Commencement Information for Graduating Students

In order to participate in Commencement, course completion and grade reporting deadlines to the Records Office are as follows:

Independent Learning Work (Center for Distance Learning): February 1 is the last day that prospective graduates may register for a correspondence course through our Center for Extended Education. All independent learning, whether applied toward degree requirements or for personal interest, must be completed by April 1.

Transfer Work (residence or distance learning): All course work taken in residence or by distance learning at another institution must be approved in advance by submitting a Permission for Transfer Work Request form at the Records Office.

Grades for any course work taken from another institution must be reported to the Records Office by 5 p.m. the Monday prior to Commencement in order for the student to participate in the Commencement procession. We will accept a phone call from the school indicating satisfactory completion of the course for the purpose of marching; however, an official transcript must be received before the diploma can be released. Note: Some institutions take 3-4 weeks to process and report distance learning grades.

BJU wants all students finishing degree requirements to have the opportunity to participate in Commencement. Since the University conducts only one Commencement each year (May), some students may not have completed all of their requirements by the deadline for participation in this program. Many students finishing requirements for their degree in residence in summer sessions will qualify to participate before completing all degree requirements. To be considered for a Procession Concession, the student must meet the following conditions for his degree program and be planning to complete all requirements for the degree prior to the summer degree conferral date. Summer degrees are conferred the Friday prior to the official opening of school for the fall term.

NOTE: Independent learning work does not fulfill these requirements.

Associate Degree Candidates: To be considered for a Procession Concession, the student must have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA and meet the following conditions:

1. If the student lacks more than one course, the work to complete the degree must be available to undergraduate students in the BJU summer sessions or online classes.
2. b. If the student lacks one course, permission may be given to take the remaining course in residence at another approved institution provided a Transfer Work Request form is completed and approved in the Records Office. No religion courses may be taken at another institution. A grade of C or better must be earned in order for the work to transfer.

Baccalaureate Degree Candidates: To be considered for a Procession Concession, the student must have at least a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA and must meet the following conditions:

1. If the student lacks more than one course, the work to complete the degree must be available to undergraduate students in the BJU summer sessions or online classes.
2. b. If the student lacks one course, permission may be given to take the remaining course in residence at another approved institution provided a Transfer Work Request form is completed and approved in the Records Office. No religion courses may be taken at another institution. A grade of C or better must be earned in order for the work to transfer.
3. If the student lacks Praxis II scores, he must register to take the examinations during the summer.

Master’s or Specialist’s Degree Candidates: The student must have a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA and must meet the following conditions:

1. If the student lacks more than one course, the work to complete the degree must be available to graduate students in the BJU summer sessions or online classes.
2. If the student lacks one course, permission may be given to take the remaining course in residence at another approved institution provided a Transfer Work Request form is completed and approved in the Records Office. No religion courses may be taken at another institution. A grade of B or better must be earned in order for the work to transfer.

A student lacking language proficiencies or theses to complete degree requirements will not be granted a Procession Concession.

The rehearsal for Commencement is Friday, May 4, 2012, at 9:45 a.m. and Commencement is Friday, May 4, 2012, at 2 p.m. in Founder's Memorial Amphitorium. Eligible prospective graduates participating in the Commencement program are required to be present and in regular class attire at the rehearsal in order to participate in Commencement. Prospective graduates must make arrangements for work, picking up relatives, etc., in order to be present for the entire rehearsal. The rehearsal will be over before noon.

Prospective graduates who are cleared for graduation will receive their seat/marching assignment the morning of the rehearsal. Students should check their post office boxes for their assignments before going to the University Awards Program. Students with CVA and distribution box numbers may pick up their assignments at the Programs & Productions Box Office in the lobby of the amphitorium beginning at 9:15 a.m. that morning. Everyone should be seated in his or her assigned seat no later than 9:30 a.m. Prospective graduates who have any questions concerning their eligibility for Commencement should address those questions to the checksheet clerks in the Records Office or to the registrar.

For Commencement, prospective graduates should arrive in academic regalia by 1:30 p.m. in front of the Alumni Building and be in line and ready to march at 1:45 p.m.

Prospective graduates who expect to complete all of their degree requirements by December 2011, May 2012, or August 2012 must fill out a Diploma Order card with the Records Office. Students must use their full legal name—absolutely no initials.

