COMMENCEMENT

Spring 2025 Commencement for Bachelor’s (majors), Master’s, and Ph.D. students:

Thursday May 22, 2025

10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley

Master of Ceremonies: TBD
Featured Speaker: TBD

Reception immediately following the ceremony, outside Hertz Hall.

PARTICIPATING DEPARTMENTS

Celtic Studies, Comparative Literature, Dutch Studies, French, German, Italian Studies, Scandinavian, Slavic Languages & Literatures, and Spanish & Portuguese

PARTICIPATION IN COMMENCEMENT

Participating students will receive specific instructors for the procession and ceremony, in lieu of a dress rehearsal.

TICKETS

Information forthcoming.

All students participating in the ceremony must arrive early. Please leave all valuables (purses, back-packs, etc) with family or friends so you don’t have to carry anything with you during the ceremony.

DEGREE LIST

If you plan to complete your degree, you must be on the degree list. Please review this important information from the College of Letters & Science and make sure to confirm with a College Advisor that you are eligible for graduation.

CAPS AND GOWNS

For purchase or rental at:

Please take your gowns out of their packaging and steam or (carefully) iron them. They will be creased from the packaging, which shows up in photographs.

Honors: All students graduating with honors may purchase Honors Cords to wear at the commencement ceremony. You will be notified of your honors eligibility by email. The Student Store will have a list of all students to purchase an Honors Cord. No distinction is made during the commencement ceremony between honors students and non-honors students. Honors are marked in the commencement program.

DIPLOMA

The Department does not handle diplomas. The scroll you will receive at the commencement ceremony will commemorate all Commencement exercises of the Departments, Schools, and Colleges of the Berkeley Campus of the University of California. Diplomas are generally mailed to students four months after your graduation date. Please ensure your diploma address is correct in CalCentral (instructions here). For more information, please visit the Office of the Registrar.

If you need proof of completing your degree before the Registrar has processed your diploma, you may obtain a Certificate of Completion. More information regarding the Certificate of Completion is available on the Registrar’s website.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Because of fire laws, and for the safety of everyone, we ask that friends and family refrain from leaving their seats and standing in the aisles to take pictures or videos.

Students participating in commencement are asked to pre-register with Grad Images (search for: UC Berkeley – Languages) so that they can be contacted after the ceremony. More details about this year’s photography plans are to be announced.

For your guests:

ACCOMMODATIONS AND VENUE INFORMATION

Lodging: Local hotel suggestions.
Venue: Map to Hertz Hall on the Berkeley campus.

PARKING

Parking is difficult to find in the area. Please allow plenty of time to find parking so that you will not be late. For complete information about parking, please go to the Parking and Transportation website.

We encourage you to allot extra time to travel around campus. The City of Berkeley has a number of construction projects on the southside of the campus that will impact traffic during the week of graduations. Lane closures, detours, and possible traffic delays on Bancroft (Piedmont to Shattuck) and Fulton (Bancroft to Dwight) as part of the Southside Complete Streets Project. Temporary removal of on-street parking, relocation of bus stops, and rerouting of bike lanes on Bancroft. See more details on the project page, under “Construction Schedule.”

UNIVERSITY-WIDE SPRING CEREMONY

Saturday, May 17, 2025
California Memorial Stadium

Graduating seniors can also participate in the University campus-wide commencement ceremony in addition to the departmental ceremony. Please check their website for information about tickets, featured speaker and other important deadlines regarding participation.

QUESTIONS:

Undergraduate Students, contact Nina Cohen, frendept@berkeley.edu

Graduate Students, contact Pichaya Kositsawat, frenchga@berkeley.edu