Commencement Frequently Asked Questions

• Japan - April 8, 2023 - New Sanno Hotel – Tokyo, Japan at 11:00am
  • Student registration link - https://na.eventscloud.com/tokyo2023
    
• Okinawa - April 15, 2023 - Yomitan Cultural Center (Otori Hall) – Okinawa at 2:00pm
  • Student registration link - https://na.eventscloud.com/okinawa2023
    
• Korea - April 22, 2023 - Morning Calm Center – Camp Humphreys, Korea at 11:00am
  • Student registration link - https://na.eventscloud.com/korea2023
    
• Guam - May 6, 2023 Hilton Guam Resort & Spa – Tamuning, Guam at 11:00am
  • Student registration link - https://na.eventscloud.com/guam2023
    

Typically, summer graduates participate in the next year's ceremony. However, if you would like to participate early, please e-mail your request to the Commencement Team.

Associate, bachelor’s, and master’s degree candidates will receive an e-mail invitation to RSVP online the first week of March. The e-mail invitations will contain a link to our online commencement registration system. Graduates and graduate candidates will need to follow the instructions in the invitation email to RSVP for your local ceremony.

If you are a Stateside graduate or enrolled in any graduate program other than the Master of Science in Business Administration (MBA) or Master of Science in Transformational Leadership, you are in a Stateside program and will need to contact commencement-asia@umgc.edu to participate in Asia’s Spring Commencement. Additionally, you will need to complete your application for graduation on or before March 1, 2023 to ensure you receive an invitation to the spring ceremony and are included in the program for the ceremony.

The commencement ceremonies in Tokyo and Okinawa require pre-registration and clearance for non-SOFA guests to attend since the ceremonies are located on a military base. To add your guests to the list, please contact commencement-asia@umgc.edu.

UMGC cannot grant access to non-SOFA students in Korea. Students planning to bring non-SOFA guests to the Korea Commencement Ceremony will need to contact Camp Humphreys about their visitors’ policy.

The Guam ceremony will be held off base and does not require passes or pre-screening for guests.

Regalia is required, must be purchased through Oak Hall, and will not be available for purchase at the ceremony. Please notify the UMGC Asia Office of Student Services, at studentservices-asia@umgc.edu, if you have not received your regalia at least one week prior to the ceremony.

No. You will receive a congratulatory letter from UMGC President inside of your diploma cover when you cross the stage. Diplomas are mailed about six to eight weeks after each conferral date; for example, if your MBA was awarded in September, your diploma should have arrived by Thanksgiving. Please update your mailing address at MyUMGC to ensure smooth delivery of your diploma.

Yes, there is a list of stoles graduates can wear as part of their official regalia on the Oak Hall website with the graduation regalia. The choices vary for active duty or veterans of the armed forces. Students can also wear stoles of gratitude and their official honor society stoles, which should be available to order through their honor society.

Academic honors are based on your cumulative GPA at UMGC while pursuing a bachelor’s degree^*. You must have earned at least 30 credits at UMGC in courses for which a letter grade and quality points were assigned. For honors to be conferred with a second bachelor’s degree, you must have a total of 30 new UMGC credits and the requisite GPA.

• Cum Laude = 3.800 to 3.900
• Magna Cum Laude = 3.901 to 3.999
• Summa Cum Laude = 4.0

White cords represent Cum Laude, blue cords represent Magna Cum Laude, and gold cords represent Summa Cum Laude.

*Associate’s and master’s degrees are not eligible for academic honors awarded by UMGC.

Yes. Students who belong to an honor society can wear the organization’s stole or cords regardless of degree level. However, associate’s and master’s degree students are not eligible for UMGC academic honors (i.e., cum laude).

Please contact the Office of Student Services in UMGC Asia or UMGC Europe. The Office of Student Services or Graduate Programs will confirm your graduation status. You can reach the Office of Student Services in Asia at studentservices-asia@umgc.edu. Once your graduation status has been confirmed, and the Office of Commencement Services has been notified, they will send you detailed information about the Adelphi commencement.

Please email your request to participate in commencement to commencement-asia@umgc.edu.

For more information and to activate your free membership, visit the UMGC Alumni Association.