How do you prepare a Connecticut high school, college, university transcript for an apostille?
The transcript must be certified/signed by a school official (principal, registrar, counselor, etc.) The signature of the school official must be original.
Sample certification:
The signature of the school official must be notarized by a Connecticut notary public. The notary must use a notarial certificate, otherwise the document cannot be apostilled. The best notarial certificate would be the Acknowledgment (Connecticut Notary Public Guide).
Connecticut state law does not require that notaries obtain and use a seal, or rubber stamp. Even though the use of a seal is optional, state law does prescribe the format of the seal to be used. The notary seal must include the notary's name as it appears on their certificate of appointment, the words "Notary Public" and "Connecticut".
When using the seal, the impression should be affixed near, but not over, the notary's signature. The stamp bearing the words "My Commission Expires" should be placed below the notary's signature and the notary must write in the date on which their commission expires, unless the date appears on the stamp.
In any circumstance when a notary's signature is required, it must always be the original signature of the notary signed exactly as the name appears on the notary's certificate of appointment.
Acceptable notarial certificates:
Acknowledgment (individual capacity):
Jurat:
Can a notary certify a copy of a transcript?
Yes, the State of Connecticut allows copy certification by notaries public. However, please check with the receiving foreign school / agency if they will accept a notarized copy. Many foreign schools require an original transcript signed by the school principal or registrar.
In case a notarized copy is acceptable, the notary should use the following notarial certificate (Connecticut Notary Public Guide):
Copy certification:
