Instructions
Graduation Fair
The Graduation Fair is scheduled for Friday, February 8. Prospective graduates will receive an appointment time to be photographed and order regalia and other graduation related merchandise. The Application for Diploma and Graduation will be collected, including ticket reservations for the Commencement Exercises.
Commencement Tickets
Guests attending the 2013 Commencement Exercises will be required to present a ticket for admission to the Philharmonic Center for the Arts. Tickets are free and must be reserved in advance. Seating is not assigned. Wheelchair seating is available. Candidates for graduation may request up to six (6) guest tickets using the Application for Diploma and Graduation submitted at the Graduation Fair on February 8. Children who are less than 30 inches tall do not need a ticket but must sit on an adult’s lap during the ceremony without obstructing the vie of other guests.
A waitlist for additional ticket requests will be maintained by Jennifer Malvica at the Office of the Registrar (jmalvica@avemarialaw.edu). Candidates who anticipate they may use fewer tickets than they reserved on the Application for Diploma and Graduation Form are encouraged to notify Ms. Malivca so that those tickets can be made available to others. Commencement tickets may not be sold or copied.
Tickets will be distributed during cap and gown distribution.
Regalia Pickup and Return
Candidates will pick up their cap and gown at Student Affairs in the Faculty and Administration building. Hoods will be presented during the Commencement Exercises.
All regalia must be returned following the Commencement Exercises to the designated area at the Philharmonic Center for the Arts.
Wearing Regalia
Candidates should report for both the Baccalaureate Mass and the Commencement Exercises in cap and gown. The tassel should be worn on the right front of the cap. Students will be hooded as they cross the stage.
Baccalaureate Mass Instructions
Students of all faiths are encouraged to attend. Participants should report no later than 5:30 p.m. to St. Agnes Catholic Church. Do not bring valuable items as there will be no place to secure them during Mass. Mass begins at 6 p.m. During the Baccalaureate Mass, men should remove their caps at the end of the Opening Hymn and replace them at the end of the Mass at the beginning of the Recessional Hymn.
New Alumni Reception and Pinning Ceremony
Graduation candidates and their families are invited to the Law School for a celebratory event with faculty and local alumni. Memorabilia will be available for purchase in the Bookstore. Candidates will be inducted into the ranks of alumni during the Alumni Pinning Ceremony.
Commencement Exercises
The doors to the Philharmonic Center for the Arts open at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 11. Candidates for graduation should report no later than 10:15 a.m. (45 minutes prior to the start of the ceremony). The Marshals will arrange candidates in alphabetical order and distribute name cards to be handed to the announcer before crossing the stage. Do not bring valuable items as there will be no place to secure them during the ceremony.
The Marshals will lead candidates to reserved seating in the auditorium. Candidates remain standing until after the Invocation. Men should remove caps during the National Anthem, the Invocation and later during the Benediction.
When it is time for each candidate to approach the stage, the Marshal will indicate when a particular row is to stand. Candidates proceed to the stage, hand the name card to the announcer, proceed to the hooding table and then cross the stage.
At the end of the ceremony, the faculty will exit first. The Marshals will lead the candidates from the auditorium.