Nivparo

Certificate wording examples

206 wording examples for 17 common certificates, for students, staff, volunteers and teams, formal and warm, long and short. Copy any of them, or choose Use this wording to open the matching template with it filled in.

Checked and updated 28 October 2026.

The four parts of certificate wording

  1. Title – what the certificate is: “Certificate of Achievement”, “Star of the Week”. Under about 40 characters fits on one or two lines.
  2. The line before the name – “This certificate is proudly presented to”, “With thanks to”, “This is to certify that”. Formal lines suit work and courses; short, warm ones suit children.
  3. The name, the way the person is known.
  4. The award or reason line – the part that makes it personal. One specific sentence, ideally 40–110 characters, prints at a comfortable size. In the examples below it starts with “For …”, or continues the sentence (“has completed …”) when the line before the name is “This is to certify that”.

Writing for a whole list? Give each person their own reason line in a spreadsheet column and import it in one go. For a class at the end of the year, the end-of-year awards list has an award name and a reason for every kind of student.

Certificate of achievement wording

Achievement wording names a result. The more exact the result, the better the certificate reads years later: a level, a score, a distance or a qualification. Open the certificate of achievement template.

Certificate of completion wording

Completion wording usually follows the name as a sentence (“has successfully completed …”), so the line before the name is often “This is to certify that”. Give the course name and, for training records, the hours. Open the certificate of completion template.

Certificate of appreciation wording

Appreciation wording is a thank-you, so it can be warmer than any other certificate. Say what the person gave – time, skill, patience – and, if you can, what it made possible. Open the certificate of appreciation template.

Complete certificate of appreciation examples

Every field filled in, the way it reads on the certificate. The names and organisations are made up. Each one opens in the maker with its design, or download the Word template it suits. To print one for every name on a list, use the certificate of appreciation template.

Certificate of recognition wording

Recognition wording acknowledges something sustained – service, leadership, conduct – rather than one result. “In recognition of” works as the line before the name or as the start of the reason. Open the certificate of recognition template.

Certificate of participation wording

Participation wording should name the event, because the event is what the certificate remembers. Add the date or year in the same line if you leave the Date field empty. Open the certificate of participation template.

Employee of the month wording

Employee of the month wording works best with one concrete thing the person did that month. Put the month in the reason (or in the title, such as “Employee of the Month – May 2026”). Open the employee of the month certificate template.

Star of the week wording

Star of the week wording is read aloud to a class, so keep it short and about something the child did, not about being clever. Vary the reason so every child's certificate is their own. Open the star of the week certificate template.

Perfect attendance wording

Attendance wording should say which period it covers – a half term, a term, a year – because that is what the certificate proves. Reward improvement too, not only a perfect record. Open the perfect attendance certificate template.

Sports award wording

Sports wording can be just the award and the event, such as “1st place – 200 m freestyle”. Change the title to suit: Sports Day Award, Most Valuable Player, Season Award. Open the sports award certificate template.

Graduation certificate wording

Graduation wording names what is being left and, for children, often looks ahead to what comes next. Formal programmes usually keep to “This is to certify that … has completed”. Open the graduation certificate template.

Student of the month wording

Student of the Month comes round every month, so vary the reason and tie it to something the student did that month – or to the month's value if your school has one. Open the student of the month certificate template.

Honor roll wording

Honor roll wording is usually formal: name the level (honor roll, high honor roll, principal's list) and the grading period, so the certificate still makes sense in a portfolio years later. Open the honor roll certificate template.

Volunteer certificate wording

Volunteer certificates are kept as proof of service or as a thank-you. For proof, give the role, the organisation, the dates and the hours; for a thank-you, say what difference the person made. Open the volunteer certificate template.

Scholarship certificate wording

Scholarship wording names the scholarship and the year. Keep the conditions and the payment details in the award letter; the certificate is what the recipient frames. Open the scholarship certificate template.

Certificate of attendance wording

Attendance wording confirms presence, not a pass: “attended” rather than “completed”. Add the date and the hours if the certificate goes into a training or CPD record. Open the certificate of attendance template.

Retirement certificate wording

Retirement wording thanks someone for the years they gave. Name the role and the years of service, and add one line that colleagues will recognise. Open the retirement certificate template.

Kindergarten and preschool graduation wording

For young children, keep the wording short and warm, and add the school and the class year so families can tell the certificates apart in years to come. Open the kindergarten graduation certificate template.

Tips for wording that people keep

When the wording is ready, see how to print certificates for paper and printer settings.

Open the certificate maker