Your training record.
Visualized in seconds.

Yes — that's one of the most powerful features. Import your FEMA transcript first. When you drop in a second file (say, your NREMT CE log or Red Cross records), the tool will ask: "Add to existing courses or replace?" Choose Add and both sets of records merge into one dashboard. You can combine PDFs, CSVs, Excel files, and manual entries freely. Duplicates (same course name + same year) are filtered automatically.

This usually means one of three things:

• Scanned image PDF — If the PDF was created by scanning a paper document, there's no text for the tool to read. Try the Paste tab instead: open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat, select all text (Ctrl+A), and paste it here. If that doesn't work, use Manual Entry.
• Unusual formatting — Some LMS platforms generate PDFs with non-standard layouts. Try exporting as CSV from the same system instead.
• Password-protected PDF — Remove the password protection first (Adobe Acrobat → File → Properties → Security → No Security).

The parser recognizes transcripts from: FEMA EMI / Independent Study, NCEM, TEEX, CDP (Center for Domestic Preparedness), ALERRT, NFA (National Fire Academy), NREMT, Red Cross, APCO, TRAIN.org, HealthStream/Cornerstone/Relias LMS exports, FLEX (FDEM), SERT TRAC, LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, and more. If your provider isn't recognized, the tool still imports the courses — it just labels them with a generic provider name that you can edit in the Review Table.

The tool is flexible — it looks for common column names and figures out the rest. At minimum you need a Name (or "Course") column and a Date column. Optional columns include: Code, Provider, Hours, CEU, Category, CertID, ExpireDate, Note. The column order doesn't matter and column names are case-insensitive. Download a completed dashboard's CSV export to see an example of the exact format.

It depends. FEMA IS courses that are recognized by code (IS-100, IS-700, etc.) get their official credit hours filled in automatically from FEMA's published catalog — so even if your transcript shows "0.20 CEU," the tool converts it to 2 contact hours. For courses with 0 hours that aren't FEMA IS courses, you can edit the hours in the Review Table before generating. Zero-hour courses still appear on your dashboard — they just don't count toward your hour totals.

Click the Category dropdown on that row in the Review Table and select the correct one. If you have many miscategorized rows, use the checkboxes to select multiple courses and the Bulk Reassign dropdown to fix them all at once. Category guessing is automatic and usually accurate, but unusual course names sometimes land in the wrong bucket.

Opens a timeline view of all your expiring credentials sorted by urgency — expired first, then expiring within 90 days, then within 6 months. It also shows a renewal checklist you can use to plan what to take next. It's the fastest way to see "what do I need to do right now."

Opens a gap analysis based on your selected discipline. For example, if you're a Paramedic it checks whether you have TCCC, PHTLS, AMLS, and ACLS. If you're in Emergency Management it checks your full NIMS/ICS stack. It then recommends specific courses to fill what's missing, with links to where you can take them.

Three options depending on what they need:

• PDF — Click Export → PDF Document. In the print dialog set Destination to "Save as PDF," choose Portrait layout, and enable Background Graphics. This produces a clean printable document.
• HTML file — Click Export → HTML Dashboard. This creates a self-contained file that opens in any browser with no app needed. Great for emailing or sharing via Teams/SharePoint.
• CSV Spreadsheet — Click Export → CSV Spreadsheet for a flat data file that opens in Excel or Google Sheets. Useful for agencies that want raw data.

The discipline field tells the CE tracker which renewal requirement to measure you against. For example, selecting "EMT-Basic" activates the NREMT 30-hour CE requirement; "Paramedic" shows the 60-hour NCCP breakdown; "CISSP" shows ISC2's 120 CPE cycle. If none match your situation, leave it blank — the rest of the dashboard still works. You can pick the closest match and adjust for your state's specific requirements manually.

The tool calculates expiration from the completion date on your transcript. If your transcript shows the old class date, two options: (1) Add a new Manual Entry row for the renewal — enter the new class date and the tool will automatically show the current cert as active. (2) In the Review Table, find the old BLS entry and either update the date or add the expiration date directly in the Expires column.

