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I recently got a pretty good certificate in my field, though i was sponsored by my current company i felt it was a pretty good achievement to show off on my CV.

Now i nearly finished the interviewing process to join another company and although they didn't ask on whether i can migrate this certificate or not, I can't keep myself from thinking and what if they ask for it and i can't migrate it because it's technically owned by my previous employer?

To summarize my previous employer paid for me to get a certificate that will allow them to sell a specific solution and didn't make me sign any obligation to leave it, i don't wanna ask for it or even migrate it because i feel it's unethical and rude and at the same time i am worried that my next employer might ask for it.

Was it wrong from the start to display it on my CV?

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  • Is this a proprietary certification that is issued by your company or a third-party certification that your company paid for you to take?
    – Thomas Owens
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:19
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    This is rather confusing. Personal certificates are normally never owned by a company. A certifying organisation grants a certificate to the individual who passes the exam, certifying track or whatever. What makes you think it matters who paid for it? Can you share the type of certificate you're talking about?
    – Lilienthal ♦
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:34
  • Do you have the physical certificate, a copy of it or any similar documentation?
    – Bernhard Barker
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:41
  • It's owned by a 3rd party on an account with my name but on my company's main account. They control it and can shut it or even delete, so to use it as my own i have to migrate it to my personal account. I explained it more in my comment below :).
    – rvnsotw
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:53

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If you have met all of the requirements and earned a given certification, it is yours and not "owned by your company" and you don't need to "migrate it". It doesn't matter that your company may have paid for you to take any training courses, examinations, continuing education modules, or anything else. You, as an individual, have met the requirements to be awarded a certain standing.

This is true for both external certifications (those issued by a third party) and internal certifications (those issued by your company). Of course, external certifications are more likely to be useful across jobs and other organizations may not necessarily be aware of what goes into internal certifications.

If you achieve an award or honor or certification, you should include it on a CV. You should take note, though, and be sure to note when you achieved it and denote it if it expires or has expired. If a certificate expires and you choose not to renew it, you should not pass it off as an active certificate.

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  • To make it more clear, it's an SAP certification they are granted on an "S-User" with the name of the individual who passed the test, however you cannot take a test unless you receive official training by SAP or work for an SAP Partner.So the S-User is with my name but it belongs to my company, they can shut it down and delete it as they own it. The work around would be migrating it to your personal s-user.
    – rvnsotw
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:51
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    @Guest1706 If you don't migrate it, the fact that you met the criteria still says something, correct? It says that you've received the appropriate training and passed a test. Of course, it may not be relevant for your next jobs, but the fact that you have that knowledge and experience could still be relevant, even if it's slightly out of date or not usable in your next position.
    – Thomas Owens
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:55
  • Well yes that's my dilemma, i feel that i deserve to put it on my cv as i worked for it, but i keep thinking what if my next employer ask me to migrate it and i can't? what if one of the reasons they employed me was to benefit from it as a partner? wouldn't that be technically deceiving them?
    – rvnsotw
    Aug 1, 2017 at 12:58
  • @Guest1706 No, it's not deceptive. You need to be clear on the CV if it's still valid or if it has expired, though. I guess "expired" in this particular case would mean if your previous employer deletes it and you can't migrate it to a new employer.
    – Thomas Owens
    Aug 1, 2017 at 13:05
  • And that's the thing, it's not really expired. It's a confusing situation and very awkward to think of a way to say it if you're not asked.
    – rvnsotw
    Aug 1, 2017 at 13:45

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