All-Campus Commencement Ceremony Set for 2016

Photo by Erik Jepsen/UC San Diego Publications

The class of 2016 will be the first to participate in a new commencement tradition—a campus-wide ceremony at UC San Diego. The ceremony will include the conferring of degrees for graduating seniors from the undergraduate colleges, as well graduate students from the Graduate Division, the Rady School of Management and the School of International Relations and Pacific Studies.

“We are very excited to begin a new commencement tradition at UC San Diego,” said Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla. “We are one university, one UC San Diego community. Creating a tradition that recognizes all of our graduates and their achievements, together, is the most fitting way to honor our newest alumni.”

A Campus-Wide Commencement Planning Committee—which included representatives from the undergraduate colleges, Graduate Division, Alumni Affairs, Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, Associated Students and the Graduate Student Association, among others—studied the proposal to establish a campus-wide ceremony and made the recommendation to begin the tradition in June 2016. The committee reviewed logistics and goals, agreeing that a 2016 event would allow appropriate lead time to communicate and plan for a more inclusive, unified commencement and allow the campus leadership to identify a high-profile speaker. The Chancellor has accepted the committee’s recommendation.

“The all-campus commencement will create a greater sense of UC San Diego community that lasts beyond graduation,” said Jonathan Monk, president of the Graduate Student Association. “I hope this ceremony will lead to lasting traditions that build on the UC San Diego experience.”

During commencement weekend, the undergraduate colleges, Graduate Division and others will continue to host personalized celebrations that reflect their unique character, and that give students the opportunity to walk across stage. The planning committee is working closely with the college provosts to ensure that the all-campus ceremony and college celebrations complement one another, and enrich the overall graduation experience.

“At Convocation, our undergraduates begin their UC San Diego career with peers from all six colleges,” said Paul Yu, provost of Revelle College and co-chair of the Campus-Wide Commencement Planning Committee. “Now, they will celebrate the culmination of their undergraduate education in the same spirit, through the campus-wide commencement. It’s a momentous change to the student experience.”

Sean Kennedy, who serves as festivals director for Associated Students Concerts and Events and will graduate in 2015, noted that the friendships he formed across colleges and majors made a profound impact on his education. “College is a mix of so many different experiences that were shared with so many members of the UC San Diego community,” he said. “I think that the ‘grand finale’ event should be shared with them as well. My past four years at UC San Diego have changed me tremendously and reflecting on that with the people who have helped me through them will be very special.”

With the implementation of the campus-wide commencement, the All Campus Graduation Celebration (ACGC) will be discontinued after 2015. ACGC was established in 2008 as an opportunity for all students—undergraduates from all six colleges as well as graduate students—to celebrate graduation together. In 2016, the all-campus commencement will serve that goal.