9.2 Commencement Exercises

Commencement Ceremony Information

Locations: December Ceremony – Recreation Center Activity Room 2, May Ceremony – Marquez Hall Room MZ126

Time: Arrival – 8:30 to 9:00 am, Procession line up – 9:15 am, Ceremony start – 9:30 am.

Academic Regalia: Faculty participating in Commencement activities should be dressed in Academic Regalia. If faculty do not have their own regalia, they may borrow regalia from Academic Affairs. Regalia may be picked up prior to the Commencement ceremonies. Faculty do not need to reserve regalia.

PhD Hooding Ceremony Information

Location: Green Center – Friedhoff Hall

Academic Regalia: Advisors and Department Heads should be dressed in Academic Regalia for the Hooding Ceremony. If you do not have regalia you should contact the Graduate Office to reserve regalia. Please include your height in your email to Suzanne. Prior to the Hooding Ceremony, you may pick up your reserved regalia in the Petroleum Hall Prep Room beginning at 7:00 am Commencement day. Within 30 minutes of the conclusion of the Commencement Ceremony, return gowns to the same location you received it.

Advisor Arrival for Hooding Ceremony:  Arrive at Friedhoff Hall no later than 7:30 am to join your advisee and their guests for the buffet breakfast. The ceremony will begin promptly at 8:00 am.

Department Head Arrival for Hooding Ceremony: Arrive at Friedhoff Hall no later than 7:30 am. If space is available, please feel free to join your advisee and their guests for the buffet breakfast. If space is not available, a separate table will be provided for Department Heads. The ceremony will begin promptly at 8:00 am.

Advisor Participation: During the Hooding Ceremony, advisors sit with their advisees and guests for a buffet breakfast.  At the appropriate time, candidates and advisors are lined up to the right of the stage.  During line up the advisor will receive a hood to carry, draped on the right arm. As the candidate is called, the advisor should approach the stage allowing the candidate to proceed first.  Continue to the center of the stage for hooding.

As the VPRTT calls each candidate to the stage, he/she will announce their information (dissertation title, hooding advisor, etc).  During this reading, the advisor will hood candidate and shake hands.  Guests may approach the stage to take photos at this time.  When the announcement and hooding is complete both advisor and candidate exit the stage (advisors with multiple advisees will receive special instructions prior to the event), opposite of entry point and return to their assigned table.

Department Head Participation: At the appropriate time, Department Heads are positioned just in front of the first advisee from their department to receive a PhD Hood. Directly preceding the first candidate and advisee, the Department Head should walk on stage and take position next to the Provost and the Graduate Dean in the receiving line that congratulates each candidate and advisor. Immediately following the last advisee from their department, the Department Head should follow the candidate off stage.

Last Revision:

July 17, 2014