Please contact your academic advising office for details on degree progress and your expected graduation term.

See also the OneStop graduation information for undergraduate students and for graduate and professional students.

Conferral ceremonies are where degrees are formally granted by a Regent of the University of Minnesota. At the ceremony, graduates will participate in the processional into the stadium to their seats on the floor, remarks will be made by University officials, a student speaker, keynote speaker, and others.

After formally having their degrees conferred, graduates will move their graduation cap tassels from right to left, ceremonially completing their degree. Graduates will also receive their official University of Minnesota diploma covers at their conferral ceremony (diplomas are mailed to graduates at a later date).

The undergraduate conferral ceremony will begin at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at Huntington Bank Stadium. Doors to the stadium open at 11:00 a.m. The ceremony is expected to run about two hours.

The graduate student conferral ceremony will begin at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 12, 2023 at Huntington Bank Stadium. Doors to the stadium open at 3:00 p.m. The ceremony is expected to run about two hours.

Some colleges and schools are able to host individual ceremonies in smaller spaces. If yours is not listed in this FAQ, details of your commencement will be communicated to you directly. If you would like to also participate in the campus-wide ceremony, please contact [email protected].

Graduates who earned their degree in Fall 2022, Spring 2023, or Summer 2023. For questions about ceremony eligibility, Honors, or distinction requirements, please contact your college advising office.

• The undergraduate ceremony will include bachelor’s degree graduates from the College of Biological Sciences, College of Continuing and Professional Studies, College of Design, College of Education and Human Development, College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences, College of Liberal Arts, Carlson School of Management, and the College of Science and Engineering.
• The graduate ceremony will include master’s and doctoral degree students from the College of Continuing and Professional Studies, College of Design, College of Education and Human Development, College of Liberal Arts, Carlson School of Management, and the College of Science and Engineering.
• Some colleges and schools are able to host individual ceremonies in smaller spaces. If yours is not listed above, details of your commencement will be communicated to you directly.
• If you would like to also participate in the campus-wide ceremony, please contact [email protected].

Graduates will receive an email invitation from MarchingOrder, our ceremony registration vendor, where they will RSVP for the event. Invitations are expected to be sent out in February 2023.

The full program of each conferral ceremony, including speakers, will be announced at a later date.

We will select one speaker for the graduate student ceremony, and one for the undergraduate ceremony, to address the graduates, faculty and guests at Huntington Bank Stadium. In the application, you will be asked why you are interested in this role, and what your plans are for after graduation, and to upload both a written sample of what your speech would include, and a copy of your resume.

For the sample speech, you must limit your response to no more than 500 words. In general, you should address your own authentic college experiences. Given the wide range of fields of study at the University of Minnesota—arts, business, design, education, human service, science—the speech should resonate with the diverse experiences of all graduates of the University. Speeches are evaluated based on the following criteria: Relevant and timely to the audience; inspiring; consistent with University's mission and values.

Applications can be submitted at this site. Applications are due by midnight on Sunday, April 2, 2023. A campus-wide committee will review applications, invite finalists for an interview, and select the finalists for each ceremony by the end of April. We will also offer coaching to the finalists to prepare for delivery of this important address. Announcements will be made to the public after May 1.

If you have further questions about this process, contact [email protected].

Yes, the ceremony will be streamed online. The ceremony will also be recorded and available to view online after the ceremony. A link to the live stream will be available closer to the event date.

Yes, conferral ceremonies will be ticketed events and all seating will be general admission. Children two years old and under do not need a ticket. Doors open two hours prior to the ceremony.

Students who RSVP to the conferral ceremony invitation sent to them from MarchingOrder in February will have access to tickets. At this time, undergraduate students are allocated 6 tickets per student and graduate students are allocated 10 tickets per student. As the date event approaches, more tickets may become available as stadium capacity allows.

Tickets will be transferable to other students or others who wish to attend.

If you have guests planning to attend from outside the U.S., please see these guidelines.

Parking in campus facilities will be limited. We encourage the use of public transit, ride-share apps (Uber, Lyft, etc.), and carpooling. Additional parking details will be posted on this site in the coming weeks, including information about parking passes, reserved parking, and shuttles.

The event will take place rain or shine. In the event of severe weather, we will follow the safety policies of Huntington Bank Stadium and may delay or cancel our in-person ceremony.

Huntington Bank Stadium has a list of prohibited items for their facility. Please check their guidelines here.

If you are unable to attend the in-person conferral ceremony, all graduates are able to participate in a separate virtual ceremony. A professional recording of your name will be added to a personalized slide that will be available online at the time of our in-person ceremony and will display to virtual attendees your name, approved photo, degree, major, minor, and Latin honors/distinction (if applicable).

Graduates will receive an email invitation in February from MarchingOrder, our ceremony registration vendor, where they can upload and verify all information needed for the virtual portion of the ceremony.