• Note: January 31 is the last day to cancel a diploma order without paying the graduation fee. Diploma changes must be made at the Records Office. Students whose conferral date is changed after February 1 will be charged a $35 reorder fee.
• Women Only: Any woman who is married prior to the end of the last semester (or summer session) of her coursework for degree conferral must use her married name on her diploma. Anyone who marries between the end of her last semester (or summer session) of enrollment and degree conferral may use either her maiden name or her married name. When the married name is used, the maiden name must also be included as part of the graduate's complete name.

The University’s Campus Store is the only source for official Bob Jones University graduation announcements/invitations. Prospective graduates who expect to complete all of their degree requirements by December 2011, May 2010, or August 2010 and who will participate in our annual Commencement may order graduation announcements/invitations through the Campus Store during the following dates and times:

I Semester
Thursday, November 10, 11:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday, November 11, 11:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.

II Semester
Thursday, January 26, 11:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday, January 27, 11:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Students not enrolled either semester may contact the Campus Store or place orders online at www.herffjones.com.

Prospective graduates who do not meet the deadline for placing orders may inform family and friends of graduation through one of the following means:

• Individual handwritten announcement/invitation.
• Individual computer-generated announcement/invitation—not mass-produced by a commercial supplier.

Note that only official announcements/invitations obtained through the Campus Store or the Herff Jones website may feature the university crest or logo or indicate that the request or announcement is from the president, faculty and/or graduating class of the University. These are not to be added to handwritten or computer-generated invitations/announcements. These announcements may include the name (and degree) of a prospective graduate; therefore, name cards are not necessary.

For Commencement the Administration does not have a special speaker but allows a number of graduates the opportunity to share with family and visitors (many of whom may have never heard the Gospel) how the Lord has worked during their college careers. Every prospective degree candidate is encouraged to submit a testimony for selection for Commencement.

The testimony should not be over 45 seconds (100 words) in length. It should include thanks to the Lord for His blessings in some phase of school life. Include the following information in the upper right-hand corner of the page: name, home state or country, degree, area of study, and the school (Business, Education, Fine Arts and Communication, Religion/Seminary, or Arts and Science) from which you are graduating.

Degree recipients should turn testimonies in at the Records Office in the Administration Building by April 1.

For students enrolled II Semester, regalia will be distributed on Thursday, April 26, and Friday, April 27, from 1:30 until 5:30 p.m. in the mezzanine of the amphitorium (enter through the Rupp Room tower entrance across from the Student Center).

For students not enrolled II Semester, regalia will be distributed immediately after the rehearsal until 12:30 p.m. on Friday, May 4, in the mezzanine of the amphitorium.

Women should wear the shoes they plan to wear for Commencement. Hair may be worn at shoulder length or somewhat longer if curled and nicely styled off the face. Women should also be sure that their dresses will not be longer than their gowns. (The hems of all gowns will be eight inches off the floor.)

Degree Candidates:

• Men: Wear white dress shirts, dark dress pants (black, charcoal gray, or navy), dark ties, black socks, and black shoes. Light gray, brown, burgundy, or green are not acceptable.
• Ladies: Wear white or dark dresses (black or navy or dark skirts with white blouses) and black shoes with neutral-colored hose, no white hose. Do not wear dangling earrings, bracelets or necklaces that detract and call attention to the person. Hair may be worn at shoulder length or somewhat longer if curled and nicely styled off the face. Women should also be sure that their dresses will not be longer than their gowns. (The hems of all gowns will be eight inches off the floor.)

Graduation fees will be billed to your school account and should be paid by April 15 in the Business Office. The fees are payable in full whether the candidate receives the degree in person or in absentia. The gradation fee for degree candidates includes a complimentary DVD of Commencement, which will be mailed midsummer for May graduates and at the end of August for August graduates.

Associate Degrees — $100
Bachelor Degrees — $100
Master and Specialist Degrees — $100
Doctoral Degrees — $115

Baccalaureate candidates graduating with honors will receive a note in their post office boxes telling them to pick up honors ribbons in the Alumni Building lobby starting at 1:15 p.m. Friday. If you do not receive a note following the graduation rehearsal about honors and think you should have, or if you have a question about the accuracy of the honors, please inquire at the Records Office after the rehearsal.

Students not enrolled II Semester will receive notification concerning honors with their seat/marching assignment the morning of the rehearsal.

Friday, May 4, Opens 20 to 30 minutes following the ceremony until 6 p.m. Opening delay due to clearing of guests and return/distribution set up in the amphitorium (enter through tower entrance across from the Student Center Post Office).

