Recorded courses award certificates for finishing the course. Live and in-person batches work differently: a batch certificate is earned by attending enough of the batch's classes and, where the teacher has set any, doing the class work that is needed for the certificate. For a live Zoom class, certificates are delivered once the teacher marks the batch as completed and NSDP approves it.
How attendance is counted
- Your attendance is the number of classes you were marked present (attended) divided by all of the batch's scheduled classes. Cancelled classes are left out.
- Because the whole timetable is counted from the start, your percentage can only go up as classes are marked.
- Being marked left early, or only joining the online meeting without being confirmed as attended, doesn't count toward the minimum.
- Example: a batch with 20 classes and a 75% minimum needs 15 classes marked present.
Class work that is needed for the certificate
- A teacher can mark an assignment or a quiz as Needed for the certificate. When a batch has such items, enough attendance alone is not enough: every one of them must be done too.
- An assignment counts once it is handed in and has not been returned for another try. A quiz counts once it is passed.
- Materials and resources never count. Items marked optional do not count either.
- Students see their progress on the certificate card: "N of M assignments and quizzes done".
- With no such items, the certificate depends on attendance alone.
Who marks attendance
Attendance is marked by the batch's teacher, and for in-person batches also by the campus that hosts the batch. If a class you attended is not marked, tell your teacher or campus soon, so the register can be corrected before the batch ends.
When certificates are issued
For a live Zoom class, the teacher finishes the batch and NSDP approves it. That approval is what delivers the certificates.
- TeacherTeacher
Attendance and class work are marked
For every class and every item that is needed for the certificate.
- Teacher
Mark batch as completed
The teacher sees how many students will get a certificate and how many will not, and sends the request to NSDP.
- NSDPNSDP
NSDP approves
The batch is completed and its admissions close. NSDP can also return the request with a note, and the teacher asks again.
- SystemSystem
Good outcome: Eligible students receive one
Everyone who earned it receives a certificate, with its own certificate number.
- System
Stop / exit: Not eligible
No certificate is issued to a student below the attendance minimum or with required class work still open.
- A teacher cannot complete a batch alone: saving the batch does not do it. Until NSDP approves, the batch stays open and no certificate goes out this way.
- The teacher can withdraw the request while it is waiting.
- If certificates are switched off for the programme, approving completes the batch without delivering any.
Each programme also has a setting for when its certificates can go out. It applies to in-person batches at a campus and to live batches alike:
| The programme issues certificates | What that means |
|---|---|
| Automatically when the batch ends | Certificates go out when the batch is completed, when its last class is marked, or when attendance is saved after its end date. The batch can also be closed at any time. |
| Only when the batch is closed | Certificates go out when NSDP staff, the batch's teacher or, for in-person batches, the campus close the batch. |
- Each student gets at most one certificate per batch.
- Once a batch has been closed, attendance saved later still issues certificates to students who newly reach the minimum.
- Certificates also depend on certificates being turned on and the certificate design being ready. NSDP sets the designs: one for recorded courses, one for live Zoom classes and one for on-campus courses.
Revoked certificates
A certificate can be revoked if it was issued in error, for example after a register correction. A revoked certificate can no longer be downloaded, shows as Certificate revoked when its number is checked, and is never re-issued automatically. It can be restored only by an explicit re-issue.
Where to find your certificate
Students find batch certificates with their other certificates under My certificates, where they can be downloaded and shared. Every certificate carries a number that anyone, such as an employer, can check on the school's verification page.
FAQ
The batch has ended but I have no certificate.
Either your attendance is below the programme's minimum, an assignment or quiz that is needed for the certificate is still open, the teacher has not yet marked the batch as completed, NSDP has not yet approved it, or the programme does not award certificates. Ask your teacher or campus.
I attended every class. Why am I not eligible?
Check your certificate card. If it shows assignments and quizzes still to do, hand in the assignments and pass the quizzes that are needed for the certificate.
I was marked Left early. Does that count?
Not for the certificate. Only classes marked present (attended) count toward the minimum.
Why is my percentage low early in the batch?
The percentage is worked out against the whole timetable from the start, so it rises as classes are held and marked.
A class I attended is marked absent.
Tell your teacher or campus. Once the register is corrected, a certificate can be issued if you then reach the minimum.