As a course creator, there’s a lot more that goes into delivering a great educational tool for others than just the content.
For many people, having a certificate of completion that shows they finished a course successfully is important as well, and it’s a great way to boost the validity of your program.
How do you create a certificate of completion? There are lots of online resources that let you design a certificate of completion by using a simple wizard that takes you through the steps.
You can then send the finished product as a digital certificate or have it printed and mailed to them, depending on their preference.
Although not always necessary, a certificate of completion can be important for both the course creator and the student to have. If you want to learn how to create one for your educational course, we’ve got a simple guide to get you started.
What is a Certificate of Completion?
A certificate of completion is a reward that you can give students who have done a course that you delivered, proving that they’ve then completed their studies.
These certificates can be a digital copy that’s emailed to them when they’re done or a physical certificate that you’ve made which you can then send onto them.
On the certificate, you’ll find information like the name of the course, the course provider, the student’s name, and the date that they completed their studies.
You should aim to incorporate a logo or some sort of branding so that you can be easily identified as a course provider. As the head of the educational institute that delivered the coursework, your name and signature should be displayed as well.
You might also like these certificates to come with another form of reward, like a coupon or gift, but it depends on what you’re trying to achieve as a course creator and the nature of the studies.
Overall, the certificate is proof for your student that they completed the lessons and it provides them with something tangible that they can use, so it should be professional and easy to read.
Why Is It Important For Your Students?
With such a saturated market of online learning opportunities for students, offering a certificate of completion is just one thing you can do to stand out. These are a few of the benefits that your students will enjoy if they get one of these certificates:
- A boost of confidence: You’ll be giving your students a boost of confidence as soon as they look at their certificate of completion. This good feeling will make them give them a sense of accomplishment and improve their self-esteem, showing that they’re capable of doing whatever they set their mind to.
- Proof of their hard work: Nobody wants to work hard at doing something only to find no acknowledgment of what’s they’ve done, especially if they’ve paid for it. A completion certificate is proof that they’ve achieved something great, and it can be shared with others as well, like on their resume or during job interviews.
- A reward: Being rewarded for the work we’ve done is always a nice thing, but it can also be a major motivational push. Studies have found that receiving a reward after completing a task cause people to feel more motivated and continue with completing other tasks, so it’s a great stepping stone on the path to success. This thinking might also lead a course provider to offer another form of reward with the certificate, like a coupon or discount that can be used toward courses undertaken in the future.
- A sign of the progress they’ve made: Although online courses are usually shorter in length, they’re undertaken as part of a long journey for most people. Something as simple as having a tangible certificate that shows the progress they’ve made can be very helpful for people on the path of bettering themselves.
Why Is It Important For Your Brand?
Your students aren’t the only ones who will benefit when you deliver a certificate of completion for anyone who passes your course. Here are some of the benefits that your brand and business will enjoy as well:
- Helps with future sales: The ultimate goal of any business is to succeed, grow, and make money, and something as simple as a certificate of completion can help you do that. Providing proof of studies can help spread the name of your organization and e-courses, and when your students speak highly of your teachings it’s even better social proof.
- Boosts engagement: If people are enrolled in an online course with no real reward at the end, their engagement levels won’t be that high. If you offer them a certificate of completion to prove their hard work, you’ll find better engagement levels which means more success as a course provider.
- Builds a community: Delivering a certificate of completion to anyone who completes your course helps to bind them to others who do the same. This, coupled with having an online forum where your students can engage, is all you need to develop a community centered around your brand and teachings.
- Legitimizes your teachings: To add a professional touch to your e-learning course, offering a certificate of completion is the way to go. Whatever you’re teaching, it’s easier to legitimize it when there’s a tangible certificate to prove what it was about, even if the course isn’t accredited.
- Helps you to stand out: The world of e-learning has only gotten more crowded and it’s important to establish yourself as a legitimate authority to stand out. Most course providers don’t offer a certificate to students who complete their coursework so you’ll instantly be setting yourself apart when you do.
The Best Places to Create a Certificate
An online course certificate isn’t that hard to create, but it has loads of benefits for both your organization and the students that attend.
Before you can create one, you’ll need to think about whether you prefer the digital or physical type of certificate, as there might be a better place to design them depending on the final product.
If you have access to design software like Canva or Adobe Spark, you can use these to make a certificate quite easily thanks to their creation wizards.
Within these programs, you’ll find pre-made templates that let you insert the relevant information along with logos and branding, so you can make it your own. Otherwise, you can create a certificate from scratch if you’re more confident in your design skills.
There are online resources that can also help with creating these documents and they work similarly to these programs, letting users input whatever information relevant onto a pre-made certificate.
You might like to hire a professional graphic designer to create the certificate if your budget allows it, as this sometimes gives off a more legitimate look and feel to the document.
Giving Your Online Course a Boost
As course creators, it’s essential to do whatever possible to add legitimacy and worth to what we create, including being able to offer a completion certificate once the course has been passed.
It’s not a lot of effort to create a unique certificate that your brand can hand out, and it’ll give your students a sense of accomplishment when they receive it.
Related Questions
Online courses have become the norm for so many people, as we ditch the in-person classrooms for digital ones.
If you’re thinking about studying online and want to learn more, we’ve answered some FAQs that can give you the basics you need to know.
Do Employers Recognize Online Courses?
Yes, employers do recognize courses that were completed remotely or online, just as they would one that you took in person.
As long as the course is from a reputable provider and it has relevant materials and teachings, there’s no reason why an employer shouldn’t accept your completion of studies.
What Can You Study Online?
Almost any topic is available to learn about online, including some of the more popular college degrees.
Areas like computer science, engineering, business, and graphic design are all commonly studied in an online classroom and with great success.
Can You Deduct Online Courses on Your Taxes?
If you’re an employee taking an online course that will improve your skills and experience in your current job, you might be able to deduct the costs related to tuition.
This could be classified as an unreimbursed employee expense but there are limits and stipulations to what can be claimed so you need to check before enrolling.
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