How to Fill Out and Submit the OhioMeansJobs Readiness Seal Validation Form

The OhioMeansJobs-Readiness Seal validation form is a free state document you complete with at least three adult mentors who confirm you have consistently shown 15 workplace competencies. Once every competency carries a “Validated” mark, you sign the drug-free pledge, and your counselor and principal sign off, the seal is added to your diploma and permanent transcript at no cost.¹

You can start building toward the seal as early as ninth grade, and any experience from your high school years counts as long as a mentor who supervised you at the time validates the skill.² The official PDF is posted on the Ohio Department of Education’s OhioMeansJobs-Readiness Seal page, and your school counselor’s office keeps copies as well.

Choosing Your Three Mentors

Ohio law says each validator must be an employer, teacher, business mentor, community leader, faith-based leader, school leader, or coach of the student.¹ The state groups them by the setting where they observed you: school, work, and community.³

By signing, a mentor is personally recommending you to future employers and colleges based on what they saw firsthand. Pick people who watched you perform over months, not people who know you casually. A teacher who supervised a semester-long project, a shift manager from your summer job, a volunteer coordinator you worked alongside — all strong picks. Across the three, every one of the 15 competencies has to receive at least one “Validated” mark, but no single mentor has to cover them all.

School Mentors

Teachers, guidance counselors, athletic coaches, and other school leaders qualify. A coach who watched you run drills and manage teammates can speak credibly to leadership, teamwork, and discipline.

Work Mentors

An employer or business mentor who supervised you in a paid job, internship, or structured work-based learning experience is well positioned to validate reliability, punctuality, work ethic, and professionalism, because those traits are visible in a workplace.

Community Mentors

Community leaders, faith-based leaders, and volunteer coordinators cover this category. If you organized events at a food bank, mentored younger kids through a civic group, or took on responsibilities at a place of worship, the adult who directed that work is the right signer.

The 15 Competencies Your Mentors Will Mark

Each competency has a short definition printed on the form, and the mentor marks either “Validated” or “Not Validated” based on whether you consistently showed it. As defined by the Ohio Department of Education, the 15 skills are:²

Drug-Free: Commits to being drug-free and signs the pledge printed on the form.
Reliability: Shows integrity and responsibility in professional settings.
Work Ethic: Shows positive work habits, personal accountability, and drive to succeed.
Punctuality: Arrives to commitments on time and ready to contribute.
Discipline: Follows guidelines, demonstrates self-control, and stays on task.
Teamwork/Collaboration: Builds collaborative relationships and works effectively as part of a team.
Professionalism: Acts honestly, dresses appropriately, takes responsibility, learns from mistakes.
Learning Agility: Actively seeks out new information and skills.
Critical Thinking/Problem-Solving: Makes sound decisions, analyzes issues, thinks creatively to overcome problems.
Leadership: Draws on others’ strengths to achieve common goals, coaches peers, prioritizes work.
Creativity/Innovation: Generates original ideas, draws on knowledge from different fields, communicates new approaches.
Oral and Written Communications: Expresses thoughts and ideas clearly in speech and writing.
Digital Technology: Understands emerging technology and uses it to solve problems and accomplish goals.
Global/Intercultural Fluency: Values, respects, and learns from diverse groups of people.
Career Management: Advocates for themselves and can articulate strengths, knowledge, and experiences relevant to a job or college.

Match mentors to what they actually saw. A work supervisor is the right person to mark punctuality and work ethic. A community leader may be better placed to validate global/intercultural fluency. What matters is that every competency receives at least one “Validated” mark from a qualified mentor before you submit.

Filling Out the Form

Start at the top with your full name, student ID number, and graduating year. Check your student ID against your school records; a wrong number slows down entry when administration adds the seal to your transcript.

Drug-Free Pledge

The form includes a drug-free pledge you sign yourself. Print your name on the designated line and sign. This is separate from the mentor’s “Drug-Free” competency validation.

Mentor Sections

Each mentor completes their own section. For each of the 15 competencies, they mark “Validated” or “Not Validated,” and they should only mark “Validated” for skills they personally saw you demonstrate repeatedly. A single good day is not enough. The mentor then provides their signature, printed name, and contact information so the school can verify the evaluation if needed.

Coordinate with mentors well in advance. Handing someone the form the week before graduation and asking them to recall months of observations is how “Not Validated” marks happen. Give each mentor the form early, explain what the seal means, and remind them of specific moments when you showed the skills they are being asked to confirm.

Turning the Form In

After all three mentors have signed and every competency is validated, submit the completed form to your school counselor. The counselor checks it for completeness, and your assigned principal then signs the School Administration section to verify you have met the requirements.⁴ Once the administrator signs, the school records the achievement on your permanent transcript and attaches the seal to your diploma.

You should never be asked to pay. Ohio law prohibits schools from charging a student to earn or receive the seal.¹

If a Competency Comes Back Not Validated

If any of the 15 competencies lacks a “Validated” mark, the form is incomplete and the seal is not awarded yet. It is not permanent. Because you can work toward the seal throughout high school, you can seek out additional experiences to build the missing skill, find a mentor who observed you demonstrating it, and resubmit an updated form before graduation. Identify gaps early so you have time to fix them.

Students often stumble on leadership or creativity/innovation, because those skills tend to require a specific opportunity such as leading a project team or proposing a new solution, rather than just showing up and doing solid work. If you see a likely gap, take on a leadership role in a club, volunteer project, or workplace assignment while there is still time to build a track record a mentor can point to.

1
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 3313.6112 – OhioMeansJobs-Readiness Seal
2
Ohio Department of Education. OhioMeansJobs-Readiness Seal
3
SuccessBound. Ohio Means Jobs Readiness Seal
4
Centerville City Schools. OhioMeansJobs-Readiness Seal Validation Form