May Commencement for Bachelor's Degrees

Students eligible for graduation in May 2022 will receive notice from Student Administrative Services and will be required to fill out a form in MyCU to indicate that they plan to graduate in the May 2022 ceremony. Commencement tickets cannot be requested until this application is completed. If at any time you change your mind regarding participation in the Commencement program for May 2022, you must inform Student Administrative Services at (315)268-6451 or through e-mail at commencement@clarkson.edu promptly. Detailed seating of the graduates is an important factor in Commencement.

You will not receive your actual diploma during Commencement. Instead, you will be able to sit with your friends and classmates in any order and receive a blank diploma cover. Your diploma will be mailed to you after Commencement. You will be given a card with your name on it to give to the name reader during the handing out of degrees during the ceremony. Please make sure to give the phonetic spelling of your full name in MyCU so that the reader can properly pronounce your name. 

All students who plan to attend Commencement must complete their graduation application through MyCU by February 15 in order to be eligible for Commencement tickets. Each student is guaranteed four (4) guest tickets; graduates do not need a ticket for themselves.

Clarkson has taken on a new ticketing system for Commencement; students will receive the ticket link via email mid March where they will be able to reserve their tickets and have the ability to select the location for their 4 guaranteed tickets. Please note that the arena will be filled to maximum capacity based on NYS Guidelines - some seats may be behind or to the side of the main stage.  There will also be a live stream of the ceremony in the Barben Rooms located in the Cheel Campus Center (2nd floor) for any guests unable to acquire a ticket for the arena. 

In order to provide the individualized atmosphere where each graduate receives his or her own certificate personally and to complete the exercises in approximately two and a half hours, we are not able to allow parents and friends to come down the aisles to the stage for photos. The University has arranged for a professional photographer, Genesee Photo Systems, to take an individual photo of each graduate. The photographer is skilled and equipped to perform this service. This technique has been used very successfully since 1981.

Genesee Photo Systems will post proofs online on their Website (http://www.geneseephoto.com/) soon after the ceremony. You may order photographs directly from their Website.  Please contact Genesee Photo Systems at 800-345-7427 for additional photograph-related questions.  Within safety limits, we will permit video cameras to operate from behind the last row of seats so long as the aisles are not congested.

The rehearsal is extremely important! Commencement rehearsal on Friday, May 13 will be in Cheel Arena starting at 10:30 a.m., at which time the procedures for the graduation exercises will be reviewed, and Commencement tickets will be distributed to you. All graduates are expected to attend rehearsal. If you are unable to attend, please contact commencement@clarkson.edu so that we can have your rehearsal packet in the Cheel Campus Center lobby at the information table, starting at Noon, on Saturday prior to the Commencement ceremony.

The University Bookstore with Jostens coordinates the ordering of all regalia (cap and gown). All regalia must be ordered on-line through Jostens by Mid March. Your pre-ordered regalia may be picked up at the University Bookstore in late April/early May. You will receive exact dates and times as the event approaches. The University Bookstore will be sending all graduating students a price sheet with payment options to their Clarkson email. Payment is required at the time of pick-up. Jostens also has available for order diploma frames, graduation announcements, thank you notes and gifts. If you have any questions, please email the bookstore at 1193mgr@follett.com or call 315-265-9260. After the first week of March, you will be required to call Jostens at 1-800-854-7464 to order your cap and gown.  

Order Your Regalia from Jostens

The basic attire for all graduating students is black academic regalia ("cap and gown") with a black tassel. In keeping with the formality of Commencement, additional adornments are limited. 

Students graduating with a bachelor's degree:

• Honor graduates with a GPA of 3.75 or higher are eligible to wear a gold honor cord. Such students will be given their honor cords at Commencement rehearsal on Friday, May 10.
• Honor graduates with a GPA of 3.25 or higher will also receive a gold tassel.
• Members of academic honor societies are also eligible to wear their designated stole, cord, or sash. Students possessing several such adornments should choose one.  

Cheel Campus Center and Cheel Arena are accessible to guests with disabilities. When reserving your guest tickets for the Commencement ceremony make note of any disabilities.

Cheel Campus Center and Cheel Arena are accessible to guests with disabilities. If a guest requires a ticket for a wheelchair accessible seating area, sign language interpreter, visually impaired seating area or any other accessible accommodation these tickets will be available to request when students order their Commencement tickets online.

A special section of the Cheel Arena will be reserved for those guests using wheelchairs. One caregiver will be permitted to sit next to the guest's wheelchair. Guests with tickets for accessible seating will need to enter the arena using the canopied exterior front entrance of Cheel Campus Center. This entrance will be identified that it is for such ticket holders.

Upon advanced request, to the Clarkson Events Team, any graduate who has a guest needing interpretation services, the interpreter will sign that graduate's name to the audience in addition to interpreting the remarks and songs.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding accommodative seating, please email events@clarkson.edu. 

Children requiring their own seat will need tickets. The exercises last for approximately two and a half hours, a long time for an infant or young child. There is no nursery or childcare provided. However, there is a lactation room located on the second floor as well as changing stations in the first floor restrooms. Parents are asked to be sensitive to those around them so that all may enjoy the ceremony. If parents must take their children out of the Arena, they are welcome to continue watching the ceremony in the Barben Rooms on the second floor of the Campus Center, where a live feed (including audio) and viewing area are provided. We broadcast Commencement via Time Warner Cable on channel 30 (WCKN) and online. A lactation room for nursing mothers is also available on the second floor of Cheel Campus Center and signs will lead guests in need of the space to the right location.

Only doors into the Arena from inside the Cheel Campus Center will be used for spectator entry. For their convenience, guests with disabilities may also enter directly into the arena through a side door near the front entrance of the Cheel Campus Center. 

Tickets are required and will be checked by staff upon entry into the Arena. The "Schedule at a Glance" at the top of this page should be used to understand when guests should enter the Arena based on type of ticket. 

We ask that large bags, signs, weapons of any kind be kept out of the Arena for the comfort and safety of our guests. Guests are asked to remain seated during the ceremony unless asked to rise to allow all guests a comfortable, safe and positive experience.

Guests unable to attend Commencement can watch the live broadcast of the ceremony starting at 2:30 p.m. on May 15.

Live Web Video Broadcast

For information on traveling to Clarkson, please see Visit Us, where you will find links to maps and directions.

Guests who wish to dine off campus are encouraged to make reservations in advance due to high demand over the course of the weekend. Guests are encouraged to make dinner reservations after the ceremony for approximately 5:30 or 6 p.m., depending on preference for attending the post-Commencement celebration on Cheel Lawn starting directly after the ceremony. 

Traffic on the hill campus will be, for the most part, two-way. All campus entrances will be open. Please watch for signs to direct you. Guests with or dropping off disabled person(s) will be directed to the front of the Cheel Campus Center, where they will be assisted by staff in discharging their disabled guests then directed onward for parking. Guests bringing campers, trailers or larger vehicles are invited to park at Walker Center where electricity and washrooms are available.  Guests staying in the residence halls should plan on walking to the ceremony or catching a ride on one of several golf carts that will be escorting guests around campus.  Guests with questions or concerns can call Campus Safety & Security at 315-268-6666.