Every certification program controls whether holders can print a certificate. Use these settings to turn certificate printing on or off, choose how certificates are created, design the certificate from a template, and preview it before you save.
What It Controls
A program’s certificate settings determine whether that program’s certification holders can print a certificate from the Portal. When certificates are available, Rhythm either generates them from a template you design, or your staff create them outside Rhythm and upload them to each holder’s record. You set this for each program, so different programs can use different certificate options.
Rhythm never emails certificates automatically. A holder prints their certificate from Active Certifications in the Portal by selecting Print Certificate. Your staff can open and print the same certificate from an individual’s certification record, under its certification options.
Where to Find It
Go to Certifications › Setup › Programs › Catalog, then open the program or create a new one. On the program form, find the Certificate Settings card.
Prerequisites
- The program you want to configure must already exist, or you must be creating it now.
- To preview a template, you need the ID of an existing certification somewhere in your account. Any certification ID works, even one from a different program.
Choose a Certificate Mode
- Open the program's Certificate Settings card.
- Under How are certificates generated?, choose one of three options:
- Disabled – certificates are unavailable, so they cannot be generated or printed.
- Generated Automatically – Rhythm generates certificates from the template you configure.
- Manually Created – your staff create certificates outside Rhythm and upload them directly to the record.
- Select Save Changes.
Result
The mode applies immediately to every holder in the program, including certifications activated before you made the change.
Design the Certificate Template
When the mode is Generated Automatically, Rhythm shows a Certificate Template card with a code editor and a merge-field picker above it. This is not a visual, WYSIWYG designer. You write the template markup directly, and the picker helps you insert fields into that markup.
The picker includes fields from four record types: Contact, Organization, Certification, and Program, including custom fields from each one. Use these fields to build a certificate with details such as the holder’s name and the program title. When you pick a field, Rhythm copies its placeholder so you can paste it into the template.
The template only uses those four record types. Values entered on a certification application, and course-registration fields such as a completion date, are not available because application custom fields are separate from certification custom fields. There is also no efficient way to copy application values onto the certification record. Certification status is an exception you can update in bulk through queries, but application data generally is not. You cannot configure additional merge-field sources yourself; adding another source would require a feature request for engineering.
If your program repeats the same kind of data several times, such as separate fields for Park 1 through Park 10, add each field to the template individually. Defining or mirroring a custom field elsewhere in your setup does not make it appear on the certificate by itself. The template must reference each field you want to show.
You can also add static labels directly in the template and position them next to merge fields, instead of relying on the certificate background image to carry that text. For example, if you want an Expiration Date to print, add the label yourself and place the corresponding certification field beside it.
Tip
The Program merge field can return the program's ID instead of its readable name in some cases. If your printed certificate shows an ID where you expected the program title, check the result in Preview and consider using the program's title field directly if one is available.
A generated certificate can combine a static background image with fields the template code fills in, such as the recipient's name, certification name, and effective or expiration dates. Signature graphics are usually handled separately from those coded fields. If your background image already includes a signature and signer's name, remove the corresponding coded output from the template so the signature does not appear twice.
Tip
Rhythm does not check your template for syntax errors when you save it. Use Preview to catch mistakes before members see the certificate.
To build a custom layout, paste one combined block into the Certificate Template editor. Start with a <style> section, then add the HTML markup with merge fields such as {{contact.full_name}}, {{certification.name}}, {{program.name}}, and the certification's date and organization fields where you want them to print.
The certificate's background image is typically stored as an asset in Portals & Microsites, and the template references that asset's URL instead of the image itself. Changing the background image does not require a new page layout, because the template code renders its fields on top of whatever background the URL points to. There is no strict required size for that image. A higher-resolution source generally works best because Rhythm can scale a larger image down to fit the page, while enlarging a small image can make it look blurry when printed.
Rhythm does not currently expose Portal settings for controlling a generated certificate's print size or image resolution beyond what the template and background image provide.
Preview a Certificate Before Saving
- In the Certificate Template card, select Preview.
- Enter the ID of an existing certification. You can find a certification's ID on its own record.
- Select Preview Template.
Result
Rhythm renders the template exactly as typed, using that certification’s data, whether or not you have saved the program. The preview opens in a new browser tab, and previewing does not save anything.
Warning
A preview always renders as though the program's certificate mode were Generated Automatically, even if the program is set to Manually Created. For a program that uses manually created certificates, the preview may not match the certificate that is produced.
Dependencies and Precedence
- Changing the certificate mode applies immediately and to every holder, not only to certifications activated after the change.
- Changing the template applies to every certificate printed afterward, including certificates for holders who printed an earlier version. Rhythm does not keep a record of which version a holder first printed.
- A preview can use any certification in your account, regardless of which program it belongs to. The preview does not check whether the certification belongs to the program you are editing.
Change Impact and How to Revert
Switching a program’s certificate mode to Disabled removes Print Certificate from the Portal for that program’s holders. It does not delete certificates already produced while the program used Manually Created mode. To revert, return to the Certificate Settings card and choose a different mode, or restore the previous template text.
Permissions
Staff who can open the program form can view and change its certificate settings and use the preview.
Validation and Errors
| Message or behavior | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
Unable to preview certificate | The certification ID you entered does not exist in your account, or the preview could not be rendered | Copy an ID from an existing certification's own page and try again |
| The preview does not open | Your browser blocked the new tab | Allow pop-ups for the Console and try again |
| An already-active certification stops generating its certificate | The cause is not established in every case | In some cases, reactivating the certification, or the certificate record itself, has restored certificate generation; try it before escalating |