Use certificates to recognise course completion, attendance or another milestone. Cademy can issue certificates automatically from a course or manually from a Registration.
Every plan can use the Cademy default certificate. Pro and Teams plans can also create custom certificate templates.
Default and custom certificates
Cademy default certificate
The default certificate is available on every plan. It uses a standard A4 horizontal design and can include the student’s full name, course name, certificate issue date, educator name and logo, and the course’s certificate Dynamic Value.
Custom certificate templates
Pro and Teams plans can create their own templates with custom backgrounds, text, images, dynamic values and up to 10 pages.
Custom templates can use A4, Letter or Legal paper in horizontal or vertical orientation. The paper size and orientation apply to every page in the template, while each page can have its own background and content.
Set up certificates for a course
Open Courses, select the course, select Edit, then open Settings and Certificates.
The available settings include:
Automatically issue certificate: turns automatic issuing on or off.
Email student when certificate is issued: controls whether the participant receives the automatic certificate email.
Template: selects the custom template used for future certificates on this course. This appears when Custom Certificates are available.
Dynamic Value: adds course-specific wording to the certificate, such as a result, credit value or qualification.
Set Certificates to Expire: adds an expiry date.
Duration certificate is valid for: sets the number of days before the certificate expires. The minimum is one day.
For on-demand courses, automatic certificates are issued when the participant completes the course. For scheduled courses, they are issued when the participant is marked as attended. Automatic certificate controls are not shown for blended courses.
If the Registration already has an active certificate, automatic issuing does not create another one.
If the participant has a different primary contact, that contact may also receive a certificate notification. The Email student when certificate is issued setting controls the participant email.
Create and manage custom certificate templates
Select Add Certificate.
Enter a template name in the Create Certificate window.
Select the template to open the editor.
Design the certificate, then select Save.
Select the template name or pencil icon to rename it. Use the template options menu to duplicate or delete it.
Deleting a template removes it from normal template selection. A course already using that template can continue using it until a different template is selected. Certificates already issued with it remain available.
Add content to a template
Use Add to insert:
Text
Image
Student Name
Registration ID
Course Name
Certificate Issue Date
Certificate Expiry Date
Course Dynamic Value
Course Facilitator
Course Start Date
Course End Date
Insert variables and choose their format
Select a Text block, then select Insert variable (x) to add:
Student name
Registration ID
Course name
Certificate issue date
Certificate expiry date
Course start date
Course end date
Course facilitator
Course specific value
Educator name
Course specific value is the variable-menu name for the course’s certificate Dynamic Value.
Student Name blocks include these Change Name Format options:
Full Name
First Name
Last Name
Date blocks include these Change Date Format options:
YYYY-MM-DD
YYYY/MM/DD
DD/MM/YY
DD/MM/YYYY
MM/DD/YY
MM/DD/YYYY
DDth MONTH YYYY
Format and position content
Move and resize blocks directly on the certificate. Text controls include font, size, alignment, colour, bold, underline and how text fits inside its block.
The Certificate Expiry Date is blank when expiry is not enabled. Course Dynamic Value is blank when the course does not have a Dynamic Value. Course Facilitator can show more than one facilitator.
Add and manage pages
Select + Page to add a blank page after the page currently open.
Use the page indicator to move between pages.
Open the page options menu to duplicate the page, move it left or right, or delete it.
A template can have up to 10 pages. The final remaining page cannot be deleted. When a certificate is issued, all pages are combined into one PDF in the order shown in the editor.
Issue one certificate manually
Open a Registration from a course, booking, order or the Registrations page, then find Certificate.
Select Issue Certificate. The Issue Certificate window opens.
If Template appears, confirm the course template is selected or choose Cademy Default or another active custom template.
Leave Email the certificate to the participant selected to send the certificate email, or clear it to issue without emailing.
Select Issue Certificate.
The Template picker appears only when Custom Certificates are available. The course template is selected by default and marked Course Template. If Template does not appear, Cademy uses the template assigned to the course or the Cademy default certificate.
If emailing is disabled and the email option is selected, the window shows Emailing is disabled. The certificate is still issued, but the email is not delivered.
After a certificate is issued, the Registration lists it with its template, issue date, expiry date or Never, and status. Available actions include View, Copy and Revoke.
When Custom Certificates are available, select Issue Another to give the participant an additional certificate using a different template. A template that already has an active certificate is marked Already issued and cannot be selected. Each certificate remains listed separately.
If Template is not shown and the participant already has an active certificate using the course template or Cademy default, Issue Another does not create a duplicate. Cademy reports Certificate already issued.
To restore a revoked certificate, open its Revoked menu and select Issue Certificate or Issue & Email. This restores that certificate using its original template.
Issue certificates in bulk
Bulk certificate issuing is available from an individual course’s Registrants tab.
Open the course and select Registrants.
Select up to 500 Registrations.
Select Issue Certificates.
Choose the certificate and delivery option.
Confirm the issue.
With Custom Certificates, the certificate picker includes Cademy Default and active custom templates. The course’s current template is identified and selected by default. Search for a template when the list is long. One template is applied to the whole bulk job.
The delivery options are:
Issue only (no email): creates the certificates and makes one ZIP available in the results.
Issue & email registrants: sends each participant their own certificate email.
