Transforming the graduation process with secure digital certificates 

Graduation represents a significant milestone in every student’s academic career. However, behind the scenes lie challenging and inefficient processes. Traditional methods of organising, printing, and conferring records are time-consuming, prone to errors, and often lack sufficient security measures leaving universities vulnerable to fraud risk. 

This blog will explore how universities can embrace digital transformation for their certification processes to improve the efficiency of issuing certificates, enhance the graduate experience and deliver advanced security from start to finish.  

Behind the scenes 

The most significant challenges during graduation are time and resources. Traditional certification processes are labour-intensive, requiring multiple members of the team to be on hand to print, store and issue thousands of documents each year.  

According to HESA, the average university in the UK issues and prints over 4,230 graduate records each year which typically include certificates and transcripts. That’s over 8,000 individual documents without additional confirmation letters or HEAR documents.  

Before adopting our secure certification solutions, Cardiff University used to spend up to 8 weeks processing and issuing documents with additional pressures of postage delays or documents being lost in transit. 

After adopting our secure Digital Certificates Solution, Cardiff University now publishes documents directly to their students as soon as the results are conferred. Graduates can securely view and share their documents directly through the self-service branded student portal without risking postage delays or security risks.  

The University of Westminster is another example of a university that faced lengthy processing times, requiring up to 56 days to produce graduate documents for the UK and Europe, and up to 100 days for international students. They would need four staff to complete all tasks, and this often came at the detriment of other services.   

With our secure Digital Certificates platform, the University of Westminster has reduced publication timescales to 10 days. This includes a 7-day period for amendments or late awards. 

Furthermore, where this used to take four members of staff to complete, this process now only needs one. The efficient processing of secure documents has helped the university to reduce the number of complaints and enquiries from graduates, reducing inbox traffic and giving the team more time to focus on other matters alongside certification.  

The University of Westminster experienced an 82% reduction in time required to publish and issue graduate degree documents with Digital Certificates Solution.

The university experienced a 75% reduction in staffing requirements for the issuance of graduate documents.

“As a university, we are really pleased to offer both secure digital and secure hard copy versions of our students’ awards and achievements in a fast and efficient manner.”– Team member at The University of Westminster 

There must be a better way  

We have all seen the power that digital technologies have in streamlining processes and enhancing productivity. The shift to digital not only helps businesses stay competitive – it also helps them deliver a seamless user experience that meets the evolving expectations of stakeholders. 

This is noticeably the case among students; they increasingly expect the same level of convenience and accessibility that they encounter in other aspects of their lives. Adopting a secure digital solution for the certification process is a crucial step in meeting these heightened demands.  

Embracing digital transformation with secure digital certificates

Digital certificates are electronic versions of traditional paper documents such as degree certificates and transcripts that reduce the immediate need for physical copies. They provide graduates with instant access to their awarded credentials to alleviate initial printing pressures. 

The transition to digital can support key university initiatives – security, graduate experience, sustainability and much more. 

When selecting the appropriate certification platform for your university, ask yourself this:   

• Does the platform deliver advanced document and process security features that will protect my reputation and academic integrity from fraud? 
• What experience will the graduate have when using the platform? How easily can they access their documents? And how will the platform support their journey into employment?  
• Leveraging a digital certification platform should assist your university in delivering a variety of digital credentials (such as digital certificates and digital badges). So ask yourself what credentials this platform offers and how can you best utilise them to enhance the experience for your students and graduates?
• Whilst being able to offer digital credentials is a key driver of your research, this should not impede the availability of physical copies – So, how does the solution support your university in issuing digital credentials alongside physical copies? 
• Does the platform allow you to issue secure credentials to past, present and future graduates? 
• How well does the platform ensure your brands’ visibility? Brand awareness should belong to your university, not a 3rd party solution where the recognition between the university, graduate and employer is lost.  
• Finally, does the platform have the capability to achieve cost-neutrality through revenue generation opportunities? 

Conclusion 

The transition to digital represents an important step forward in transforming the graduation process for universities, making way for more secure and efficient certification issuance whilst empowering past, present and future graduates to go after their dream careers.  

As evidenced by the experiences of Cardiff University and the University of Westminster, the adoption of Digital Certificates can transform the graduation experience, deliver unrivalled document security and convenience that meets the increasing demands of the modern stakeholder. 

By implementing a secure digital certificates solution, universities can overcome the challenges of traditional document issuance including long processing times, high workloads and security risks whilst delivering a seamless and rewarding experience for students, graduates, and 3rd parties (employers).  

However, picking the right solution for your university will depend on several factors including budget, present challenges, and business goals. 

Moving solely to digital may feel discouraging, with Digital Certificates Solution, you don’t have to choose between print or digital. Our platform offers a simple, scalable, and secure way to manage your credentials, giving you the flexibility to issue both secure digital and secure printed documents. With unique revenue generation capabilities, you can reach cost neutrality, meet your business goals and re-allocate resources to drive further growth.