons of the product;
- the student's custom fields that you choose.

The printed dates:

- **Start**: the start of access, or the first completed lesson if it came first.
- **Completion**: the last completed lesson. With no completed lessons, it is the issue date.

### Validation

The **QR Code** opens the public **Certificate validation** page. It confirms the code with the sentence "Certificate issued to ... for completing the course ..." and the issue date.

- A deleted issuance, or an unknown code, is not confirmed.
- The test certificate you issue from the dashboard shows as a test on that page. It is not valid as proof.

## Step by step

### Enable it and choose the criterion

1. Open the product in **Content > Products**.
2. Click the **Certificate** tab. It is in the **Settings** group of the product tabs.
3. Turn on **Enable certificate**.
4. In **Available in**, choose the criterion.
5. If the criterion is **On passing an exam**, choose the exam in **Select an exam…**. The exam must exist in the product.
6. Turn **Single issuance** and **Certificate back** on or off.
7. Click **Save now** in the footer bar.

### Change the appearance

In **Appearance**, the **Front** and **Back** previews show the approximate result. They change at once, before you save.

1. Click **Customize appearance**, or one of the previews.
2. Make the changes in the **Front**, **Back** and **Fields** tabs (below).
3. Click **Save**, in the footer of the panel.
4. To see the real PDF, click **Issue test certificate**.

**Issue test certificate** uses the saved settings. If you have changes you did not save, save first.

What each tab has:

- **Front**:
  - **Certificate image**: JPG or PNG, 3508 x 2480 px, up to 2 MB. With no image, the default template applies.
  - **Student name**, with **Color** and **Font**.
  - **Document**, **Date** and **Sequence**, each with an on and off switch, **Color** and **Font**. In **Sequence**, **Numbering** chooses between **Product sequence** and **Platform sequence**.
  - **QR Code**, with **Position**, **Color** and **Background color**.
- **Back**: **Certificate back**, **Dates**, **Product name**, **Taught by**, **Workload** and **Back content**.
- **Fields**: the student's custom fields that get printed, and their order.

The fonts are versions of Arial, Georgia and Open Sans.

### See the issuances

- **In the student's profile.** In the **Certificates** tab, each certificate shows **Code**, **Issued on** and **Product**. The **Reissue** badge shows when the student had already issued a certificate of this product before, also if it was deleted. The actions are **Download PDF**, **Copy link**, **Validate certificate** and **Delete issuance**. See [Student profile](https://help.cademi.cloud/en/alunos/perfil-do-aluno.md).
- **In the report.** In **Reports > Certificates**, the list of the certificates issued in the account. See [Certificates report](https://help.cademi.cloud/en/relatorios/certificados.md).

**Delete issuance** takes the certificate away from the student and stops the validation link. Cademí does not use the printed number again. The student keeps the points of the issuance.

## What the student sees

On the **Certificates** page of the student area, each product with an active certificate shows a button:

- **Issue certificate**, when the student met the criterion;
- **Go to course**, when the student did not meet it yet;
- **View certificate**, after the issue. The certificate goes into **Certificates issued**, with the date.

When the student passes an exam that opens the certificate, the lesson shows: "Congratulations, now issue your certificate!".

If an administrator logs in as the student and issues the certificate, the certificate is real and belongs to the student. In the preview as a student, the result is a test certificate.

## Good to know

- **Points.** Issuing the certificate gives the student points once per product, also if the student issues it again. The value follows the points settings of the account.
- **Certificate from another account.** In a product synced from another account, you can turn the certificate on or off for the students of this account. You can also change the image, colors and fonts. The criterion and the other settings come from the source product.
- **Exam linked to the certificate.** You cannot delete an exam that the criterion uses, while the certificate points to it.
- **Immediate release.** If you set **Release** to **Immediate** in a student's profile, the rules are waived. The certificate criterion also opens for that student.

## Frequently asked questions

**Students are issuing the certificate on the first day.** The criterion is **Always available**, which is the default. Change it to a completion percentage or an exam.

**The student has 100% and cannot issue it.** The criterion is an exam the student did not pass, or a time that has not passed yet. Check **Available in**.

**The name came out wrong on the certificate.** Fix the student's profile. In the student's **Certificates** tab, delete the issuance. Then ask the student to issue it again.

**Can I issue the certificate for the student?** The dashboard has no issue button. Log in as the student, from the student's profile, and issue it in the student area. The certificate is the student's, and it is real.