Alas! Raising Talent badge.

[n_pudikova]

Good evening All and Merry Christmas. 

Can please someone from the Upwork community explains - how come someone with NO job getting "Raising Talent" badge (screenshots enclosed) and some (like me, obviously, are far far far away from this acknowledgement? ) Although there are clear discrepancy among some one who did 1+k Job and someone who has NOT? 

Thank you. 

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

 

you. 

[9f395534]

I have looked at her profile, but why then did Upwork fail to give the badge?

That is why I said is out of her area of control, I earn the badge because nothing but my profile meets the requirement, a master's degree is sometimes not what is required but the computed deciding factor that helps the system to decide who is eligible for the badge.

[the-right-writer]

You have been told multiple times it is an automated thing and has nothing to do with your real skills. You make a big mistake thinking that it means you are qualified for anything or is an acknowledgment of skills. It means you are new and something triggered the badge.

[9f395534]

You, being a professional can you say what concisely trigger the badge on my profile, and why someone with a master's degree did not have the badge?

[the-right-writer]

Asked and answered.  

[9f395534]

I love to hear it from you, been my senior on Upwork.

I personally want to learn from you.

[the-right-writer]

Hafeez, you have been given exemplary advice from multiple freelancers, including me. You don't need me, you need to do the work yourself. I don't see any evidence of that happening. If you really want to learn, read this.

[feed_my_eyes]

---

Hafeez R wrote:

That is why I said is out of her area of control

---

Yes, it's out of her control, and that's the whole problem. Upwork uses very misleading language to tell freelancers that if they meet a certain list of qualifications, they'll automatically get the badge, but some people meet these qualifications and don't get the badge, and aren't given any reasons for it. They see that other freelancers have a badge even though their profiles aren't very good, so they think that it's unfair, and I find that completely understandable.

And yet, you keep arguing - based on zero evidence - that people get badges because they're more deserving than other freelancers, and that Upwork uses logical and fair processes. From what I've seen - based on many years in the forum, and after reading hundreds of profiles - that simply isn't true.

[the-right-writer]

Something freelancers do when they set up their account triggers the rising talent. I never received one, and I started as an expert. Although, that was a long time ago on Elance/Odesk, so perhaps they weren't even doing it then. I have seen no profile freelancers with rising talent, garbage, illegible introductions and no portfolio. Therefore, I have no idea how they make that determination.

Of course, you think Upwork is correct because you have a badge.

[9f395534]

No, I am not saying these because I have the badge. 

Am only trying to state the fact, nothing more.

[feed_my_eyes]

---

Natalya P wrote:

• So, no, sorry. Unless you have a project completed - you are unqualified. 

---

That's not correct - lots of freelancers are awarded the badge even if they haven't completed any projects.

[1ae4f732]

thank you all
Same for me
I have all the conditions, but I have not been able to raise talent badge
And I don't know why?

[9f395534]

I dont think you meet all the conditions @Nejmeddine J

PREVIEW

[1ae4f732]

What are the missing conditions, in your opinion, please?

[9f395534]

Calculation and the general strength of your profile, I suppose.

[1ae4f732]

please
What should I do and what should I change?

[9f395534]

My best guess

* Add more educational history to your profile authentic one.

* Show case other work experience to your profile 

* Make your sure profile get the strength needed to make eligible for the badge with academics.

If possible request testimonial from your past client on or off Upwork check my profile for guide.

[1ae4f732]

thank you very much Hafeez R
I will try that

[arifrabbanibd]

Your account 100% complete? 

[n_pudikova]

Absolutely yes. 

[the-right-writer]

 It would help if you added to your one portfolio item.

[25005175]

Rising Talent badge is completely arbitrary, IMO. Of course, I'm a bit biased, since I never received one even though I fully expected to - complete profile, successful jobs, diverse porftolio a few pages long, education, few years career experience. I've seen freelancers with no portfolio or work history get it.

Now that I think about it, I wonder if there is a hidden criterion. When you set up your account, you are asked if you rate yourself as Entry-level, Intermediate, or Expert in their field. I rated myself as Intermediate. I have no doubt that Entry-level and Intermediate freelancers rate themselves as Experts, hoping that will elevate their chances of getting work. It would not surprise me that only accounts that are self-rated as Experts can qualify for Rising Talent.

