The Global Education Certificate (GEC) from Católica Porto Business School (CPBS) is intended to distinguish students by recognizing their involvement in experiences beyond academic performance. It highlights international engagement, volunteer work, internships, and participation in extracurricular activities that contribute to personal and professional growth. The certificate serves as a supplement to the diploma, showcasing the student's commitment to holistic development, including ethical and social responsibility.
Through the GEC, CPBS encourages students to go beyond the classroom and participate in activities that enhance their global perspective, skill set, and character. By recognizing these achievements, the certificate aims to signal to employers that the recipient is not only academically accomplished but also a well-rounded, proactive individual ready to contribute meaningfully to their professional and personal life.
The Certificate
The award of the GEC is divided into two types of components:
Compulsory components
To obtain the certificate, students must necessarily fulfil three conditions:
- Completion of at least 60 ECTS: i) ECTS carried out at CPBS in English; or ii) ECTS carried out outside Portugal;
- Participation in volunteering activities, performing at least 30 hours of volunteering, in initiatives coordinated by UDIP/CASO or that may be validated by UDIP/CASO
- Have at least 8 points in the scoring component.
Scoring component
Students must obtain at least 8 points in extracurricular activities.
Table 1 – Activities considered in the scoring component
| Ativity |
Entity responsible for certification |
Entity responsible for uploading information |
Points |
Maximum number of points |
|
Being an international buddy |
International Office (IO) | IO | 2 | 4 |
|
Internship in an international context, validated by the IO |
IO | IO | 6 | 6 |
|
Certificate of a foreign language other than English (A1 or A2) |
Education Office | Education Office | 2 | 2 |
|
Internship in a national context, coordinated by the Career Development Office (CDO) |
CDO | CDO | 5 | 5 |
|
Participation in the skills development workshops organised by the CDO (1 point for each workshop) |
CDO | CDO | 1 | 3 |
|
Participation in the coaching activities organised by the CDO (1 point for each type of activity) |
CDO | CDO | 1 | 3 |
|
Participation in the CPBS Mentoring programme for 1 academic year |
Mentoria CPBS |
Global Education Office (GEO) |
1 | 2 |
|
Participation in activities promoted by CPBS Board (A3ES, EQUIS, etc...) |
CPBS Board | GEO | 1 | 2 |
|
Participation in the Final (Finalíssima) of the Multidisciplinary Project I (PMI) |
PMI Team |
GEO | 2 | 2 |
|
Participation in the Final (Finalíssima) of the Multidisciplinary Project II (PMII) |
PMII Team |
GEO | 2 | 2 |
|
Participation in the Empower Week, as a volunteer |
CPBS Communication |
CPBS Communication |
2 | 2 |
|
Participation in the Teen academy, as a volunteer |
CPBS Communication |
CPBS Communication |
2 | 2 |
|
Participation in the Open Days and other initiatives developed by CPBS |
CPBS Communication |
CPBS Communication |
1 | 2 |
|
Participation in the organisation and management of major events/conferences promoted by CPBS, as a volunteer |
CPBS Communication |
CPBS Communication |
1 | 2 |
|
Being a federated athlete for at least 1 year or a CPBS athlete |
AECPBS/ Education Office |
Education Office | 1 | 1 |
|
Participation in the Tunas for at least 1 year |
UDIP | UDIP | 1 | 1 |
|
Participation in management positions in student associations or clubs (e.g., AECPBS, CSC, CIC, CTC, CPS, 2ndHome) for at least 1 year |
UCP contact person | GEO | 2 | 2 |
|
Involvement in the UCP Service-Learning initiative |
UDIP/responsible for the UC |
UDIP | 1 | 1 |
|
Participation in CASO as the responsible for the SER + area |
UDIP/CASO | UDIP | 5 | 5 |
|
Volunteering activities that were not counted in the mandatory component (1 point for each 5 hours) |
UDIP/CASO |
UDIP | 1 | 3 |
Procedure for obtaining the GEC
It is the student's responsibility to request the issuing of the GEC through the platform developed for this purpose: available here.
In addition to the GEC, students may request, through the platform, the issuing of individual certificates relating to the activities they have performed during their degree and that are listed in Table 1.
At the end of each semester of the degree, the student must report the volunteering activities carried out outside UDIP/CASO, filling in the document provided in Annex 2, and sending this document to UDIP/CASO. UDIP/CASO must validate the reported volunteering activities within 30 days after receiving the document.
The request to issue the GEC can be made during the last semester of the degree or after the completion of the degree, and may be requested up to one year after its completion. If requested during the final semester, the certificate will be issued subject to completion of the degree.
Once the GEC has been requested through the platform, the student must send the following information to the Global Education Office (globaledu.cpbs@ucp.pt ) and should carefully check the information before sending it:
- a list of the courses taken at CPBS in English, indicating the semester and year in which they were completed (or the expected date of completion);
- the Transcript of Records and the Study Plan approved by the Academic Coordinator for Mobility, in relation to the international mobility undertaken;
- the volunteering activities coordinated by UDIP/CASO and/or other volunteering activities that have been validated by UDIP/CASO (or that can be validated by UDIP/CASO by filling in Annex 2);
- the activities considered in the scoring component (see Table 1) that were carried out during the degree programme.
The deadline for issuing the certificate is up to 60 days after the request.