Issue & email registrants and primary contacts: sends participant emails and grouped ZIP links to booking or order contacts.
Issue & email primary contacts only: sends grouped ZIP links to booking or order contacts.
Issue & email a manual address: sends one ZIP link to the email address entered.
The results show how many certificates were issued, skipped or failed. A Registration is skipped when it already has an active certificate using the selected template. Selecting a different template creates an additional certificate. A revoked certificate does not block reissuing that template.
For more information about finding and selecting Registrations, see Managing Registrations: Search, Filter, and Export.
View certificate activity on a contact
Open the contact and check Activity to see when a certificate was issued and whether it is valid, expired or revoked. The expiry date itself is shown with the certificate on the Registration.
Send or copy a certificate link
Use the Certificate Link mail merge value
Add Certificate Link to a suitable email template to send the learner a link to their most recent active certificate for that Registration.
Copy a link to a specific certificate
Open the Registration, find the certificate and select Copy. This link opens that specific certificate.
Revoking a certificate disables its public link. An expired certificate remains viewable and downloadable, but is marked as expired.
How learners download certificates
A learner can open a certificate link from an email. They can also start from My Account at the top-right of the page:
Select My Courses & Bookings.
Stay on My Courses and open the course.
Select Get Certificate.
Get Certificate opens the most recently issued active certificate in a new browser tab. It is disabled when no active certificate is available, including before a certificate is issued or after all available certificates have been revoked. An expired certificate remains viewable and downloadable, but is marked as expired.
The order owner can also open the course's Participants section, open the participant's three-dot menu and select Get Certificate. The order owner is the person whose account the order belongs to, whether they placed it or the course provider created it for them.
If the learner has more than one active certificate for the Registration, Get Certificate opens the most recently issued one. A link copied from the Registration continues to open the specific certificate it belongs to.
If an expected certificate is unavailable, contact the course provider, which is the organization running the course. For the complete order-owner participant route, see Manage Participants and View Their Course Progress and Certificates.
Preview a certificate
There is no separate preview for an unissued certificate. To check the final PDF with real dynamic values, use a test Registration:
Open the test Registration.
Select Issue Certificate.
Select View on the issued certificate.
Check every page, background, image, text block and dynamic value.
Revoke the test certificate when finished if it should not remain active.
Upgrade for custom certificates
Go to Settings > Plans & Billing to review plans that include Custom Certificates. The Cademy default certificate remains available on every plan.
Frequently asked questions
Templates and design
Can I issue certificates without a custom template?
Yes. The Cademy default certificate is available on every plan.
Which plans include custom certificate templates?
Pro and Teams plans include Custom Certificates.
How many pages can a certificate have?
Up to 10 pages. Select + Page in the template editor to add a blank page after the current page.
Can each certificate page have a different background?
Yes. Backgrounds and content belong to individual pages. Paper size and orientation apply to the whole template.
Why is a dynamic value blank on the certificate?
The Certificate Expiry Date is blank if expiry is not enabled. Course Dynamic Value is blank if the course does not have a Dynamic Value. Registration ID may be blank on older Registrations that do not have one.
What happens if I change the course’s certificate template?
The new selection is used for future certificates. Certificates already issued remain linked to the template used when they were issued.
Will an issued certificate change if I edit its template?
Yes. The certificate is rendered from its linked template, so edits to that template can change certificates already issued with it.
What happens if I delete a custom template?
It disappears from normal template selection. Courses already using it can continue until another template is selected, and certificates already issued with it remain available.
Issuing and emailing
Can I choose a different template when issuing one certificate?
Yes. Open the Registration and select Issue Certificate. If Custom Certificates are available, use Template to choose the course template, Cademy Default or another active custom template. If Template is not shown, Cademy uses the template assigned to the course or the Cademy default certificate.
Why was a Registration skipped during bulk issuing?
It already has an active certificate using the selected template. This prevents a duplicate certificate and duplicate email for that template.
Can one learner have certificates using different templates?
Yes, when Custom Certificates are available. After the first certificate is issued, open the Registration, select Issue Another and choose a different template. The Registration lists each certificate separately.
Can I reissue a revoked certificate?
Yes. Open the revoked certificate’s Revoked menu and select Issue Certificate or Issue & Email. The certificate is restored using its original template.
How do I email a certificate to one learner?
Open the Registration, select Issue Certificate and leave Email the certificate to the participant selected before confirming. If the certificate is already active, select Copy to share its specific link or use a suitable email template containing Certificate Link.
Who receives automatic certificate emails?
Email student when certificate is issued controls the participant email. If the Registration has a different primary contact, that contact may also receive a notification.
Viewing, expiry and revocation
Which certificate appears on the learner’s private course page?
The Get Certificate action opens the most recently issued active certificate. Use Copy on the Registration when a link to a specific certificate is needed.
Can learners still open an expired certificate?
Yes. An expired certificate remains viewable and downloadable, but it is marked as expired. A revoked certificate’s public link no longer works.
How do I revoke a certificate?
Open the Registration, find the certificate and select Revoke. Its public link stops working and its status changes to revoked.
How do I check whether a certificate was issued?
Open the Registration to see each certificate and its status. The contact’s Activity also shows that a certificate was issued and whether it is valid, expired or revoked.