In this article, we will talk about the transcript certificate. “What is a transcript document? “What does the transcript mean? “Where to get the transcript? What’s the use?” You can find the answer to every transcript related question you can think of. We will share all the details about the transcript certificate with examples. Once you are done with this article, you will have detailed information about the transcript. Whether you need this document for the first time or use it for graduation, you now know where and how you can get the transcript, and you can easily answer the question of why you should use it. Let’s get started.

Transcript Certificates: All You Need To Know

Higher education processes include procedures that require students to take various official actions. Regardless of whether these are graduates or students continuing their education, these procedures must be completed. For these formal procedures, documents containing detailed information about the education process of the students are needed. But that doesn’t mean you have to deal with multiple documents. You can easily share your information with the document called transcript, which contains the basic transcript of your student life.

It is very important to know that you need a transcript for your jobs or applications with private and public institutions. Because only with the transcript you will be able to provide detailed information about your education. Considering that the first document to be requested from you is a transcript, it is important to have detailed information about it.

What is a transcript?

The shortest answer to the question is that a transcript is a document containing detailed information about the courses students have taken during their education process. The transcript includes basic information such as the names of the courses, the grades taken, and the letter equivalent of the grades, as well as detailed information such as ECTS, weekly course hours, project information, and the language of instruction. It would also be correct to call these documents, which are created separately for each semester, the summary of the transcript in the education process. Your grade point average at the end of the document is also a value that expresses your end-of-term success.

In summary; Whether it is domestic or foreign official affairs, the transcript is a document that you will always need in your student life and after, thanks to the detailed summary information it contains.

What is a transcript certificate used for?

The transcript is used upon the request of official institutions or in the application process you will make. The importance of this document is that it is an official representation of the information collected about you during the educational process. It is possible to share detailed information with the transcript that is prepared separately for each education period. It is a document that will be the saviour of many transactions in terms of presenting the information you will give officially as evidence. This document, which contains information about the period of education, contains the following information;

• Name of courses taken
• Grades from lectures
• letter notes
• GPA (Grade Point Average)
• ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System)
• Lesson hours
• Period information
• education language
• Projects you have completed
• Internship information

Where to get a transcript certificate?

You may be wondering where to find a student sheet that provides a summary of the educational process. “Where to get the transcript?” The answer to the question is that you can easily extract the document with a few methods. The first of these is through student affairs or other similar offices in the school. In cases where you need a transcript certificate, you can request documents with signatures by requesting documents from these institutions. 

While this is the most commonly used method of obtaining transcripts, it can often be challenging. Because it is possible that you will encounter situations where you need to make an appointment with student affairs or wait for a long time. If it is not obligatory for you to submit a signed transcript, it would be correct to evaluate the other application conditions.

You can also get a transcript certificate online. Because of the digitalization of education processes, it has become possible to receive online transcripts. This method is used to get an e-signed transcript by requesting documents on your school’s own website. However, there are also institutions where the documents you create in this way cannot be valid. If the official institution that asks you to deliver your transcript requests it to be signed, it must be signed by the official institutions in the school.

Applying to student affairs is a method students often use. Students who use student affairs for various jobs during their higher education should also get help from student affairs for transcripts. In some universities, an appointment must be made by the student affairs office before making a request for the document. People who do not want to experience victimization should consider this situation. This practice is frequently used because the transcript must be prepared and approved by the authorities.

With the proliferation of digitalization, the availability of official documents in the digital environment is increasing. For this reason, transcript applications can be made by entering the information systems of the universities with a username and password. However, the documents obtained over the internet in this way are usually exemplary. Stamped and signed documents must be used for applications to institutions. In such a case, it is important to get the transcript from the university student affairs office and have it signed and approved by the relevant departments.

Where are transcript certificates used?

There are several reasons for requesting an academic transcript; maybe for professional reasons, educational or personal reasons. Most people receive their academic transcripts for graduate studies, job applications, or overseas processing. This is because a degree or diploma is not enough. After all, the two are just proof of graduation, without giving any details about the courses you took or the grades you received during your graduation. An academic transcript provides any university/company with a holistic view of the student’s academic performance and achievements.  

In addition, a transcript is a document that is needed during the education process or after graduation. Because it is a requested document for both official transactions and applications. It is possible with transcripts to prove your educational status and proficiency and to see the scope of the courses you have taken throughout your education process. 

Transcript certificates are used in the following situations:

• Scholarship applications for students continuing their education,
• In internship applications,
• In job applications,
• In cases where male students’ military service deferral procedures and postponement are required,
• When necessary for students who have just graduated and have not yet received their diplomas,
• In postgraduate applications,
• When vertical or transfer students need to submit documents to their new schools to prove their course equivalence,
• In academic personnel recruitment,
• Training abroad, etc.

A summary of your academic life is created with the transcript document that allows you to prove the experiences, achievements, qualifications, and details of your courses to official institutions during the education process. In this way, while the proficiency of the students who continue their education is proven, the graduation status of the graduated students and the projects they have completed, and their success in the courses are shared.

At the same time, when you need to report the equivalence status of your courses, you will need this document and your curriculum will be created. You should not forget to request the documents in additional languages if it is requested from you. You should never ignore the language requirements of the transcript documents that will be requested from you, especially during your registration for abroad programs.

How does a graduate get a transcript certificate?

A university transcript is not a document used only in higher education processes. Transcript documents are also important for graduated higher education students and they are frequently encountered. In such cases, it is a matter of curiosity how graduate students will receive transcripts, and it is wondered which ways should be followed. There are several ways to obtain a graduate transcript certificate. The first of these is the online transcription process, which is one of the easiest methods. 

If your reason for getting a graduate transcript is that you need to complete an urgent job and you cannot complete the process via the first method, you should try another online method, the alumni portals. Many universities have graduate student pages on their websites and transcripts can be requested through these systems. Moreover, it will be possible to get the e-signed transcript document, which is accepted by many official institutions today, in this way. If you have tried both methods and are still encountering problems and not getting your document, you should know that there is no other method online. In such a case, you can go to your university and get your transcript from student affairs or other official institutions and request a wet signature.

What should be mentioned in transcript certificates?

Now that we have learned what transcript certificates are, we can move on to examine what different types of information they should contain. Transcripts can come in many different forms. However, no matter how different they are, if you master the transcript, you will be able to read the information and understand what it means. For example; Knowing what abbreviations such as ECTS, GPA, and letter grades (AA, BA, CC, etc.) represent, will enable you to understand the educational information clearly.

Transcript certificates should have basic information such as term information, course name, course code, ECTS, grades received, letter equivalents of grades, and grade point average are included in the document. In addition, the current status of the student should be indicated at the top of the document, proving that he/she is a graduate student. With this student certificate, you can share your education information wherever you want and show the content of your education.

Even when the transcript is not in a language you don’t know, as long as you know the transcript alphabet, you will be able to read it. Because in terms of equivalence of educational institutions, transcription processes are completed in a way that everyone can understand and it is aimed to be easily understood in cases where possible equivalence is required.