Certificates and Qualifications Record

Who this is for

Every qualification you hold, on one page, with the certificate's whereabouts. One line per qualification: what it is, who awarded it, the level in your own words, when you gained it, whether and when it expires, its reference number and where the paper or PDF is kept.

Anyone who has been asked for a certificate number at short notice and had to hunt through drawers and email for it — and anyone with tickets or licences that lapse.

What this helps you track

• Every qualification, ticket and licence you hold, listed once
• Who awarded it and the reference number they gave it
• Which ones expire, and when
• Where the actual certificate is — folder, file, online account
• A single page to copy from when a form asks for your qualifications

How to use it

1. Write your name and the date the record was last updated at the top.
2. List each qualification with the awarding body and the level as you would describe it — degree, diploma, card, licence, certificate.
3. Enter the date gained and, where the qualification lapses, the date it expires; leave expiry blank for the ones that do not.
4. Copy the reference or certificate number exactly as it is printed.
5. Say where the certificate is kept, precisely enough for someone else to find it.
6. Add a line whenever you gain something new and check the expiry column when you renew a registration or apply for a job.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

What goes in the level column?

Whatever describes it in your own words — degree, postgraduate, diploma, trade card, licence, short course. Qualification frameworks differ by country, so no scale is imposed.

Should I include expired qualifications?

Yes, if you might want to show you once held them or need the reference to renew. Write the expiry date and note in the last column whether you intend to renew.

Is this the same as a CPD log?

No. The CPD log records the hours and activities that keep a registration current. This one records the qualifications themselves — the certificates an employer or body asks to see.

Where should the certificates themselves be kept?

That is up to you; the point of the column is to write it down. Many people keep a scan alongside the original and record both places.