Official 2026 U.S. National Championship

1) BINDING AGREEMENT: By participating in Certiport’s Adobe Certified Professional U.S. National Championship (the “Competition”), you (“you”, the “Competitor”) agree to these Official Competition Rules (the “Rules”). These Rules form a binding legal agreement between you and Certiport, a business of NCS Pearson, Inc., a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Minnesota, United States of America, having its principal offices at 5601 Green Valley Drive, Bloomington, Minnesota, 55437 Pearson with respect to the Competition.

2) RELATIONSHIP TO PEARSON: The Competition is branded and operated under the name “Certiport.” Certiport is a business unit of NCS Pearson, Inc. (“Pearson”), and as such, Pearson is the ultimate legal entity responsible for the obligations, rights, and administration described in these Rules. For clarity and consistency, these Rules will use the name “Pearson” throughout, even though the Competition itself is marketed under the Certiport brand. References to “Pearson” include Certiport and its affiliated operations.

3) PEARSON HAS SOLE AND UNLIMITED DISCRETION TO CHANGE ELEMENTS OF THE COMPETITION INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE FORMAT OF THE COMPETITION, THE COMPETITION VENUE, THE COMPETITION ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND/OR OTHER ACCOMODATIONS.

4) COMPETITION ELIGIBILITY: THIS COMPETITION IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO RESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA EXCLUDING COLORADO AND MARYLAND.

To be eligible to participate in the Competition, you must:

a) be thirteen (13) years of age or older before or on June 1, 2026; AND b) be twenty-two (22) years of age or younger before or on July 1, 2026; c) have permission from your parent or legal guardian, if you are under the age of eighteen (18) years old at the time of online registration, to participate in the Competition;

d) Have earned a qualifying Adobe Certified Professional certification for Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign between June 15, 2025 and May 1, 2026;

e) Have received an invitation to compete from Pearson based on project submission;

f) be enrolled in an approved academic institution (as approved by Pearson in its sole discretion) as of May 2, 2026

g) sign and submit during registration, except where prohibited by law, the DECLARATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND LIABILITY/PUBLICITY RELEASE, which allows the Competition Entities to use a Competitor’s name, likeness, and photo for advertising and promotional purposes; and

h) provide any additional information that may be required by Competition Entities, including a mailing address and bank account information for receipt of the prize, should a Competitor win such prize.

You are not eligible to participate in the Competition if you:

i) are 12 years of age or younger before or on June 1, 2026

j) are 23 years of age or older at any point before or on July 1, 2026

k) are a resident of Colorado or Maryland;

l) are a student at an education institution within the Chicago Public School District;

m) are a person or entity under U.S. export controls or sanctions

n) are an employee, intern, contractor, representative, or agent of NCS Pearson, Inc. or Adobe, Inc., including their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, and affiliates (collectively, “Competition Entities”);

o) are an immediate family member of an employee, intern, contractor, representative, or agent of the Competition Entities, including parents, siblings, children, spouses, and domestic partners, regardless of where they live;

p) are a member of the same household, whether related or not, with an employee, intern, contractor, representative, or agent of the Competition Entities;

q) have previously competed in the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship even if you have earned a new Adobe Certified Professional certification since that time;

r) are unavailable to attend the full Competition, including the Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, June 17, 2026; or s) fail to provide or otherwise complete the DECLARATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND LIBAILITY/PUBLICITY RELEASE and any additional information that may be required by Competition Entities.

5) COMPETITION PERIOD: The Competition will take place at the Adobe Certified Professional U.S. National Championship in Nashville, Tennessee and begins on June 15, 2026, at 12:00 PM Eastern Time (“ET”) Zone in the United States and ends on June 17, 2026, at 3:00 PM ET. YOU MUST BE PRESENT IN THE COMPETITION WAITING AREA AT LEAST TEN (10) MINUTES PRIOR TO YOUR ASSIGNED START TIME. PEARSON RESERVES THE RIGHT TO DENY ENTRY AND DISQUALIFY COMPETITORS WHO ARE NOT PRESENT IN THE COMPETITION WAITING AREA AT THEIR ASSIGNED START TIME.

6) HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE COMPETITION: During the Competition, you will be given specific project guidelines for a designated non-profit client. You will then be provided with a computer to use Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, and/or Adobe InDesign to create a piece of collateral to match the requested guidelines, using fonts, imagery, and branding guidelines provided by Pearson. The project guidelines will be provided to you. If you need a version in a language other than English, or additional accommodations, you must submit a request by May 1, 2026 to ACPChampionships@pearson.com.

