UpSkill-A-Thon

Thank you for your interest in the UpSkill-A-Thon! Our competition ended on March 31, 2023, but you can still access our free courses and learning pathways. Winners will be contacted and then announced on this page by mid-April.

See Past Winners

What is UpSkill-A-Thon?

A free month-long upskilling challenge with cash prizes. Take any course or pathway available from Community Skills Initiative and earn points with certificates of completion. The more you learn, the more points you earn! Top winners in each category earn cash prizes.

How to Participate

Register for the UpSkill-A-Thon.

Register for UpSkill-A-Thon by filling out the registration form >

Once you submit your registration form, you will be assigned a unique participant ID through a confirmation email. Please save your participant ID number. You will need to refer to it frequently throughout the competition.

Sign up for a FREE LinkedIn Account.

All of our learning pathways and courses use the LinkedIn Learning website. You will need to sign up for a free LinkedIn account.

If you already have a LinkedIn account, you can participate in the UpSkill-A-Thon using your existing account.

Watch step-by-step video walkthrough

Start learning on LinkedIn.

Start learning by clicking on any learning pathway or course on the Community Skills Initiative website, and you will be routed to the corresponding LinkedIn page. Watch all the videos and take all the quizzes that are part of each course or learning pathway.

Once you finish your course or learning pathway, return to the Community Skills Initiative website to check out more learning opportunities.

Note that only courses and pathways available through the Community Skills Initiative website count toward the UpSkill-A-Thon competition.

Submit completion certificates.

As you complete courses and learning pathways, you will gain access to completion certificate from LinkedIn. To get points towards the challenge, submit your certificates to Community Skills Initiative using this submission form >
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Don’t wait until the last minute! Please download your certificates and submit them to your region’s CSI website as you go.

Certificates must be completed and submitted to the CSI website between 12:01 a.m. on February 1 and 11:59 p.m. on March 31.

Watch step-by-step video walkthrough

Earn points.

For each certificate you submit, you will receive a confirmation email that indicates the total number of courses and learning pathways you have submitted.

Each completed course (certificate of completion) is worth 1 point.
Each completed pathway (Career Essentials Certificate) is worth 10 points.

Be sure to submit certificates of completion AND Career Essentials Certificates to earn maximum points.

Win cash prizes!

Prizes are awarded in the following categories:
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16-24 years old
$1,500 first place
$1,000 second place
$600 third place
$250 fourth place

25-49 years old
$1,500 first place
$1,000 second place
$600 third place
$250 fourth place
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50 years and older
$1,500 first place
$1,000 second place
$600 third place
$250 fourth place

Past Winners

16-24 years old

$1,500 first place, Alyssa Harrell

25 years and older

$1,500 first place, Wanda Davis,
$1,000 second place, Marylin Dunn.