Baccalaureate certificates will soon be digital and verifiable
In collaboration with Educa, Switch has implemented a proof of concept for digital baccalaureate certificates. The project demonstrates that digital education certificates simplify the largely manual enrolment process at universities.
In brief
- Switch and Educa have demonstrated in a proof of concept that a baccalaureate certificate can serve as digital proof within the education system.
- The digital certificate is stored in a wallet and transmitted electronically to universities upon enrolment.
- This process simplifies and speeds up the verification of the certificate’s authenticity and saves costs.
- The project also strengthens students’ the digital sovereignty.
When prospective students enrol at a university today, the universities must verify the authenticity of the submitted school-leaving certificates with the respective issuing bodies. This process involves several manual steps and is therefore time-consuming and costly.
Digital sovereignty assured
This is precisely where the digital baccalaureate certificate comes in. In future, students will receive their certificate as a digital document from their upper secondary level school and store it, for example, in their swiyu Wallet alongside their e-ID. In addition to swiyu, any wallet that meets the requirements of the Swiss e-ID Ordinance is suitable. When enrolling at a higher education institution, students submit the certificate electronically for digital verification at the institution. This significantly simplifies and acelerates a process that was previously fragmented – a win-win for all involved.
Like the e-ID, this concept is based on the principle of self-sovereign identity. Users retain full control over their data and decide for themselves what information they share, when and with whom.
Working together for digitalisation across systems
The project ‘Baccalaureate Certificate as Digital Proof’, supported by Digital Public Services Switzerland, was implemented by Educa in collaboration with Switch, EPFL and the cantons of Neuchâtel and Fribourg. The project aimed to gain practical experience with the future e-ID infrastructure in the education sector, establish a standard for digital baccalaureate certificates and connect educational institutions and authorities.
Standardisation as a foundation
By publishing a schema on the I14Y interoperability platform, Educa has laid an important foundation. Among other things, this schema specifies the minimum requirements, such as the name of the issuing school, the surname and first name of the school-leaver, and the grades achieved. The proof of concept shows that digital credentials in the education sector are no longer a vision, but a tangible reality. The digital baccalaureate certificate is another building block for greater digital mobility within the Swiss education sector.
More on the topic of digital identities in the education area:
A milestone for digital mobility in the Swiss Education Area
