The Spring 2018 commencement ceremony schedule has officially been released.
Students anticipating to graduate in May 2018 were required to file a degree application by Feb. 2 to avoid late fees. At the time that students applied for graduation, they were given a prospective date for their commencement ceremony. However, this date was tentative and subject to change until the dates were finalized.
The commencement dates are first listed in the Academic Calendar as a date range, this semester being May 10-12. An actual schedule is not posted to the Academic Calendar, but instead a link to the schedule from the Registrar’s homepage is provided. Until the commencement schedule is updated to reflect each academic college ceremony, there is a message stating the schedule is pending and should be available after the twelfth class day of the term.
“There have been no changes to the commencement schedule since the approval of the schedule by the President’s Office,” Associate Director of Communications Emily Binetti said.
The process by which the schedule is determined is based on the number of degree candidates expected to graduate, and this can only be determined after the graduation application deadline has passed.
“In order to remain compliant with the fire safety code for the Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum, the commencement ceremony venue, there are instances in which the academic colleges are divided into departments to keep the number of candidates on the floor and the estimated number of guests from exceeding fire safety code capacity,” Binetti said. “The pairing of academic colleges will depend on the size of the graduating class for each academic college.”
An initial email communication advises students to apply for graduation and provides information to review the Registrar site for commencement schedule information. Immediately following the closure of the online graduation application, the Registrar sent out an email to all degree candidates regarding the commencement ceremony schedule.
“In addition to email communication, sandwich boards with the commencement schedule information placed throughout the campus serve as another method of informing students of the schedule,” Binetti said.
The final day to apply for Spring 2018 graduation is March 16.
Once you have applied for graduation, order, pay and pick up your cap and gown. Caps and gowns may be ordered from the Barnes and Noble bookstore located in the Lowman Student Center on campus, or online through Herff Jones at http://collegelink.herffjones.com/u/gm.php?prm=NgToAWjko0_767136353_160528_1095
Students can now view the commencement ceremony dates and times on the SHSU website at https://www.shsu.edu/dept/registrar/graduation/commencement/commencement-schedules.html
