Graduation
About Graduation at Otago
Graduation is a chance for you to mark the completion of your studies and to celebrate your success with your family, friends and the University community. It also marks your admission to the full and permanent membership of the University.
The University currently holds more than ten graduation ceremonies each year, including two in Invercargill. You may choose whether to graduate in May, August or December, but you must graduate at the ceremony allocated to your particular qualification. If you are receiving two qualifications which would normally be awarded at two separate ceremonies, you may choose one ceremony at which you will receive both.
You can choose whether to graduate in person or in absentia. If you graduate in person, you will be 'capped' by the Chancellor and your degree or diploma will be presented to you on stage at the ceremony. If you graduate in absentia, you do not attend the ceremony. Your name will be listed in the ceremony booklet (but not read out) and your degree or diploma will be sent to you by courier in the week following the ceremony or, if you are in Dunedin, you can come and collect it. Even if you choose to graduate in absentia, your qualification can be awarded only at an official graduation ceremony.
Someone who has completed the requirements of their qualification, but has not yet graduated, is termed a "graduand". After graduation, you become a "graduate" of the University.
Graduation Dates for 2012
All ceremonies, except those on 5 December, will be held at the Regent Theatre, Dunedin. Please note that two ceremonies will be held on some dates and the start times of the ceremonies vary, as detailed below.
- Saturday 5 May 2012 at 1.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Applied Science, Consumer and Applied Sciences, Physical Education and Surveying
- Saturday 5 May 2012 at 4.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Science and Biomedical Sciences
- Saturday 12 May 2012 at 3.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Commerce
- Saturday 19 May 2012 at 1.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Arts, Education, Music, Teaching and Theology
- Saturday 19 May 2012 at 4.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Law, Dentistry, Health Sciences, Medicine, Medical Laboratory Science, Pharmacy and Physiotherapy
- Saturday 25 August 2012 at 3.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in all disciplines
- Saturday 1 December 2012 at 3.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Education, Teaching and Pharmacy
- Wednesday 5 December 2012 (two ceremonies in Invercargill)- Degrees and diplomas in Education and Teaching
- Saturday 8 December 2012 at 1.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Medicine and Medical Laboratory Science
- Saturday 8 December 2012 at 4.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Dentistry and Physiotherapy
- Wednesday 12 December 2012 at 3.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Arts, Music and Theology
- Saturday 15 December 2012 at 1.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Commerce, Law, Biomedical Sciences and Health Sciences
- Saturday 15 December 2012 at 4.00 pm - Degrees and diplomas in Applied Science, Consumer and Applied Sciences, Physical Education, Science and Surveying
Choosing Your Graduation Date
While you can choose whether to graduate in December, May or August, you should graduate at the ceremony allocated to your discipline. If, however, you are receiving two qualifications which would normally be awarded at two separate ceremonies, you may choose one ceremony at which you will receive both.
Permission to change to a ceremony other than the one allocated to your discipline, is granted only to allow you to graduate on the same day as a close family member or where circumstances which are beyond your control will prevent you from graduating at your allocated ceremony.
If you want to change your graduation date you must apply in writing (either a letter or an email) to the Group Leader, Graduation, outlining your situation and where possible, you should provide supporting documentation. There is no guarantee that permission will be granted. Please note that having flights booked for the wrong date, or wishing to graduate with friends is not considered sufficient reason for allowing a change of date.
Applying to Graduate
In order to be able to graduate, you must submit an application form to the Graduation Office.
Even if you do not wish to attend a graduation ceremony, you must still apply to have your qualification awarded in absentia. Application forms will be posted to those eligible to graduate, but please note that the onus is on you to make sure you receive the form. Please ensure that you keep your addresses up to date on PIMS so that the form is sent to your current address. Even if you are not currently enrolled at the University, you will still have access to PIMS, and will be able to keep your contact details up to date this way.
May Ceremonies
An application form for the May graduation ceremonies will be posted in early February to those who completed their qualification in the previous year and have not yet graduated, and to those registered as finalists at Summer School in the current year. This will be sent to your home address, as recorded on PIMS. If you would like to graduate in May, but have not received an application form by 13 February, please contact either the Graduation Office or the University Information Centre immediately.
August Ceremony
An application form for the August graduation ceremony will be posted in early June to those who completed their qualification in the previous year and have not yet graduated, and to those registered as finalists at either Summer School or in semester one of the current year. This will be sent to your home address, as recorded on PIMS. If you would like to graduate in August, but have not received an application form by mid-June, please contact either the Graduation Office or the University Information Centre immediately.
