On the Day of Ceremony

Instructions to Graduates

General
If you have indicated your intention to attend the Commencement ceremony, the following instructions will be helpful as you prepare for the occasion. Wherever applicable, please advise your guests accordingly.

• Please check the Schedule of Ceremonies to find out the date/time of the ceremony for the presentation of your degree. The information is also printed on the Graduate Attendance Card which will be given to you when you collect your academic dress.
• Answers to Frequently Asked Questions have been compiled for your easy reference. If you need further clarifications, please .
• A video on "What Graduates should do during the ceremony" has also been put together to guide you. Please select either the high bandwidth or the low bandwidth version.

Graduate Attendance Card and Parent/Guest Invitation Cards
The package (one Graduate Attendance Card and two Parent/Guest Invitation Cards) will be given to you at the Multi-Purpose Sports Hall when you collect your academic dress. To avoid long waiting time, please collect them according to the schedule given. If you have not ordered the academic dress, please inform the staff inside the Hall so that they can direct you to the specific booth for collecting the package.

The Graduate Attendance Card and Parents/Guests Invitation Cards are essential as entry passes to the Commencement celebrations.

• Parents/Guests without Invitation Cards will not be admitted to the ceremony.
• Graduates who have, unfortunately, lost their Attendance Card must produce the following for identity verification:
  • some form of photo identification (e.g. NRIC or passport); or
  • your matriculation number

The graduates who have misplaced their Graduate Attendance Card should also inform the "Graduate Marshals" inside the UCC Auditorium and ask for a replacement card before the ceremony starts. The Attendance Card is important as it has a barcode which keeps your name and awards (if any) and is required when you are presented on stage.

Graduate Robing
All graduates attending the ceremonies will have to wear their academic dress. You can put on your academic dress at the robing room (UCC Theatre) before you proceed to the Auditorium where the ceremony will be held.

Seating Time
Seating time for graduates and guests will commence one hour prior to the official start time of each ceremony. Throughout the seating time, live interviews of graduates and guests will be conducted and beamed on-screen in the UCC Hall. In addition, video-clips specially prepared by the Faculties, will be screened.

To ensure that we are able to start the ceremony on time, graduates and guests are requested to be seated 20 minutes before the ceremony start time.

Ceremony Proceedings
The Chancellor will preside at the Main Ceremony (i.e. the 1st ceremony to be held). Each ceremony thereafter will be presided over by one of the following:

• Pro-Chancellor
• NUS President
• Dean of Faculty

The proceedings during each ceremony will be as follows:

• Ceremonial procession led by Presiding Officer
• National Anthem
  (Assembly to rise)
• Graduates to be presented to the Presiding Officer
  (Degree scroll to be collected on the way back to seat)
• Valedictory speech
• Appreciation gesture led by Valedictorian
• Ceremonial recession
• Refreshments for graduates and guests, mingling with faculty members

Nature of Ceremonies
The nature of the ceremonies every year is similar. You may view the ceremonies of the previous year here.

What graduates should do during the ceremony
After you have finished putting on your academic dress, please proceed to the Auditorium. All graduates should be seated at least 20 minutes before the ceremony start time. At the entrance, the ushers will check your Attendance Card and show you to the seat. The seat number is indicated on the Attendance Card.

The Graduate Attendance Card is required for the Ceremony Official to read out your name (and prizes, if any) when you are presented on stage. Thus, please hold the Attendance Card in your hand or put it inside the pocket of your academic dress. If you have forgotton to bring the Attendance Card, please report to the ushers at the entrance of the Auditorium for a replacement.

When the ceremony begins, please stand up to welcome the academic procession. Please continue to stand when the National Anthem is played. You may sit down after the Presiding Officer has declared the ceremony open.

When it is time for your graduating cohort to be presented on stage, the ushers will lead you up the stage. Please remember to hold the Attendance Card in your hand and give it to the student helpers manning the barcode reader. As the names of the graduates will be read out in the sequence that the Attendance Cards are scanned, please do not change position with your fellow graduates after you have given the Attendance Card to the student helpers.

There are two red lines on the stage. You should wait at the 2nd line and move to the 1st line when the graduate standing in the 1st line has walked out to the centre of the stage. When your name is called, walk to the Presiding Officer at the centre of the stage. Shake hands with the Presiding Officer and receive the degree scroll from him. Muslim graduates who do not want to shake hands should hold a copy of the Commencement Book in their hand.

Towards the end of the ceremony, the valedictorian will deliver a speech. The National Anthem will be played and the academic procession sitting on the stage will first leave the Hall. Please follow the instructions of the ushers to leave after the academic procession.

The original degree scroll will be given at the ceremony. Please take care of the degree scroll as it is irreplaceable.

Reception after the Ceremony
All graduates and guests are invited to the reception at the foyer immediately after each ceremony.

During the reception, our student helpers will be conducting a survey on your experience. These helpers are easily identifiable by their official identification tags on their NUS lanyards. We appreciate your participation in the survey as your comments and input will be most valuable in helping us make improvements.

In addition, to better serve your needs, some vendors will be invited to set up booths at the UCC during the Commencement period. It is hoped that you will find the services and products offered by the vendors useful. However, you are under no obligation to entertain their requests. Please alert the security guards if you are approached by any person(s)/vendor(s) without the official identification tags.

Do come and mingle with friends, faculty and staff.

Congratulations and have an enjoyable time!