ETA "few years career experience"

[9f395534]

Hey Jonathan, I disagreed with this ''arbitrary'' sound biased.

*work history

*no portfolio

The above-mentioned are not part of the requirement to earn the badge.

The only ''hidden criterion" is to meet the requirements.

I disagreed with this as well ''only accounts that are self-rated as Experts can qualify for Rising Talent.''

Please admit the fact.

No pleasure comes with pain, the RISING TALENT badge process is simple and clear like crystal.

[25005175]

A 100% profile (usually) includes a portfolio. Yes, it is possible to achieve 100% without a portfolio. But I sincerely doubt anyone who does that - without lying - about their experience/education won't also have a portfolio.

[9f395534]

No, you can not know me or other freelancers as we know ourselves. academic wise or work experience we heard.

Are you saying people with portfolio fib about them? 

about their experience/education won't also have a portfolio.

[25005175]

---

Are you saying people with portfolio fib about them? 

---

 Emphatically, YES!!!! There are many scores of copied profiles and fake portfolios with images ripped straight from Google Images! I already posted it earlier, but here it is again - just a taste. Insulting responses from upwork 'Upwork Trust & Safety' department 

[25005175]

I disagreed with this as well ''only accounts that are self-rated as Experts can qualify for Rising Talent.''

---

Well, Hafeez, do you have evidence to disprove? How did you rate yourself when you created your profile? If it wasn't Expert, then my theory falls flat. If it was Expert, then my theory stands until evidence can disprove it.

[9f395534]

My freelancing career doesn't start on Upwork so that automatically makes me an expert.

Your theory falls woefully.

I heard about Upwork, but I never rush to create an account because I want to earn money, rather I took my precious time to gather skills to help acquired work experience to showcase myself because I know Upwork is a pool of talents.

So, I did not get the badge by mistake, the fact remains a fact.

A company was established in the year 2000, and they trained 100 freelancers and they all graduated with flying colors. 

After some time the company want to recruit freelancers and stated in their requirements of hire that they need freelancers with 25 years of experience, tell me Jonathan  did any of the freelancers trained by the company meet the requirements? your answer should be yes I guess.😕 

Only freelancers that have work experience before taking the training are qualified, they are no mistakes about the law of gravity what goes up surly comes down.

I love physics and Math.

Nothing is confusing about the badge.

 A multitalented freelancer with skills that can be proven compared to a freelancer with just a skill is not the same.

[25005175]

My freelancing career doesn't start on Upwork so that automatically makes me an expert.

Your theory falls woefully.

---

You didn't provide any evidence to disprove my theory. I infer from your statements that you rated yourself as "Expert" when you created your account. My theory is that doing so is one of the unpublished conditions for the Rising Talent badge. To disprove my theory with your account, you would have needed to rate yourself as "Entry-level" or "Intermediate".

Thus, my theory stands.

And I'm going to ignore the rest of the reply, because it was another rant about your general qualifications and history as a freelancer, which is not the subject of this discussion.

[25005175]

For any who come to this discussion and don't want to take the "yes, my profile is 100% complete" claim at face value, but also don't want to investigate the claim and determine its accuracy, allow me to present the evidence.

Requirements

A Rising Talent badge is automatically conferred, according to the publications, when all of these criteria are met.

• Complete projects on time and as promised to clients
• Maintain a 100% complete profile with accurate skills and genuine work
• Keep your availability status up-to-date
• Regularly submit proposals to projects that match your skill set
• Adhere to the Upwork Terms of Service
• Have been active in the past 90 days or joined in the past 30 days

Note that I struck through the first item. That is for two reasons.

1. Upwork does not utilize the Due Date field that is present on Milestones (see last FAQ) or on Hourly To-Do's (see 4th FAQ). Therefore, timely delivery is not a requirement, but a recommendation.
2. Completed projects are not necessary, beacuse many contracts are long-term hourly. Also, some recipients of the Rising Talent badge have no Work History (including jobs in progress). Thus, Work History is not a requirement. Since Hafeez R. has been quite vocal in this discussion about how he deserves the Rising Talent badge that he has, here is a screenshot of his profile which, at time of post, does not have any Work History - it would be between his Profile Overview and his Portfolio. 

