INSEAD and other business schools are offering students Smart Diplomas and Smart Certificates, which are online and secure versions of diplomas and certificates developed by CVTrust. These online credentials cannot be lost or misplaced like physical documents. When posted on social media, they link out securely to verify authenticity. INSEAD provides all graduates Smart Diploma accounts in addition to physical diplomas. While some students choose not to use the online option, it helps schools maintain contact with alumni and allows life-long verification of credentials.

1. Reprint from AACSB’s BizEd Magazine The Leading Voice of Business Education
From the November/December 2013 issue
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
Smart Diploma Provides
Online Credentials
When graduates receive their paper diplomas, it’s a great accomplishment. But if
they lose those documents, it can be an
aggravation. “Our graduates tend to lose
paper diplomas, but we never duplicate
a diploma once it’s issued—we only offer
a certified document,” says Stéphanie Villemagne, director of the MBA program for
INSEAD, based in Fontainebleau, France.
To address this problem, INSEAD and
other schools now are offering students
Smart Diplomas and Smart Certificates,
online credentials developed by Francebased CVTrust. These online documents are permanent and
secure, and they cannot be misplaced, explains CVTrust
founder David Goldenberg. “Students can access their diplomas securely through their smartphones, iPads, or computers,
and they can promote them on LinkedIn and Facebook,” he
says.
When posted on social networks, Smart Diplomas and
Smart Certificates appear in miniature; when recruiters click
on the images, they are taken to a secure site, under the
originating school’s domain, that verifies its authenticity. Students also can send an email through the CVTrust system
that includes a link to the verified document.
INSEAD has provided all of its degreed graduates with
Smart Diploma accounts, in addition to paper diplomas, since
December 2011. The school sends an email to all graduating
students that explains the system and includes a link to the
site where they must activate their accounts. If students do
not do so within six months, their accounts are deleted.
About 60 percent activate their accounts within the first
two days, says Villemagne. Some choose not to use the
service. If any of these students change their minds after six
months, they can ask the school to set up new accounts.
To increase participation, INSEAD is working to make
students more aware of the online document’s permanence,
What users see after clicking on a link to a Smart Diploma
portability, and accessibility. The service is not yet mainstream, so the school also sometimes receives calls from
recruiters and employers who have questions about the links
they’ve received from potential hires. “We explain that it’s
not a PDF, but a secure link to the diploma itself,” says Villemagne. She expects the number of queries to decrease as
recruiters become more familiar with the service.
IMD in Switzerland and Mannheim Business School in
Germany also issue Smart Diplomas. The MIT Sloan School of
Management in the United States issues Smart Certificates to
participants who complete its executive education programs.
Because graduates must maintain their current email
addresses to access their diplomas, the system also helps
schools maintain up-to-date contact information for their alumni.
Schools can administer post-graduation surveys and even find
lost alumni by querying registered users. Says Goldenberg, “It
creates a lifetime bond between the school and the student.”
The annual cost of the service to schools depends on the
number of students a school graduates. Alumni and recruiters access the service for free. For more information, visit
www.CVTrust.com.
Reprinted with permission from BizEd, published by AACSB International - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business