Certifications
Your EMA Certificate: Recognized Proof of Successful Completion
Upon successful completion of a certified EMA course, all participants receive a recognized certificate. Whether it's a program or a specialization module, upon passing the exam, the coveted EMA certificate is awarded.
(The prerequisite is fulfilling the criteria defined in the examination regulations.)
What are Digital Badges?
Digital badges, also known as badges, open badges, or credentials, are a modern way to make a learner's achievements visible. They provide a verifiable proof of learning outcomes, acquired skills, competencies, or other personal qualifications.
The basic idea is to make further education more visible and tangible. After all, completed further training is only beneficial if the acquired competencies are also clearly visible.
A digital badge creates this transparency and facilitates the recognition of what has been learned - both within and outside a company.
How the Mainframe Academy Uses Digital Badges
EMA GmbH and EMA AG certify their programs and numerous specialization modules with digital badges. These offer an innovative way to digitally recognize the achievements of learners. The big advantage: The badges can not only be shared in personal emails but also on social networks, making the acquired competencies publicly visible. A certificate no longer just ends up in a personnel file but can be actively used for professional advancement.
For the issuance of digital badges, the European Mainframe Academy (EMA) uses the "Open Badges" system. An open badge consists of two parts: a visual component, the emblem, and invisible metadata that contains information about the issuer, the recipient, the award criteria, and the learning outcomes achieved. This metadata is stored as verifiable proof of achievements and goals, making the badge a verifiable seal of quality.
The "Open Badges" program was introduced in 2011 by the Mozilla Foundation with the aim of making education more transparent and accessible. To this day, it is managed by the Mozilla Foundation.
Issuance and Data Protection
Since a badge's metadata contains information about the acquired competencies as well as details about the issuer and recipient, the protection of this data is crucial.
Data security is governed by the applicable data protection regulations of the respective issuer and not necessarily by the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), unless the provider is subject to it.
Before creating a personal badge, explicit consent to the collection of the necessary data is obtained directly by the training organization.
Use and Management of Badges
Upon completion of a course, the training organization is responsible for issuing the digital badges. Participants receive these automatically and can flexibly use them in emails, social media, or on personal websites.
If participants wish to withdraw their consent to data processing, they can do so directly through the training organization, which will also initiate the deletion of the data.
After deletion, the badge can no longer be used.