A 100% complete profile is defined as having

1. a profile photo,
2. a profile overview (AKA summary, description),
3. an employment history item,
4. a skill tag,
5. and a combination of the following items that results in a point sum of at least 50.

PROFILE ITEM	POINTS
Portfolio item	5 each (max 20)
Additional employment history item	10 each (max 20)
Additional skill tags	10
Education	10 each (max 20)
Profile Video	10
At least one other Linked Account	10
Certification	5 each (max 10)
Other experience item	5

Natalya P's profile 

I will include images. Note that each screenshot has her profile URL at the top.

MANDATORY PROFILE ITEM	PRESENT ?
Profile Photo	YES
Profile overview	YES
Employment history item	YES
Skill tag	YES

OPTIONAL PROFILE ITEM	POINTS
Portfolio item	5
Additional employment history item	20
Additional skill tags	10
Education	20
Profile Video	0
At least one other Linked Account	0
Certification	5
Other experience item	5

65 > 100 and all mandatory elements are present, therefore Natalya has a 100% complete profile.

Activity

ACTIVITY CRITERION	MET ?
Availability status up-to-date	YES
Regularly submit proposals that match skillset	Cannot be determined by 3rd party. Work history suggests YES.
Adhere to Upwork Terms of Service	Only Upwork can determine. Assume YES.
Active in past 90 days or joined in previous 30	YES - last 90 days

Without a screenshot of Natalya's proposal submission stats, her activity cannot be determined - with public data - to meet the activity requirements. But the evidence on-hand suggests that she has met those criteria.

Conclusion

Natalya seems to meet all published criteria that have not been proven to be irrelevant. I cannot say for fact that Natalya should have the Rising Talent badge, but the evidence at hand suggests that she should.

(Edited to correct formatting errors caused by forum backend deleting the HTML formatting made using its own provided tools. SMH.)

[9f395534]

If your analysis of her profile is correct why is her profile been denied the badge?

I never pay any money to Upwork to earn the badge.

These are decisions that are made by the fact gathered they are not mistakes. 

You are sounding like the badge process is done manually.

[25005175]

If your analysis of her profile is correct why is her profile been denied the badge?

---

That's the question that only Upwork can answer, and they refuse to do so. We can only speculate as to why. But the fact remains that, according to the evidence and publication (which I've demonstrated is incorrect), she should have it.

---

I never pay any money to Upwork to earn the badge.

---

Never said you did.

---

These are decisions that are made by the fact gathered they are not mistakes. 

You are sounding like the badge process is done manually.

---

The decision is made by a conditional code that likely runs at a set frequency (e.g. every day at 00:01 UTC). But the conditions do not match the publication. And the conditions are completion-based with no quality determination. The effect is a seeming arbitrary/random conferrance of the Rising Talent badge.

If it were done manually, it would be a stark improvement that would restore trust in the badge, because it would mean that active, poor quality (not yours, your profile actually looks great) profiles that happen to be "complete" will not be erroneously marketed as "Talent".

[NikolaS · Accepted solution]

Hi All,

We've closely followed this conversation and thank the participants for their valuable input. Since the arguments have been exhausted and the conversation is moving in an unproductive direction, we will be closing the thread.

Additionally, I would like to clarify a few things about the Rising Talent badge.

• Even new users who have yet to complete any Upwork projects can become Rising Talent. Having contracts isn't required. However, if they do get contracts, they need to complete them successfully, on time and as promised to clients in order to maintain the badge.
• A variety of factors is taken into consideration when determining whether to award Rising Talent status. These factors include prior experience and skills, educational background, the overall strength of the profile upon submission.
• It is also important to regularly submit proposals that match your skillset. Remember to carefully pick jobs you’re excited about and choose clients who are willing to pay you your desired earnings.
• While we can share the overall criteria for the Rising Talent badge, we will not be discussing the specifics and sharing the details as to why an individual freelance does or doesn't have the badge.

You can find more information on this page.

Edited to add information.