For purposes of these Rules, “Competition Materials” means all material provided by Pearson for use during the Competition, including but not limited to the project brief, brand guidelines, client presentation, project assets, fonts, stock imagery, and any other guidance provided orally or in writing. You will use these Competition Materials to complete your “Design Project” which means all digital files created or modified by you as part of the Competition, including but not limited to the final project entry submitted for judging and all associated source files.

Competitors will be given eight (8) hours to complete their Design Project. All Design Projects must be completed at the Competition venue on hardware provided by Pearson, and Competitors will be limited to one (1) project entry into the Competition. Pearson reserves the right to disqualify a Competitor for any project entry that does not conform with the project guidelines, these Rules, or any other expectations and standards communicated by Pearson as part of the Competition.

(a) CODE OF CONDUCT: All Competitors must abide by the following Code of Conduct for the entirety of the Competition:

1. Competitors must adhere to all local laws and ordinances governing the use of alcohol or tobacco at all times during their stay at the Competition. The use of illegal drugs by any and all attendees is prohibited at all times.

2. Regardless of age, Competitors are required to always remain on the hotel property unless granted permission by the sponsoring partner to leave the grounds unaccompanied by a chaperone.

3. All Competitors, regardless of age, are required to abide by any curfew or other limitations extended by Pearson.

4. Any Competitor violating this code of conduct will be asked to leave the program and will be sent home at his or her own expense.

(b) MEAL CARDS: Competitors will receive a prepaid gift card (the “Card’) to be used for meals during the Competition. Additional terms of use apply. Competitors will be required to sign an acknowledgment prior to receiving the Card.

(c) COMPETITOR EXPENSES: Competitors, chaperones, and other attendees are solely responsible for all costs and expenses not expressly covered by Pearson. It is the responsibility of the attendee to ensure all such arrangements, including travel, accommodations, and incidentals are covered in advance of the Competition.

7) CONFIDENTIALITY OF COMPETITION MATERIALS: All Competition Materials are confidential. Competitors, chaperones and any attendees involved in the Competition are strictly prohibited from discussing, disclosing, or sharing any part of the Competition, Competition Materials, or content at any time during or after the Competition. This obligation of confidentiality is ongoing and does not expire after the Competition concludes. Any violation may result in disqualification and/or further action by Competition Entities.

8) WINNER DETERMINATION: At the conclusion of the Competition, the one (1) project that receives the highest overall score will be deemed the First Prize winner. The one (1) project that receives the next highest overall score will be deemed the Second Prize winner. The one (1) project that receives the next highest overall score will be deemed the Third Prize winner. The seven (7) projects that receive the next seven highest overall scores will be deemed the Fourth through Tenth Prize winners, respectively. In the event of a tie, the Competition judges will select a winner based on criteria in the judges’ rubric. Pearson is under no obligation to award a prize to any Competitor that is disqualified for any reason. In the event a winner is disqualified, the project that received the next highest total score will be chosen as the winner of that prize, and the remaining prizes will be adjusted as necessary. Judging is under the sole discretion of Pearson and the selected judges. Winner and Prize determinations made by Pearson are conclusive and final. In the event that no projects are received, no prizes will be awarded.

9) WINNER NOTIFICATION: On or about June 17, 2026, the winning Competitors will be announced during the Awards Ceremony at the Competition. If a winner does not attend the Awards Ceremony, then such winner may be disqualified and an alternate potential winner may be selected from among all eligible Competitors based on the winner procedure described herein. 

10) PRIZES: Prizes will be provided to winning Competitors solely via VISA gift card from Pearson. Prizes are in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with VISA. Gift cards are provided subject to additional terms, conditions, and restrictions established by the gift card issuer. The following prizes will be awarded at the Competition:

Adobe Certified Professional FIRST PLACE PRIZE: A prize awarded in the form of (1) three thousand dollar ($3,000.00 USD) VISA gift card. Travel expenses for the winner and one (1) chaperone to attend the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship will also be provided but shall not exceed one thousand, five hundred dollars ($1,500.00 USD). A chaperone must accompany the winner if the winner is a minor; if the winner is not a minor, a chaperone is optional but still eligible for covered travel expenses as defined above. Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): four thousand, five hundred dollars ($4,500.00 USD).

Adobe Certified Professional SECOND PLACE PRIZE: A prize awarded in the form of (1) two thousand dollar ($2,000.00 USD) VISA gift card. Travel expenses for the winner and one (1) chaperone to attend the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship will also be provided but shall not exceed one thousand, five hundred dollars ($1,500.00 USD). A chaperone must accompany the winner if the winner is a minor; if the winner is not a minor, a chaperone is optional but still eligible for covered travel expenses as defined above. ARV: three thousand, five hundred dollars ($3,500.00 USD).

