graduating students faces

FAQ'S


Graduates should arrive at least 1 hour before the procession begins so that they can obtain their name card, line up with their college and major, and have their commencement portrait taken before the ceremony. Arrival times are listed on the Graduating Students section of our site.
Faculty: If you are a Dean, a Department Head, or hooding a Ph.D. graduate, please arrive no later than 1 hour prior to the procession and meet your graduates in the Fieldhouse. All other faculty, including faculty that are hooding Masters graduates, should arrive in their regalia at least 30 minutes prior to the procession and meet in the UniWyo Sports Complex. For more information, visit our Faculty page.
Family, friends, and other guests may arrive beginning 1 hour before the procession begins. When making your arrangements, please account for the time it may require to park or take the shuttle and understand that the Arena-Auditorium is a large venue. You may want to account for extra time to get a program, find the best seats, and purchase concessions. Please note: All ceremonies will be occurring in the same location. If you arrive early and the previous ceremony is still underway, please be thoughtful and respectful as your make your way through the Arena-Auditorium.

Commencement will take place in the Arena-Auditorium. The main entrance off of Willett will be blocked for shuttle service, accessible parking for individuals with disabilities, and VIP Parking. Please see our Shuttles and Parking page for more information about how to get here.

Each commencement typically takes 2.5 hours from start to finish, beginning with the procession. We are always striving to make commencement an amazing event, with the focus on students’ accomplishments. Everyone can help us make this vision come true by arriving on time and coming prepared.

UW parking lots will be open for free general parking on the day of commencement, with a few special exceptions. Transit & Parking services will only be enforcing major violations, which include yellow zones, fire lanes, accessible spaces, "U" spaces, the 30 minute loading/unloading zones along King Street, and other specially marked reserved spaces.

Family and friends, see our list here. Graduates are encouraged to bring as little as possible. There is not a secure place to store belongings in the student line-up room. Alcohol is strictly prohibited. Students in possession of alcohol in the line-up area or students transporting alcohol intro the Arena-Auditorium will be asked to leave.

No tickets are required for UW Commencement! If you are trying to seat a large group together, it is best to arrive early. Seating is all first come, first serve.

Concessions will be available for purchase at the Arena-Auditorium for family and friends. However, graduates will need to be in the lineup room before concessions will open. No alcohol will be served, and bringing alcohol into the venue is strictly prohibited with a zero tolerance policy.

Cap & Gown Pick Up is in the Wyoming Union, Big Horn Room 203 April 2, 2020 from 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM and on April 3, 2020 from 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM . Cap and gown may also be purchased anytime after these dates from the University Store in the Wyoming Union.

Students will order their cap and gown online beginning March 30th. You will need to know your height in order to ensure that you get the right size gown. You may order your regalia anytime after March 30th up until May 15th.

Graduates will be allowed to keep their mortar board (cap), so they may be decorated. Anything inappropriate or profane will not be allowed.

Graduates may keep their entire set of regalia.

Students should request accommodations when taking the commencement survey. If the student has already submitted the survey, please contact Disability Support Services via phone at (307) 766-3073 (also TTY) or via email at udss@uwyo.edu. For accessibility questions on the day of the ceremony, please visit one of three Accessibility Tables in the concourse More information can be found on our commencement accessibility page.

The main entrance to the Arena Auditorium off of Willett will be available accessible parking for individuals with disabilities. A state placard or proof of a disability license plate will need to be presented to the parking attendant to gain access to this area of parking. We will also be running our shuttles one hour before and after the ceremony, which are wheelchair equipped. Please see our Shuttles and Parking page for a map and more information.

We have limited companion seating located next to our wheelchair-accessible ADA seating sections. See one of our Accessibility Tables on the day of commencement for more information. Our accessibility page also has additional information.


In order to indicate that you want to participate in commencement, you must complete the commencement survey and declare your graduation date in WyoRecords. Completing this by the deadline ensures you will have a pre-printed name card and your name will appear in the commencement program. You will also need to order regalia (cap & gown). This is all you will need to do to participate in the ceremony, but there are additional requirements to finalize your graduation, regardless of your intent to walk at commencement. Those steps can be found on the Registrar's site.

You are not required to participate in commencement in order to graduate, although it is highly encouraged! Graduation is an amazing accomplishment that should be celebrated. However, if you do not want to participate in commencement, you will still need to complete a few steps to finalize your graduation. You will still need to declare your graduation date before the last day of classes (December 13, 2019). More information can be found at the Registrar's website.

There is no rehearsal for students at UW. We will give you clear instructions on the day of the ceremony! But it is critical that students show up on time, so that we can make sure the ceremony runs smoothly. There is a commencement rehearsal for stage party members, department heads, and faculty. If you are required to attend rehearsal, you will receive that information via email.

During winter commencement we only hold one ceremony so all colleges, graduate, and undergraduates will participate in one ceremony on Dec. 14th, at 9:30 am.

If you missed our deadline for the commencement survey, you can still participate! However, we cannot guarantee that your name will be printed in the program and you will not have a pre-printed name card. First thing—make sure you've declared your graduation date in WyoRecords and contact the Registrar’s Office at 307-766-5729 if you have questions. Second, you’ll want to contact your college dean’s office to let them know that you are planning to participate. If you missed our cap & gown deadline, please contact the University Store (307-766-3264) as soon as possible. The University Store does have a limited number of surplus gowns, but they cannot guarantee your size or the correct tassel color. You will be charged a $25.00 late fee in addition to the rental fee.

Off-campus students are more than welcome at UW commencement! You will just need to follow the same steps as on-campus students. If you will not be in Laramie until Saturday morning, we do cap & gown pick up starting at 7:00 AM the morning of commencement.


You will receive your diploma in the mail after your degree verification is complete. This process can take up to 3 months. Your diploma will be mailed to the address you specified when declaring your graduation date. Students who do not successfully complete all degree requirements will be notified in writing.

LifeTouch will email you after the ceremony with a link to purchase photographs. Watch your UW email for more information.

Commencement will be livestreamed and it will be archived on our WyoCast system. You can see previous commencements here.

If your name isn’t in the program, it is likely because you declared your graduation date after the deadline or did not fill out the commencement survey. The commencement survey and your graduation date must be submitted by November 1st in order to guarantee your name is in the program. You may still declare your graduation date until the last day of classes in order to formally graduate.

Contact us

Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs

Courtney Thomson-Lichty, Commencement Coordinator

Old Main, Suite 408

(307) 766-5123

studentaffairs@uwyo.edu

For Degree Evaluation or Diploma Related Questions

Office of the Registrar

(307) 766-5272

registrar@uwyo.edu