Appendix B - Graduation and Convocation Requirements

An "Application for Graduation" is required of all students. The form for this purpose can be obtained at the FGSR office or from the FGSR Website. Students are expected to attend the corresponding Convocation ceremony to receive their degree. Students who are not able to attend the ceremony can obtain their degree certificates from the Registrar's office in the week(s) following convocation, or the certificate will be mailed.

There are now nine possible exit points during the year. Degrees can be awarded to students every month during the months of September, October, November, January, February, March, April, May and June. These are the months that Executive of Council of the University of Regina meets to approve prospective graduates. Once the degree has been awarded, it will be shown on the transcript. Verification of degree eligibility for graduate students is done in the Dean's Office and is not vetted by committees of Faculty. Lists of graduates are forwarded directly from the Dean's Office to Executive of Council.

Formal convocation ceremonies are held twice a year, the Spring Convocation in May or June and the Fall Convocation in October or November. Although the award of the degree will show on a transcript as soon as the student is approved for it, distribution of the diplomas/parchment is reserved for the ceremonies. Students who are unable to attend the formal convocation ceremony to receive their diploma can request early release of the parchment at a cost set by the Registrar's Office. The request is to be made in writing to the Registrar's Office.

In order to have an application for graduation go forward for conferral of degrees, all requirements for the degree must be met. Completion of requirements includes receipt of library approval of final corrected copies of the thesis or formal confirmation of completion of projects, practicums, internships, reports and all grades. For example, if Executive of Council meets on September 22 all requirements for the degree must be met by August 31. That is, that all requirements must be satisfied by the end of the month prior to the meeting of Executive of Council. Executive of Council normally meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month.

The University sets a schedule of dates, following the dates of Executive of Council, for the Chancellor to sign the graduand lists. In the Chancellor's absence, the Vice-Chancellor may sign. The date for conferral of credentials is the date the Chancellor signs the lists. The Registrar's Office updates the degree status to AW (Awarded). The conferral date will now appear on the official transcript.

Diplomas bear the date of actual conferral. They bear the signatures of the officers who were in their positions as of the date of conferral. Diplomas are printed immediately after conferral and stored in the vault until the Convocation ceremony when they are distributed. Those not distributed at Convocation are picked up at the Registrar's Office or are mailed 4-6 weeks after the ceremony. Early release is available for a handling fee. Diplomas are not mailed if there is a financial hold (for debts greater that $100) on the student's account.

It is not necessary to apply for the convocation ceremony itself. The student's application for graduation will be forwarded by the FGSR office for the appropriate ceremony.

Deadlines for Ceremonies
Deadlines only affect attendance at the Convocation ceremony and have no effect on the timing of the student's graduation or his or her ability to obtain a diploma or official transcript confirming the credential.

Students who apply between February 1 and July 31, and who will complete their program requirements by August 31 are eligible to attend the fall convocation ceremony. Defended corrected thesis must be submitted by July 31.

Students who apply between August 1 and January 31, and who will complete their program requirements by April 30 are eligible to attend spring convocation. Defended corrected thesis must be submitted by March 31.

Upon request, FGSR will continue to do letters of completion.

The academic dress worn by the graduands and the members of the platform procession consists of a gown, a hood or stole (worn over the shoulders), and a hat or mortarboard. All universities have distinctive academic dress for each degree offered, and sometimes for the disciplines in which the degree is awarded. This explains the variety of academic dress worn by members of the platform procession who have graduated from many different institutions or represent particular groups.

The University of Regina Senate By-laws and the Convocation Procedures dictate the proper academic dress for Convocation. Graduates, with the exception of students graduating with a PhD, or students graduating from the Federated Colleges, wear black gowns. PhD students wear a scarlet gown with royal blue around the collar, down the front and around the sleeves. Students graduating from the University of Regina registered through a Federated College wear the colour of gown approved for the Federated College. Campion College wear red gowns, Luther College wear royal blue, and First Nations University wear sky blue. Students are formally hooded at the Convocation ceremony. Descriptions of hoods for students graduating from the University of Regina are as follows:

 

Graduate Certificates

Students receiving Graduate Certificates from the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research will wear only the University of Regina black gown and will not wear the hood of a previous degree. They will be listed last in the FGSR portion of the Convocation booklet (after the PhD and Master's Degrees). They will walk across the stage and receive the parchment paper the same as the other graduate students.