Adobe Certified Professional THIRD PLACE PRIZE: A prize awarded in the form of (1) one thousand dollar ($1,000.00 USD) VISA gift card. Travel expenses for the winner and one (1) chaperone to attend the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship will also be provided but shall not exceed one thousand, five hundred dollars ($1,500.00 USD). A chaperone must accompany the winner if the winner is a minor; if the winner is not a minor, a chaperone is optional but still eligible for covered travel expenses as defined above. ARV: two thousand, five hundred dollars ($2,500.00 USD).

Adobe Certified Professional FOURTH through TENTH PLACE PRIZES: $250.00 USD each in the form of a VISA gift card.

11) PRIZE SUBSTITUTIONS: Pearson reserves the right to substitute any prize, in whole or in part, of equal or greater monetary value if a prize cannot be awarded for any reason.

12) TAXES: All Competition prizes are awarded exclusive of any applicable taxes Pearson may be required by law to withhold. All taxes imposed on the prizes are the sole responsibility of the winning Competitor. Pearson may require additional tax information from winning Competitors prior to awarding a prize. If a winning Competitor fails to provide such requested information or violates any applicable tax laws or regulations, the prize will be forfeited, and Pearson, in its sole discretion, may select an alternate winner.

13) COMPETITION INTEGRITY: Pearson reserves the right to disqualify any Competitor from the Competition if, in Pearson’s sole discretion, it reasonably believes that the Competitor has attempted to undermine the legitimate operation of the Competition by cheating, deception, or other unfair playing practices or annoys, abuses, threatens or harasses any other Competitor, attendee, viewer, Competition Entities, or the judges.

14) INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS: As between Pearson and you, you retain ownership of all intellectual and industrial property rights (including moral rights) in and to your Design Project. As a condition of participation, you grant Pearson, its subsidiaries, agents and affiliates, a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, adapt, modify, publish, distribute, publicly perform, create a derivative work from, and publicly display your Design Project.

15) PRIVACY: You acknowledge and agree that Pearson may collect, store, share and otherwise use any personally identifiable information provided to Pearson throughout the Competition, including, but not limited to, name, mailing address, date of birth, email address, and any financial information collected to facilitate awarding any applicable prize. Pearson will use this information in accordance with its Privacy Policy, for purposes of administering and promoting the Competition and verifying your identity, contact information, and financial account information in the event you qualify for a prize. Your information may be transferred to countries other than your country of residence, including the United States, which may not have privacy laws and regulations similar to those of your country of residence. You have the right to request access, review, rectify, or delete of any personal data held by Pearson in connection with the Competition by writing to Pearson at: ACPChampionship@pearson.com.

16) INDEMNIFICATION: To the maximum extent permitted by law, Competitors agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Competition Entities from and against any and all claims, actions, suits or proceedings, as well as any and all losses, liabilities, damages, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorney’s fees) arising out of or in connection with: a) any Design Project, or other materials uploaded or provided by Competitorsthat: (i) infringes any copyright, trademark, trade secret, trade dress, patent or other intellectual property rights of any person or entity; (ii) defames or disparages any person or entity, or violatesthe rights of publicity or privacy of any person or entity; b) any misrepresentation made by you in connection with the Competition; c) a Competitor’s violation of these Rules; d) claimsrelated to your eligibility and involvement with the Competition; and e) acceptance, possession, and use of any prize, if awarded.

17) NO WARRANTY: COMPETITION ENTITIES HAVE NOT MADE AND COMPETITION ENTITIES ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE IN ANY MANNER FOR ANY WARRANTIES, REPRESENTATIONS, OR GUARANTEES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN FACT OR LAW, RELATING TO THE COMPETITION OR TO THE PRIZE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY WARRANTIES REGARDING THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE COMPETITION, PARTICIPATION IN THE COMPETITION, THE PRIZE, OR THE USE, VALUE, OR ENJOYMENT OF THE PRIZE.

18) NO LIABILITY: Competition Entities are not responsible or liable to Competitors for any malfunction or for any late, lost, damaged, misdirected, incomplete, undeliverable, or destroyed Design Projects due to system errors, any error in the collection, processing, or retention of exam information, failed or incomplete computer or other telecommunication transmission malfunctions, hardware or software failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, typographical or system/human errors and failures, technical malfunction(s) of any telephone network or lines, cable connections, satellite transmissions, servers or providers, or computer equipment, traffic congestion on the Internet or at the Competition Site, or any combination thereof, including other telecommunication, cable, digital or satellite malfunctions which may limit your ability to participate. Competition Entities are not responsible or liable to Competitors for any typographical or other error in the printing, offering, or announcement of any prize of winners. Further, Competition Entities are not responsible for any lost, stolen, or damaged personal items. Competitors are responsible for their own belongings at all times. 