Official commencement regalia can be purchased from the University Bookstore. We encourage you to attend Gradfest to help prepare for commencement.

3M Arena at Mariucci, the site of several past collegiate commencement ceremonies, is undergoing needed renovations. These could not wait to begin until after commencement season if they were to be completed in time for the hockey season beginning in October.

We have gathered extensive information from our peers and input from students, families, alumni, and other groups, including the Undergraduate Student Government, Council of Graduate Students, and undergraduate collegiate boards. This feedback informed commencement activities that provide new ways to collectively and individually recognize and honor the achievements of our graduates. We are excited that the variety of options gives graduates the flexibility to choose a level of engagement that is right for them and their guests.

Both on-campus and off-campus venues were considered (Williams Arena, the Pavilion, Northrop, Ted Mann, US Bank Stadium, the Armory) but the spaces were already booked, had accessibility issues, would not hold the number of students and guests needed, and/or were prohibitively expensive for an individual college.

With over 6,500 undergraduate students expected to graduate, reading 10 names per minute, it would take over 10 hours to have each individual cross the stage. Even the graduate ceremony, which we expect to be smaller, would be prohibitively long.

Before making any decisions for future commencements, we will carefully evaluate the feasibility of making this change permanent, taking into consideration how well this year’s activities met the needs of our graduates and their guests.

Please email [email protected] and we will reply within 3-5 business days.

Individual students will have the opportunity to cross a stage while their guests have a front-row viewing experience to cheer and take photos and video. Our vendor MarchingOrder will contact graduates directly beginning on February 16 to offer the opportunity to make an appointment for a stage crossing.

After checking in at their chosen check-in time and location, graduates and their guests will go to a stage where the graduate will have their name announced, cross the stage, be congratulated by a University official, and have their photo taken by professional photographers. Additional photo opportunities will be available.

Graduates may choose to coordinate with their friends and colleagues to cross the stage together. For example, friends in student organizations, fraternities or sororities, sports teams, or other groups with graduating members might choose to cross sequentially. Graduate students may choose to invite their advisors and bring their hoods to their scheduled stage crossing time.

Stage crossing opportunities are currently scheduled in the Field House at the following days and times:

Thursday, May 11: 3:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Friday, May 12: 12:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 13: 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.

Stage crossing dates and times are available on a first-come, first-served basis. We will continue to monitor the interest level during the most popular times and add openings if needed.

If being congratulated by a representative of your college is an important part of your stage crossing experience, please see this schedule of which colleges will have their leaders available.

Please plan to arrive with all your guests during your scheduled 15-minute window, and plan to be at the stage crossing location for 15 to 30 minutes.

Our vendor MarchingOrder will contact graduates directly beginning on February 16 to offer the opportunity to make an appointment for a stage crossing. If you graduated in summer or fall 2022 or are expecting to graduate in spring or summer 2023 and have not received a message from MarchingOrder, please contact us at [email protected].

There is no limit to the number of guests a graduate can bring to the stage crossing. We strongly encourage groups to carpool or use public transportation to reduce traffic congestion and occupancy of parking facilities on campus.

Graduate students may choose to invite their advisors and bring their hoods to their scheduled stage crossing time.

Professional photos will be taken by GradImages. Those photos will be made available for purchase two weeks after commencement and will have a variety of photo options. Your guests may also take photos and videos as you cross the stage.

Graduates can select any stage crossing time slot that they wish. We are excited to provide the opportunity for graduates to celebrate with friends from any college, school, or department across the entire University. With this flexibility, students can coordinate stage crossing times with friends in student organizations, fraternities or sororities, sports teams, and any other groups with graduating members.

If being congratulated by a representative of your college is an important part of your stage crossing experience, please see this schedule of which colleges will have their leaders available.

Please email [email protected] and we will reply within 3-5 business days.

Colleges, schools, and departments that are planning independent ceremonies or other celebratory events will send information about those activities directly to graduates and/or post to their collegiate websites as those details are finalized:

• College of Biological Sciences
• College of Continuing and Professional Studies
• School of Dentistry
• College of Design
• College of Education and Human Development
• College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences
• Law School
• College of Liberal Arts
• Carlson School of Management
• Medical School
• School of Nursing
• College of Pharmacy
• Humphrey School of Public Affairs
• School of Public Health
• College of Science and Engineering
• College of Veterinary Medicine

Details will also be added to the campus events calendar as they are finalized.

Commencement information is available on each campus website:

• Crookston
• Duluth
• Morris
• Rochester

Wednesday, March 22 and Thursday, March 23, 2023
10 a.m.–5 p.m. each day
Coffman Memorial Union, Great Hall
Everything graduates need—all in one place.
Gradfest website

Wednesday, May 3, 2023
4:30–6:30 p.m.
McNamara Alumni Center
Open House hosted by the Alumni Association with food, gifts, dignitaries, and more!
The Send Off website

Please email [email protected] and we will reply within 3-5 business days.