Please return regalia (cap, gown and hood) to the amphitorium mezzanine. Enter the tower door directly across from the Student Center Post Office. After you turn in your regalia, continue through the line until you pick up your Diploma Release Ticket (both May and August graduates); then proceed on to the diploma stations in the amphitorium lobby. All regalia must be returned by 6 p.m.ations in the Amphitorium lobby. All regalia must be returned by 1:00 p.m. on Commencement day.

Friday, May 4, Opens 20 to 30 minutes following the ceremony until 6 p.m. Opening delay due to clearing of guests and return/distribution set up in the amphitorium (enter through tower entrance across from the Student Center Post Office).

Regalia must be returned by 6 p.m. to receive Diploma Release Ticket, whether you are a May or an August graduate. Diplomas will be given out only if your account with the University is paid up to date and you are receiving a diploma dated May 2012 with no printing changes to be made.

• May Graduates: Present your Diploma Release Ticket by 6 p.m. at the table with the proper alphabetic designation in the main lobby. May graduates whose diplomas are not ready to be released will leave your diploma case at the August table and complete a summer address form.
• August Graduates: Present your Diploma Release Ticket and your diploma case to the August table by 6 p.m. If you have not already done so, turn in the Prospective Graduate Summer Address form which you received in your post office box. (Those who left in December will be given a form to fill out at the table.) Greenville Residents: May pick up diplomas at the Records Office after August 24.

Special notice: Diplomas will be mailed to those graduating in absentia not living in the Greenville area. Absentia candidates living in the Greenville area may pick up their diplomas at the Records Office between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. any weekday after the following dates: May graduates, beginning Monday, May 7; August graduates, beginning Friday, August 24.

A complimentary DVD of Commencement will be mailed to each degree recipient. These will be mailed during mid-summer for May graduates and the end of August for August graduates. Additional orders for the recording of the Commencement ceremony may be placed at the Campus Store Customer Service Department. Order forms must be received at the Campus Store by July 1, 2012, for the discounted price; after that date there will be a price increase.

Degree candidates will be given five complimentary tickets at the end of the rehearsal. Tickets are not to be sold.

Amphitorium will open at 1 p.m. (main entrance and tower doors opposite the Student Center and Unusual Films).

• Tickets are valid until 1:30 p.m. at the main entrance and guarantee seating on the main floor or reserved sections of the balcony.
• All guests and students without tickets will use the tower doors opposite the Student Center and Unusual Films for seating in the balcony.
• Everyone should be seated by 1:40 p.m.
• Once the amphitorium is filled, any overflow seating will open in another auditorium for viewing the program via closed-circuit.
• Individuals with children (infant to 5 years of age) may view the closed-circuit program in Levinson Hall in the Student Center.

Note: The tickets guarantee seating in the building, but not in a particular section of the building. Seating will be on a first-come basis. No seats may be held for others.

Guests’ Arrival: Guests are urged to arrive on the campus in plenty of time to secure parking and get to the amphitorium.

Wheelchair: Guests using a wheelchair enter the tower doors at aisle 3 (opposite Student Center) or aisle 11 (opposite Unusual Films) and may be accompanied by another individual. No tickets will be needed for a person in a wheelchair or the one person who will be seated in a chair next to him. Tower doors will open at 12:50 p.m. for these individuals.

Hearing Impaired: Guests needing sign language interpretation enter the tower door at aisle 3 (opposite Student Center) and will be seated on aisle 1 rows MM or NN. Guests may be accompanied by another individual and special tickets must be secured during the graduation rehearsal.

Cameras, video or tape recorders, or packages are not permitted in the Founder’s Memorial Amphitorium. These items may be checked in at the ushers' Camera Check in the lobbies or left in a secure place elsewhere.

Children under six years of age will not be admitted to the amphitorium or any auditoriums. Guests with children may view the closed-circuit program in Levinson Hall in the Student Center. For the convenience of married prospective graduates with children (infant to 5 years of age), child care will be available during Commencement. We are sorry that we cannot accommodate children of prospective graduates' relatives and guests.

Prospective graduates should sign up at the Pennington Child Development Center (PCDC) and complete the required medical form by the Wednesday prior to Commencement. If you will not be enrolled II Semester and plan to come from out of town, please contact the PCDC if child care is needed during the service. For reservations, call 800.258.2334 or 864.370.1800, ext. 5300. The PCDC will be open at 12:45 p.m., and children should be picked up immediately after the service.

For prospective graduates not enrolled II Semester who want to stay in a residence hall, contact Guest Services to make a reservation (864.370.1800, ext. 4208). The cost is $22 per day and includes three consecutive meals in the dining common. One must supply his own linens.

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