Understanding Activity Validation Types

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Access Level: Student, Contributor, Advisor, Publisher or Administrator

This article is intended for users with Student, Contributor, Advisor, Publisher or Administrator access in Suitable. If you don’t have one of these roles, some of the steps outlined below may not be available in your account.

Understanding Activity Validation Types

Suitable has multiple activity validation types available for you to choose from, depending on the type of activity you're looking to create. These options allow your students to fully capture their co-curricular engagement while in your program.

Task Validations

Administrator Approval

Event Validation

Watch a video about the different activity validation types here:

Task Validations

Task validations are used for written assignments or reflections, or portfolio submissions. They are also utilized when administrator approval is needed before points can be awarded for an activity.

Written Reflections

When an activity has the Written Reflection validation type, you are asking a student to write a reflection on the activity to earn credit.

• A text box is provided to the student, allowing them to write a short reflection on their experience.
• The character limit for reflections is 5,000 characters.
• Tip: Remember to add a prompt in the description for the student to respond to.

How to Add a Reflection Requirement

1. Navigate to the Activities tab on the left-side toolbar and find the Task you want to edit.
2. Click the three dots in the top right corner of the activity and select Edit Activity.
3. Continue to the Validation section of the wizard.
4. Toggle require a written reflection to Yes.

• Optional: Toggle require administrator approval to Yes if you want to review the reflection before awarding credit.

5. Navigate to the Preview tab and save.

Portfolio Submissions

The portfolio submission option requires students to upload a document or file to satisfy the requirements of the task.

• This submission will be made available in the student's scorecard.
• From the scorecard, the file can be shared with employers or on their LinkedIn page.
• Tip: Put the required file type in the activity's description so students know exactly what to upload.

How to Add a Submission Requirement

1. Navigate to the Activities tab and find your Task.
2. Click the three dots in the top right corner and select Edit Activity.
3. Continue to the Validation section.
4. Toggle require a portfolio submission to Yes.

• Optional: Toggle require administrator approval to Yes if you want to review the submission before credit is awarded.

5. Navigate to the Preview tab and save.

Administrator Approval

Many tasks will require administrator approval before points are awarded to a student for completing an activity.

• By enabling this validation, you are requiring that the student's submission or reflection be reviewed by an administrator before points are given.

How to Require Approval:

1. Open the Validation section of the activity wizard (this works for both new and existing activities).
2. Turn the slider for administrator approval to Yes.

3. Continue through the wizard to save the activity.

Event Validation

Events are utilized when a program has an activity that they would like for students to receive credit for attending.

• Use cases include workshops, advising sessions, or traditional event attendance.
• Events have an automatic validation method: smart code, or QR codes.
• When an event is created, a smart code will automatically be emailed to the administrator who created it.
• Note: If an event is edited after creation, the QR code will not change, meaning you do not need to download a new one.

There are two types of smart codes available in Suitable:

• Unbranded Smart Code: This code can be used if you already have custom marketing materials and simply need the raw code. You can right-click on the code directly from the screen and download it.
• Branded Smart Code: This option generates a printable PDF. It includes your program's name, logo, the event name, details, and description.

How to Find and Download an Event's Smart Code:

1. Navigate to the Activities tab and find your event.
2. Click the three dots in the top-right corner of the activity to expand the menu.
3. Click Get smart code.

4. To get the branded PDF, click Download then View.
5. A branded PDF document will pop up with the QR Code for you to save and use.
   • Tip for virtual events: We recommend showing the QR code or providing the completion link at the conclusion of the event.

We hope that this guide is helpful to you in deciding the right validation and activity type for your activity. If you have additional questions, chat with us below or send us an email at support@suitable.co.