The tool tracks expiration for: CPR, BLS, ACLS, PALS, NRP, AED, First Aid, Stop the Bleed, EMR, EMT, AEMT, Paramedic, NREMT, TCCC, TECC, PHTLS, AMLS, ITLS, Wilderness First Aid, APCO Telecommunicator, Fire Instructor, Fire Officer, HazMat Operations/Tech, Mental Health First Aid, Narcan/Naloxone, PMP, CHES/MCHES, all major Red Cross certifications (BLS, CPR/AED, Lifeguarding, Water Safety Instructor, Disaster Health Services, DAT, and more), all MRC training records, and all major IT certifications (CISSP, CISM, CompTIA Security+/Network+/A+, CEH, AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Cisco CCNA/CCNP, GIAC). FEMA IS courses, ProBoard/IFSAC fire certifications, and NFA courses are marked as permanent — no expiration.

MRC training records are handled as their own discipline category (teal-green color) in the dashboard. This means MRC courses — orientation, annual competency, exercises, deployment training, credentialing, PPE/infection control — are grouped together on the diversity chart and in the Areas of Focus table. Expiration tracking is also set to match typical MRC renewal cycles: annual competency at 1 year, most other MRC training at 2 years. If your unit has different requirements, use the Manual Expiry Date field to record the exact date.

It's a small JSON file (usually a few KB) that contains all your course records, profile information, and settings. It's not a copy of your original transcript PDFs — just the extracted data. You can open it in a text editor if you're curious, re-import it into the dashboard at any time, or share it with a team leader for the Team View feature. Think of it as your portable training data file.

The cleanest option for most situations is Export → PDF Document. In the print dialog, select "Save as PDF" as the destination. Enable background graphics for the best-looking output. The PDF shows your full dashboard including the credential tracker, NIMS panel, and training charts — everything a supervisor or credentialing body would want to see. If they want to interact with it digitally, the HTML export opens in any browser and works identically to the live version.

Yes — click the 🔗 Link button on the dashboard. This encodes your entire dashboard into the URL as compressed data. You can share that link with anyone and they'll see your dashboard exactly as it appears. Note that very large training records can produce long URLs; if it's too long for your email system, use the HTML export instead.

Ask each team member to open the Skills Dashboard, import their own transcripts, and then click ⬇ File → .skillsdash Data File to download their record. They send you that file (email, Teams, shared drive). You then go to Team View, drop in all the files at once, and the comparison matrix builds automatically. No one shares their raw transcripts with you — just the extracted data file.

For each team member it shows a green ✓ or red — for each of the six core NIMS courses: ICS-100, ICS-200, IS-700, IS-800, ICS-300, and ICS-400. If the entire team is missing a course, it appears in the Team-Wide Gaps banner at the top. This is the fastest way to identify who needs to complete their NIMS baseline before a grant deadline or accreditation review.

Yes — from the Team View screen click ⬇ Download Team PDF. This uses your browser's print dialog. Set the destination to "Save as PDF" and enable Background Graphics for the best output. The PDF includes the full compliance matrix, team stats, and credential renewal alerts.

This is normal for FEMA IS transcripts — they report CEUs (e.g., 0.20 CEU) rather than contact hours. The tool converts these automatically (1 CEU = 10 contact hours) for recognized IS course codes. If you're still seeing zeros, check: (1) that the course code was captured correctly in the Review Table, and (2) that it's a course in the FEMA catalog. Very new courses added after May 2026 may not be in the lookup table yet — you can manually edit the hours in that case.

The Credentials panel only shows courses the tool recognizes as credentials (things that expire or are treated as formal certifications). If your credential isn't showing: (1) Check the Review Table — does it have the correct name? Try editing it to include the full credential name (e.g., "BLS Certification" instead of just "Basic Life Support"). (2) If the credential is very specialized or from a niche provider, use Manual Entry to add it separately. Check the "Expiry Date" field to force it into the tracker regardless of automatic recognition.

If you saved a session before importing (💾 Save or ⬇ File), click 📂 Sessions to restore your previous save. If you didn't save, you'll need to re-import both files — this time choose "Add" instead of "Replace" when prompted. Starting in v6, the tool always asks before overwriting. Going forward, save before every major import as a habit.

This is a PDF encoding issue — some PDFs use non-standard character encoding and the text extraction picks up symbols instead of letters. The course data is usually still correct underneath. Fix it by editing the course name in the Review Table. If it's widespread across a transcript, try the Paste method instead: open the PDF in Chrome, select all text (Ctrl+A → Ctrl+C), and paste it in the Paste tab.

A few things to try in order: (1) Refresh the page and try again. (2) Try a different browser — Chrome or Edge work best. (3) If a specific PDF is failing, try exporting it from the source system as a CSV instead and use that import method. (4) Use Manual Entry as a fallback — it always works. (5) Visit chrislw.com for updates or to report issues.