Once your account turns on the multiple-certification discount, Rhythm prices certification application fees differently for buyers who already hold several certifications. This article explains how Rhythm counts a buyer’s certifications, chooses which application fees stay at full price, and discounts the rest.
What the Discount Applies To
The multiple-certification discount only changes application fee prices. Course fees and exam fees keep their own prices, which Rhythm calculates before any coupon is applied, no matter how many certifications the buyer already holds.
Which Certifications Count Toward the Threshold
When Rhythm prices an application fee, it counts the certifications the buyer already has “in play” for the current calendar year. Rhythm uses the server’s clock for that count, not the individual cycle for each certification.
- Expired certifications still count, for whatever year they expired in. Even a certification that expired many years ago still counts toward this year’s total if that is the year recorded on it.
- Status doesn't matter. Rhythm counts certifications in any status, not only active ones.
- Certifications are counted individually. Two certifications in the same program count as two certifications, not one.
- Only the first page of a buyer's certifications is read when Rhythm counts them automatically. A buyer with an unusually large number of certifications could be under-counted.
Tip
If a discount looks wrong for someone with a very large number of certifications, or for someone whose certification expired long ago, keep both counting rules in mind. An old expired certification still counts, and Rhythm may not read a very long certification list in full.
For the discount to apply, the order must include the buyer’s type, either contact or organization, and identify the matching record. Without that information, Rhythm cannot count the buyer’s certifications, and it does not fall back to charging full price; the pricing attempt fails instead.
Charging Full Price for the First Certifications
Your account sets how many certifications pay full price before the discount starts applying to the rest. Rhythm decides which of the buyer’s fees stay at full price by program order, not by purchase date, so the full-price allowance does not necessarily apply to the buyer’s oldest or newest certifications.
If one order contains more than one application-fee line, Rhythm prices each line independently against the same list of the buyer’s certifications. The order does not use up the full-price allowance line by line; each fee is checked against the buyer’s full certification count on its own.
Excluding Programs from the Discount
Your account can list specific programs whose application fees always stay at full price, regardless of the discount. A program on this list still counts toward the buyer’s threshold total, because the setting only prevents that program’s fee from being discounted. If a program is later deleted while its identifier remains on this list, nothing breaks; the leftover identifier simply does not match anything.
How the Discounted Price Is Calculated
After a fee qualifies for the discount, your account’s settings determine whether Rhythm reduces it by a percentage or by a fixed amount. These two calculations behave differently at their extremes:
- A percentage above 100% can push the price negative. Rhythm does not stop this from happening.
- A fixed-amount discount has a floor at zero, so it cannot push a price below zero the way a percentage discount can.
- A negative discount amount raises the price instead of lowering it. Rhythm does not reject this either.
Warning
Double-check a percentage-based discount before saving it. A percentage above 100% is not rejected, and it can result in a negative application fee.
Related
You configure fees and this discount’s settings alongside your other Certifications fees. To learn how a person’s certification history affects what they can apply for, see Which Application Processes You Can Use.