5 reasons to claim your Griffith Credential digital badge
by Gemma Taggart
A few months into university life, I was introduced to the LinkedIn world and the importance of creating an account for professional development. In this digital age, it is now so common for employers, industry professionals, academics, and business owners (to name a few) to search for someone through social media platforms to gain an insight into that individual. Take LinkedIn for example, you can list your credentials, achievements, proud moments and more. My new favourite thing, though, is the addition of a digital badge.
On LinkedIn, digital badges appear under the licenses and certifications heading. This is where you will be able to show off your Griffith Credentials badges. People checking out your profile can click ‘see credential’, which links to a page on Credly with information such as the description of the award, the relevant skills and the earning criteria. Take a look at my Griffith Award for Academic Excellence – 2020 badge here.
Here are my 5 reasons why you should grab the opportunity to claim your digital badge and show it to the world on social media.
1. To set you apart in the job market
It’s common for organisations to scope social media for their next recruit. A digital badge makes you stand out from the crowd, signals achievement to potential employers and provides recognition for acquiring new skills, which allows employers to easily see acquired competencies.
2. It is a validated indicator of accomplishment(s) and skills
Because you have completed the work, there will be someone somewhere at the other end acknowledging your success, ready to invite you to accept your badge! It isn’t just an automatic email that is sent to you, there is a person validating you, realising your success, and rewarding you for it.
3. It travels with you
Being a digital badge, you can showcase it wherever you need to as it is displayed and accessed online. You can add it to a special section in your LinkedIn profile, save it to your computer, or attach it to your resume.
4. You will feel immense pride
A digital badge is still an award, like a little virtual medallion! Whenever I have received an invitation to claim a badge, I’ve always smiled and felt so proud because I know I have completed something successfully and been recognised for it. And it is great because lots of them don’t expire (some do if it is a yearly recognition), and there is no limit to how many you can get!
5. It’s free, quick, and easy to do (a 3-in-1 reason!)
You’ve done all the hard-work, now you get to reap the reward. Once you get an email of accolade, a few clicks and it is yours. Once you have accepted your digital badge, you are free to display it how you like, and it’ll appear within seconds.
Digital badges are such an excellent way to have a single place where you can view your triumphs, where you can share and add to various platforms in just a few clicks. Not only does it build your reputation, but it also levels up your learning, motivates collaboration and has terrific paper-saving environmental benefits. So, if you receive a digital badge and feel disheartened because it is not “the real thing” … don’t be! You have still completed the incredible hard work which has been validated and appreciated. Wear your (digital) badge of honour with pride and a huge well done to you!
Gemma Taggart is a Bachelor of Forensic Science student at Griffith University. She is a member of Griffith Honours College and the General Committee of the Golden Key International Honour Society. Gemma was awarded a Griffith Award for Academic Excellence in 2020. See her LinkedIn profile here.