Enrolment days are short, the system is busy, and you have a stack of documents: a school diploma, exam results, a copy of your ID, proof of address, a medical report, a photo. Most of it is uploaded digitally now. This piece explains how to prepare them so they are accepted the first time.
Scan rather than photograph
This is the most common mistake. Putting the document on a table and photographing it with a phone is quick, but the result is usually rejected: the table shows, the edges are skewed, light hits one corner and the file is needlessly large.
A document scanner finds the edges, corrects the perspective and sets the paper down as a flat page. The result actually looks scanned and the file is far smaller — and no extra hardware is needed, your phone camera is enough.
- Put the document on a flat surface: A dark surface makes the edges easier to find. Flatten the paper as much as you can.
- Light it from above, not the side: Keep your own shadow off the document. Window light is enough; flash usually causes glare.
- Run the scanner: Edges are found automatically and the page is flattened. You can adjust the corners by hand if needed.
- Save it as a PDF: You can gather several pages into one document.
Document Scanner — Scan properly with your phone: edges found, page flattened, file kept small.
Do not scan what a portal can give you
Some documents need no scanning at all. Proof of address, civil registry extracts and criminal record certificates can be downloaded straight from a government portal as PDFs.
A downloaded document is already digital, sharp and small, and it can be verified by the barcode on it. Printing and rescanning throws all of that away.
Do not take screenshots — use the «download as PDF» option. Verification barcodes usually do not survive a screenshot and the document may be rejected.
Photo dimensions
The photo for a student card has specific pixel dimensions and a file size limit. A phone photo is both the wrong ratio and larger than needed; crop to passport-photo ratio first, then set the required size.
If the dimensions fit but the file is still large, compress the photo separately. Pixel dimensions and file size are different things, and most systems require both.
One file or several?
Universities usually have a separate upload field per document. If a single file is wanted, order the documents as the enrolment guide lists them.
Where a document runs to several pages — both sides of a diploma, say — merge them into one PDF before uploading; systems often accept only one file per field.
If you hit the upload limit
- Compress the scanned documents; that is where the gain is.
- Scan in greyscale rather than colour. Without a coloured stamp or signature, colour is not needed.
- After compressing, check the smallest text; an unreadable document counts as a missing one.
- Do not leave uploading to the last day. Enrolment systems are busiest then and errors are more likely.
A final check before uploading
- Is each document fully in frame, with no clipped corners?
- Does the text read without zooming?
- Are the pages upright?
- Is every item on the guide's list ready?
- Are the file names clear? Something like «diploma-name-surname.pdf» works well.
Open the document on your own phone and read it before uploading. If you find it hard to read, the person at the other end will not manage at all.