Certificates are intended to provide a clear record that a learner has completed specified learning activity on My Academic Tutor.
Certificate functionality is not yet fully operational. Before certificates are issued at scale, the technical verification process, completion requirements and final certificate design will be confirmed.
Purpose of a certificate
A My Academic Tutor certificate is intended to recognise completion of an eligible course, learning pathway or other defined educational activity.
The certificate can provide learners with a record of learning that they may choose to keep or share.
Our goal is to make certificates informative and verifiable without exaggerating their academic or professional status.
What a certificate may mean
Depending on the particular course or learning activity, a certificate may confirm that a learner has:
- completed the required learning material;
- completed specified modules or lessons;
- completed required practice activities;
- completed quizzes or other learning checks where applicable; and
- met the completion criteria published for that particular course.
Not every course needs to use identical certificate requirements. The criteria should be stated on the relevant course before a learner begins working towards a certificate.
What a certificate does not automatically mean
Unless a particular course explicitly states otherwise on the basis of a genuine external arrangement, a certificate from My Academic Tutor does not represent:
It is not a degree, diploma or university award.
It does not automatically provide credits towards a school, college or university programme.
It is not automatically a regulated academic or vocational qualification.
It does not grant permission to practise in a regulated profession.
It is not an award issued by an examination board unless a genuine arrangement specifically says so.
Completion alone does not guarantee mastery in every possible application of the subject.
Eligibility for certificates
Only learning activities identified as certificate- eligible should result in a certificate.
The relevant course page should explain the completion requirements before certificate functionality is activated.
Requirements may include:
- completing a specified proportion of lessons;
- completing required activities;
- submitting required quizzes or checks;
- achieving a stated threshold where an assessed learning check is used; or
- meeting another clearly published completion rule.
Assessments and learning checks
Some courses may include quizzes, exercises or other checks intended to reinforce learning.
Where a certificate depends on a passing threshold, the course should state that requirement clearly.
Unless explicitly described otherwise, internal quizzes and checks are educational assessments created for My Academic Tutor and should not be interpreted as formal examinations issued by an external academic body.
Where completion depends on individual learning checks, learners should complete those checks themselves. Misrepresentation may result in a certificate being withheld or withdrawn.
Learner identity and certificate name
When learner accounts and certificates are introduced, learners may be asked to provide the name they want displayed on a certificate.
Learners should provide accurate information and should not request certificates in another person's name or use certificates to impersonate someone else.
The precise identity-verification process, if any, will depend on the type of certificate being issued.
A standard completion certificate should not imply that My Academic Tutor has independently verified a learner's legal identity unless such verification has actually taken place.
Certificate verification
The intended production certificate system should allow certificates to be checked against a unique certificate record.
A future certificate may contain information such as:
- the learner's displayed name;
- the course or pathway title;
- the date of completion;
- a unique certificate identifier; and
- a verification link or comparable verification mechanism.
We should not publish verification claims until the database and public verification mechanism actually exist.
Changes to certificate requirements
Course structures and certificate requirements may evolve as educational content is improved.
Where changes affect learners who are already actively working towards a certificate, we should take reasonable steps to avoid unfairly changing the requirements after substantial progress has already been made.
Certificate requirements displayed when a learner begins a course should therefore be recorded where practical.
Withholding or withdrawing a certificate
We may withhold, invalidate or withdraw a certificate where there is a reasonable basis to believe that it was obtained improperly.
Examples may include:
- fraudulent account activity;
- deliberate identity misrepresentation;
- falsification of completion records;
- serious misuse of assessment functionality; or
- technical error resulting in a certificate being issued when completion requirements were not met.
Where practicable, the learner should be given an opportunity to raise a genuine error or explain relevant circumstances.
Questions about certificates
If you have a question about certificate eligibility, completion requirements or how a certificate may be described, contact My Academic Tutor.