December Ceremonies
An application form for the December graduation ceremonies will be posted in early September to those who have either completed their qualification or who are registered as finalists in the current year. This will be sent to your semester address, as recorded on PIMS. If you would like to graduate in December, but have not received an application form by mid-September, please contact either the Graduation Office or the University Information Centre immediately.
Closing Dates for Applications
Your application form must be submitted before the closing date for the ceremony you wish to graduate at:
- Applications for the May ceremonies close on 1 March*
- Applications for the August ceremony close on 1 July*
- Applications for the December ceremonies close on 1 October*
* Important - Please note that there is a limit to the number of people who can graduate in person at any one ceremony. Applications may close earlier than the date stated above if this limit is reached.
There is no limit to the number of people who can graduate in absentia, but your application must be received by the stated closing date.
Please return your application promptly to avoid disappointment. If your application has not been received by the date applications close, it will not be accepted.
We do not recommend booking flights or making other arrangements for the weekend of graduation before you have submitted your graduation application form. If you choose to make such arrangements, please be aware that you do so at your own risk. Having made such arrangements in advance will not be considered sufficient grounds for accepting late applications, so you will need to ensure that you submit your application before the closing date.
Master's and Doctoral Degrees
If you are completing a qualification for which a thesis or dissertation is required, you should submit an application for the ceremony of your choice, even if you are not sure whether your result will be available in time. Late applications will not be accepted, so please apply as soon as possible for the ceremony of your choice.
Your final result must be confirmed at least five weeks before the date of the ceremony you have applied for. Please contact the Graduation Office to find out the exact date your result is required. If your result does not come through by the due date, you will be withdrawn from the ceremony and you can then reapply for another ceremony at a later date.
Before you can graduate, you must also submit permanently (hard) bound copies of your thesis to the University. These must be received at least three weeks before the ceremony. Please contact the Graduation Office to find out the exact date these are required.
Please be aware that you need to allow up to ten working days for your thesis to be printed and bound, so you should get this underway as soon as you are able. For further information about the binding process, please contact Uniprint or the Library Bindery.
In addition, you are also required to submit an electronic version of your thesis to the Otago University Research (OUR) Archive at least three weeks prior to the ceremony date.
Notification of Acceptance
As soon as your application has been loaded into the Graduation Office's database, your graduation details will appear on PIMS. You will still have access to PIMS, even if you are not currently enrolled at the University - just use the same username and password you did when you were a student. Because of the volume of applications, it can take a few weeks to load all the forms, but you should normally be able to see your Graduation Details on PIMS about two weeks after applications close.
Approximately four weeks prior to the ceremony, everyone who has been accepted to graduate in person will be sent a Guide to Graduation booklet, together with an application form for hiring regalia and requesting guest tickets. Everything you need to know about the graduation ceremony and associated events is contained in the Guide to Graduation, so please read it carefully.
Graduands with Disabilities
Graduands who have a disability or injury that could cause some mobility problems on the day should contact the Graduation Office as soon as possible so that appropriate arrangements can be made.
Withdrawing from a Ceremony
If you wish to withdraw from the ceremony you have been accepted into (whether you are graduating in person or in absentia), you need to notify the Graduation Office in writing (either by letter or email) at least two weeks prior to the ceremony date. You can then choose to either:
- have your qualification awarded in absentia (ie in your absence) at the ceremony you originally chose; or
- withdraw completely and reapply for a ceremony to be held at a later date
If you give less than two weeks notice that you wish to withdraw, we will be unable to remove your name from the Graduation programme and your qualification will be awarded in absentia. If this happens, you will not be able to graduate at another ceremony as you can graduate only once with each qualification.
Guests
Please note that in the first instance, we can guarantee only two guest tickets per graduand (you do not need a ticket yourself). If additional tickets are required, you must state on the ticket and regalia form how many you would like in total (including the two guaranteed tickets) and give an indication of who these are for. We do our best to fulfil requests for extra tickets, but due to the size of the Regent Theatre, this will not always be possible.
The doors to the Regent Theatre will open 45 minutes prior to the ceremony and guests should be seated in the Theatre at least 10 minutes before the ceremony commences. Guests are allocated tickets for a particular area of the Regent Theatre, but not for specific seats. Ushers will be on hand to direct guests to seats on a first-come, first-served basis.
The ceremony begins promptly at the stated time and will usually be of about one and a half hours duration. Both those graduating and their guests are expected to remain in the Regent Theatre for the entire ceremony, as leaving early can be very disruptive to other guests on this special occasion.
Guests with Disabilities
Graduands who have a guest with a disability or for whom special seating arrangements are required must indicate this on the ticket application form, and every effort will be made to provide appropriate seating. Please note that most of the seating at the Regent Theatre is accessed via several flights of stairs. If this will cause difficulties for any of your guests, you need to let us know so that they can be seated on the lower level, as this has lift access.