19) RIGHT TO CANCEL, MODIFY OR DISQUALIFY. Pearson reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Competition. If the Competition is terminated, Pearson will communicate whether winning Competitors will nonetheless be awarded and any associated selection process. Pearson further reserves the right to 6 Revised 1/12/2026 disqualify you and seek any remedies available to it at law if you: (1) violate these Rules; (2) disrupt the normal operations of the Competition; (3) provide false information to Pearson concerning your identity, contact information, or financial account information; or (4) undermine the legitimacy of the Competition or damage any property of Pearson, including the Competition website and registration page.

20) FORCE MAJEURE: Pearson will not be liable for, and is excused from, any failure or delay in performing its obligations under this Competition if such performance becomes impracticable due to circumstances beyond Pearson’s reasonable control. These circumstances include, without limitation: natural disasters; acts of God, fire, storm, flood, riot, earthquake; terrorism; labor disputes or stoppages; government actions or order; epidemics, pandemics, or outbreaks of communicable disease; quarantine; national or regional emergencies; insurrection; civil disturbance; sabotage; embargo; blockade; war; power failure; Internet or communication line outages; or any other cause beyond Pearson’s control, whether similar or dissimilar to the foregoing. Pearson will notify the Competitor by email within ten (10) business days of the commencement of any force majeure event, describing the event and actions taken regarding the Competition (e.g., postponement, cancellation, relocation, or transition to a digital format), which may include but are not limited to the examples provided.

21) NOT AN OFFER OR CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT: The Competition, including any invitations to participate or prizes awarded, does not constitute an offer or contract of employment between the Competitor and the Competition Entities. By participating in the Competition, Competitors agree that no confidential, fiduciary, agency, or other relationship, or implied-in-fact contract, exists between the Competitor and Competition Entities and that no such relationship is established by a Competitor’s participation in the Competition.

22) FORUM AND RECOURSE TO JUDICIAL PROCEDURES: These Rules shall be governed by, subject to, and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Minnesota, United States of America, excluding all conflict of law rules. If any provision(s) of these Rules are held to be invalid or unenforceable, all remaining provisions hereof will remain in full force and effect. To the extent permitted by law, the rights to litigate, seek injunctive relief or make any other recourse to judicial or any other procedure in case of disputes or claims resulting from or in connection with this Competition are hereby excluded, and you expressly waive any and all such rights.

23) ARBITRATION; WAIVER OF CLASS ACTION. By entering the Competition, you agree that any dispute arising out of or relating to the Competition or these Rules, including without limitation federal and state statutory claims, common law claims, and those based in contract, tort, fraud, misrepresentation or any other legal theory, shall be resolved through binding arbitration, on an individual basis (the “Arbitration Agreement”). All disputes between you and Pearson of any kind or nature arising out of these Rules shall be submitted to Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. (“JAMS”) for binding arbitration under its rules then in effect in Minnesota, before one arbitrator to be mutually agreed upon by both parties. The parties agree to share equally in the arbitration costs incurred. This Arbitration Agreement includes, without limitation, disputes arising out of or related to the interpretation or application of the Arbitration Agreement, including the enforceability, revocability, scope, or validity of the Arbitration Agreement or any portion of the Arbitration Agreement. All such matters shall be decided by an arbitrator and not by a court or judge.

24) CLASS ACTION AND JURY TRIAL WAIVER: TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY LAW, ALL CLAIMS MUST BE BROUGHT IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS, COLLECTIVE ACTION, OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDINGBY ENTERING THE COMPETITION, COMPETITORS AGREE TO WAIVE THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY AND THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION.

25) WINNERS’ LIST: A list of Competition winners may be requested thirty (30) days after the Competition concludes by sending an email with the subject line “Adobe Certified Professional World Championship Competition Winners” to ACPChampionship@pearson.com or by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to: NCS Pearson ATTN: Certiport Legal, 5601 Green Valley Drive, Bloomington, Minnesota, 55437.

26) DISQUALIFICATION RIGHTS: In addition to the specific grounds for disqualification outlined in these Rules, Pearson reserves the right to disqualify any Competitor, chaperone, or attendee at its sole discretion for any conduct or circumstance deemed to compromise the integrity, safety, fairness, or proper administration of the Competition. All such decisions are final and not subject to appeal.

ALL FEDERAL, STATE, PROVINCIAL, AND LOCAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED

Revised 1/12/26