The Adobe Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, etc.) is the world’s most powerful digital creative toolkit. Show the world that your students or candidates are ready and prepared to bring their new ideas to life with an Adobe Photoshop certification from a trusted, industry-recognized name with international appeal: Tosa.

The Tosa Adobe Photoshop certification determines and validates a candidate’s proficiency and skill level in the Adobe Photoshop application. The Tosa Adobe Photoshop certification supports students, trainees, employees, or jobseekers in their employment, professional, or academic objectives.

There are no eligibility requirements to take a Tosa certification exam. In K-12, we recommend using Tosa Adobe certifications as part of a course or curriculum starting at grade 6.

Looking for a pre-employment test on Adobe Photoshop? Please visit Isograd Testing Services website.

Tosa assessments and certification exams on Adobe Photoshop

Assessments are not required to be proctored when taken remotely, while certification exams must be taken in-person or via our remote proctoring solution.

*Please note: the numbers shown in the above graph are for the Tosa Photoshop Assessment Test and Certification Exam with in-application questions. The Certification Exam without in-application questions has 35 questions and lasts 60 minutes, while the assessment test without in-application questions has 25 questions and lasts 40 minutes.

Tosa Graphics Certified User for Adobe – Graphic Design certification

The Tosa Adobe Photoshop certification is part of the Tosa Graphics Certified User for Adobe – Graphic Design certification .

Skills Badging with Credly

We partnered with Credly to help our earners share their new certification, and the skill set associated with it, on their resumes, CVs, or professional social media profiles. You can earn a skills certification badge from Credly when you score "Productive" level or higher on the Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certification Exam.

Available Badges for Adobe Photoshop

• Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certified User – Productive Level
• Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certified User – Advanced Level
• Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certified User – Expert Level

Tosa Graphics Proficiency Badging

Candidates that earn the Tosa Adobe Photoshop certification, plus one of Tosa Adobe InDesign or Tosa Adobe Illustrator, at the Productive level or above are entitled to receive a Tosa Graphics Certified User Credly badge that demonstrates proficiency on the Adobe software suite for graphic design, which includes includes Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Illustrator.

• Tosa Graphics Certified User – Productive Level
• Tosa Graphics Certified User - Advanced Level
• Tosa Graphics Certified User - Expert Level

Skill Domains Assessed

Interface, digital workspace and fundamentals

This domain covers the following skills: creating, opening, and saving documents. It also includes digital graphics, the structure of an image, colorimetry, formats, and keyboard shortcuts.

Geometry and image corrections

The domain covers cropping and editing images, using adjustment layers, applying artistic retouching, and managing advanced tabs options.

Silhouetting, masks and photomontages

The skills assessed in this domain include: organizing layers, overlaying visuals, and using layer blending modes. Also covered in this domain are merging masks with layers and changing the properties of a mask.

Graphic functions and effects, exports and automation

The questions within this domain assess the candidates on their proficiency in applying filters, layer styles, using settings and file formats, creating elaborate visuals, and exporting media.

Certification Exam Detail

The Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certification Exam relies on a database of more than 140 questions. It is composed of a mix of 30 questions, including multiple-choice, interactive, and live in-the-application questions, and lasts 1 hour. The algorithm adapts to each answer of the candidates to adjust the difficulty level of the questions until they reach the exact definition of the candidates’ level by calculating the limit of their skills. Candidates receive a numeric score out of 1000 points associated to a proficiency level on a five-level scale. Candidates who score between 1 and 550 points don't earn the certification. They will not receive a diploma but a certificate of completion. Candidates who score 551 points or above earn the certification. They will receive a diploma by email within five (5) business days  and are eligible to receive a Credly digital badge.

The Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certification Exam is valid for three (3) years. Once expired, earners must retake the certification to maintain it over time. Earners wishing to demonstrate skills development and personal growth may re-take the exam to improve their score at any time. There is no waiting period between two attempts.

Rules & Technical Requirements

Tosa certifications must be taken under specific proctoring conditions. For more information about Tosa certification exam rules and technical requirements, please visit our dedicated exam policies page or consult the downloadable PDFs below.

Prepare For Your Certification Exam

In order to be well prepared for your exam day, we recommend:

• Taking at least one Tosa assessment test prior to your exam
  The Tosa assessment test, like the certification exam, is an adaptive test composed of a mix of multiple-choice, interactive, and live in-the-application questions. It contains 25 questions and lasts 40 minutes. It does not need to be taken under proctored conditions. Results are delivered on the same 1-to-5 proficiency level scale and includes detailed skills reports to help determine student or candidate strengths and weaknesses before taking the certification exam.
• Utilizing the free practice tests available on our website
  In addition to our Tosa assessment tests, we offer short practice tests for free. Simply navigate to and click on the “Free practice test” button on the top right of the page, then select which test subject you’d like to practice.
• Taking a Tosa-aligned course
  We have partnered with several eLearning providers and publishers to provide online courses that align with the Tosa certification objectives. To achieve a productive level or higher for a Tosa certification, it requires candidates an average of 150 hours of training and hands-on experience with Adobe Photoshop. This average training time depends on their pre-existing skills or knowledge, the expected outcome for the certification (score/level), and the provider.

Need more details ?

• Tosa Adobe Photoshop Certification Exam Skills Framework (PDF)
• Tosa Adobe Photoshop Skill Domains & Product Brochure (PDF)