Wheelchair access to the Regent Theatre is via the main entrance in the Octagon.
Regalia
When taking part in a graduation ceremony, you must wear the appropriate academic regalia. This consists of the following:
- Gown - there are four types of gown: a black Bachelor's gown, a black Master's gown, a maroon gown for PhD, DClinDent, EdD and DMA degrees and a scarlet gown for other doctoral degrees.
- Hood - this hangs around your neck and down your back and the colour of the hood lining denotes the degree.
- Cap - the cap for all Masters' and Bachelors' degrees is a black trencher or 'mortar board'. Doctoral graduates wear a black velvet cap.
Academic regalia is normally hired from the Federation of Graduate Women, and the application form for this will be sent to you approximately four weeks before the ceremony.
If you are receiving a diploma and already hold a degree, you wear the regalia for your degree, as diplomas do not have their own unique regalia. If you are receiving a diploma, and do not already have a degree, you wear a black bachelor's gown only.
Those who are receiving two degrees at the same ceremony can wear only one hood during the ceremony, but you may choose which one you would like to wear. You may, however, still like to hire both hoods for photographic purposes.
Online Payment for Hire of Regalia
Once you have been accepted into a graduation ceremony and have received your coloured form for ordering guest tickets and hiring regalia from the Graduation Office, you can pay for your regalia via credit card by using the following link. In order for your request for both guest tickets and regalia hire to be processed, please ensure that you return the coloured form to the Graduation Office by the date specified on that form.
Online Payment for Hire of Regalia
Graduation Booklet Form for Doctoral Candidates
The Graduation ceremony booklet includes a brief summary (150 words or less) of all doctoral theses being awarded in person at that ceremony. Please download the Doctoral Graduation Booklet Form (28k in MS doc format) here, complete the form and email it to graduation@otago.ac.nz as soon as possible and at least five weeks before the ceremony. Please remember that most of the people reading this will be unfamiliar with your field of study, so you should make your summary as simple and easy to understand as possible.
Other Activities
Full details of all the following will be available in the Guide to Graduation, which will be sent to all participants about four weeks prior to the ceremony.
Some Divisions, Schools, Departments and Residential Colleges hold functions for their graduands, usually either on the day before or on the morning of the graduation ceremony.
A Thanksgiving Service is held prior to the procession on the day of each ceremony, and all graduands and their families are invited to attend.
Procession
The OUSA organises an informal procession along George Street prior to the ceremony. This is voluntary, but it is a great opportunity to walk along the middle of the main street of Dunedin and be acknowledged by your friends and family. Please note, on days where two ceremonies are being held, there will be only one procession.
If your ceremony begins at 1.00 pm or 4.00 pm the procession will depart from outside the School of Dentistry at 11.30 am.
If your ceremony begins at 3.00 pm, the procession will depart from outside the School of Dentistry at 1.30 pm.
Please assemble outside the School of Dentistry 15 minutes prior to the departure of the procession.
Reception
Immediately after the Ceremony, there will be a reception in marquees set up on the lawn at First Church (in Moray Place), which everyone is invited to attend.
Photographs
McRobie Photographics will take a photograph of each graduate as they are being 'capped' by the Chancellor. This will be available for purchase in the reception marquee on the lawn at First Church, immediately after the ceremony. If you would like any additional portrait photographs to be taken, you will need to arrange a private sitting with a photographer yourself.
A video or DVD of the ceremony will also be available for purchase from Impressions Audiovisual. Contact details can be found in the Guide to Graduation.
Deferring Graduation
The Conferment of Academic Awards regulations of the University state that you must graduate within twelve months of completing your qualification. This means that if, for example, you complete your qualification at the end of semester two (ie. in November), you must graduate either in December of the same year or in May or August of the following year. If you wish to defer your graduation beyond this, you must apply in writing (either a letter or an email) to the Group Leader, Graduation for permission.
Permission is usually granted only to allow you to complete a second qualification so that you may have both conferred at the same ceremony. However, please note that it is very unusual to be granted permission to defer graduating with an undergraduate qualification while you complete a postgraduate qualification. It is also rare for permission to be granted if you wish to defer graduating for more than one year.
Anyone who has neither applied to graduate nor received permission to defer their graduation within the specified time frame will automatically have their qualification conferred in absentia. It will then be held by the Graduation Office until you contact us and advise us where it is to be sent.
Further Information
If you have any questions regarding graduation, please contact the Graduation Office
Tel 64 3 479 8239
Fax 64 3 479 5490
Email graduation@otago.ac.nz
