Your course certificate

When you finish every lesson of a course, you earn a certificate of completion. It's a PDF you can download and print, and it's recorded in our public certificate registry so anyone can check it's genuine.

How do I earn a course certificate?

Finish every lesson in the course and pass each lesson's Quick check quiz while signed in. When you pass the last lesson (the button says Finish & get certified), you'll see "You did it!" and a View your certificate button. Your certificate is created at that moment, with its own registry code.

Certificates are free, like the courses. See Taking a free course for how lessons and quizzes work.

Where do I find my course certificate?

You can open it from:

• View your certificate, right after you finish the last lesson.
• View certificate on the course overview page, once you've completed the course.
• View certificate on the Course complete screen or in the lesson list, when you reopen a finished course.

The certificate page lives at /courses/[course]/certificate. You must be signed in to open it. If you're signed out you'll be asked to sign in, then sent back. If you haven't finished the course yet, you're sent to the course overview instead.

What's on the certificate page?

• Back to course: returns to the course overview.
• Certificate of Completion and the course title.
• Download PDF: saves your certificate as a PDF file.
• A preview of the real certificate, the same file you download and print.
• "Can't see it? Download the PDF. Every certificate has a registry number anyone can check at /verify."
• Copy link: copies this page's address (it shows Copied for a moment).
• View profile: opens your profile, where your new badge appears under Certifications.

How do I download or print my course certificate?

1. Open the certificate page.
2. Tap Download PDF. The file is named with your registry code and the course name.
3. Open the PDF and print it from your device, or keep the file to share.

If the preview on the page is blank (some phones and browsers don't show PDFs inside a page), tap Download the PDF under it. The file is the same.

You can download it as many times as you like. It's the same certificate with the same registry code each time.

What's printed on a course certificate?

A genuine Underground Aquarium certificate carries:

• Your name and the course you completed, with the date it was issued.
• A registry number (your certificate code), at the top right and along the bottom.
• A QR code at the bottom right that opens this certificate's record in the registry.
• The founder's signature: Christopher M. Lewis, Founder & Judge.
• The Society seal, beneath the award.

What is my certificate's registry code?

Every certificate has a unique code that looks like UA-C???-????-????. It's printed on the PDF at the top right and along the bottom.

• UA means it was issued by Underground Aquarium.
• The first letter after it is the program. Course certificates start with C (Courses).
• The rest is a random serial, with a final check character that catches typos.

Codes never use the letters I, L, O or U, so nothing on the paper can be misread. The code is only shown on the certificate itself, so download the PDF to find it.

How can someone check my certificate is real?

Anyone can verify it, no account needed:

1. Go to the Certificate Registry (also linked as Verify a certificate in the site footer).
2. Type the code from the certificate and tap Verify. Or scan the QR code on a printed copy to go straight to its record.

A genuine course certificate shows Verified and Authentic certificate, "Issued by Underground Aquarium and in force today.", your name under Awarded to, Completed the course: [course] under Award, the program (C · Courses) and the Date of issue.

Each certificate's record has its own address, /verify/ followed by the code. See Verifying a certificate for everything the registry shows.

How do I share my course certificate?

The best ways to share it so people can trust it:

• Send or post the PDF. It carries the registry code and QR code, so anyone can check it.
• Share the registry record address: /verify/ followed by your code. It opens a public page confirming your certificate, with your name and the course.
• Point people to your profile. Finished courses show on your public profile in the Trophies tab under Course certificates.

Don't share the Copy link address. The certificate page is private: only you can open it while signed in. Anyone else who opens that link is sent to sign in or to the course page, not to your certificate.

Sharing your course certificate honestly

• Describe it as what it is: a certificate of completion for an Underground Aquarium course, issued in the registry's Courses program.
• Share the certificate as issued. Don't edit the PDF. The registry record is the official version, so anyone checking the code sees the real name, course and date.
• A certificate can be revoked. A revoked certificate shows Revoked and No longer valid in the registry, with the date it was revoked, and should not be relied on.

Where does my course badge appear?

• On your own profile, under Certifications, with the badge name, course title and date earned.
• On your public profile, in the Trophies tab under Course certificates.
• On Courses, the course is marked Completed.

If a course is later taken down from the site, it no longer shows on profiles.

Can I change the name on my certificate?

There's no way to edit a certificate yourself. If the name printed on it is wrong, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with the course name and your registry code.

Common problems

The certificate page sends me to the course page. You haven't finished every lesson yet, or you're signed in to a different account. Open the course and check which lessons still need a check mark.

The certificate page asks me to sign in. The certificate page is private. Sign in and you'll be sent back to it.

The preview is blank. Tap Download PDF (or Download the PDF under the preview). Some browsers can't show a PDF inside a page.

Someone says my Copy link doesn't work. That link only works for you. Send them the PDF or your registry record address (/verify/ followed by your code) instead.

The registry says "That code has a typo". One character was mistyped. Compare each character with the certificate and try again. An O is read as a zero automatically.

The registry says "Not in the registry". Check the code was copied correctly from the PDF. If it was and you still see this, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with a photo or copy of the certificate.

The registry says "The registry didn't answer". That's a problem on our end, not with your certificate. Try again in a minute.

My badge isn't on my profile. Make sure you passed the last lesson (you should have seen "You did it!"). Refresh your profile. If it's still missing, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with the course name.