Graduate Studies & Continuing Education

Graduate School & Continuing Education

Graduation Process

The information provided on this page will help guide you through the graduation process. If you have questions regarding graduation, commencement, or status relating to the completion of your degree, please contact The Graduate School.

December Graduates
Applying for Graduation	In order to be eligible to graduate, you must complete and submit to the The Graduate School: Application for Degree (for December Graduates) $20 Application for Degree Fee ($30 if received after Friday, October 7, 2011) Degree Audit (what is provided here are the instructions to complete your Degree Audit) The deadline for these two forms and the fee is Friday, October 7, 2011. Once we have received all this, our office will review your file to see if you meet the requirements for graduation. If there are any discrepancies, we will inform you of what they are and what is needed to fix the problem. NOTE: Students who have not submitted these three items are NOT eligible to graduate and, accordingly, are not allowed to participate in the annual Commencement Ceremony and will not receive your diploma.
Cap/Gown/Hood	The cost of Cap and Gowns for December 2011 graduates has not yet been determined. Once office has this information, you will be notified of the cost and the deadline to place your order by of the Graduate School. Cap and Gown orders are done through the VU Book Center. There are two ways you can place your order for Cap/Gown/Hood: In person: Stop by the VU Book Center to place your order. To find out the days and hours that they are open, click here. By phone: For those students who are unable to place their order in person (due to your work schedule or living outside of Northwest Indiana), you can place your order by phone. The VU Book Center number is 219-464-5421. You will be asked to provide the following: name, height, weight, program that you are in, and a debit/credit card number. Our office will let you know when you can start placing orders and the deadline to place an order. We will notify you when the Gap/Gown/Hoods have arrived and when you will be able to pick it up. You can pick up your order from The Graduate School, generally the week of graduation.
Commencement	The Winter Commencement ceremony will be held on December 11, 2011. You will receive information from the Registrar's Office and University Relations about the Commencement Ceremony. You can also find information on the VU website at http://www.valpo.edu/commencement/ .
Diploma	Diplomas will be available in early January. You may pick up your diploma in person from the Registrar's Office or by certified mail. If you would like to receive it by certified mail, you will need to download this form and return it to the Registrar's Office.

May / August Graduates
Applying for Graduation	In order to be eligible to graduate, you must complete and submit to The Graduate School: Application for Degree (for May/August Graduates) $20 Application for Degree Fee ($30 if received after the Friday, February 4, 2011) Degree Audit (what is provided here are the instructions to complete your Degree Audit) Petition to Walk Early (for those who will be graduating in August but would like to take part in the May Commencement ceremony-see below) The deadline for these two forms and the fee is Monday, February 4, 2011. Once we have received all this, our office will review your file to see if you meet the requirements for graduation. If there are any discrepancies, we will inform you of what they are and what is needed to fix the problem. NOTE: Students who have not submitted these three items are NOT eligible to graduate and, accordingly, are not allowed to participate in the annual Commencement Ceremony and will not receive your diploma.
Cap/Gown/Hood	The cost of Cap and Gowns for May/August 2011 graduates has not yet been determined. Once office has this information, you will be notified of the cost and the deadline to place your order by of the Graduate School. There are three ways you can place your order for Cap/Gown/Hood: In person: Stop by the VU Book Center to place your order. To find out the days and hours that they are open, click here. By phone: For those students who are unable to place their order in person, you can place your order by phone. The VU Book Center number is 219-464-5421. You will be asked to provide the following: name, height, weight, graduate program that you are in, and a debit/credit card number. At Grad Finale: The VU Book Center and Josten's is sponsoring the Grad Finale. Grad Finale is a one day all inclusive event for all graduating undergraduate and graduate students. At Grad Finale, graduating students will have the opportunity to order their Cap/Gown/Hood through the VU Book Center, check on their Financial Aid and their status with Student Accounts, talk to a representative from the Career Center and the Writing Center, learn about opportunities you can take part in as an alumni through the VU Alumni Association and the Valpo Admission Network, and other departments from across campus. The Graduate School will notify you when your Cap/Gown/Hoods have arrived and when you will be able to pick it up. You can pick up your Gap/Gown/Hoods from the Book Center, generally the week of graduation.
Commencement	The Spring Commencement ceremony will be held on Sunday, May 15, 2011. You will receive information from the Registrar's Office and University Relations about the Commencement Ceremony. You can also find information on the VU website at http://www.valpo.edu/commencement/.
Diploma	Diplomas will be available day of graduation (for those who will be graduating in May). You may pick them up after the Commencement ceremony in Gym 1 of the ARC. For those who will be graduating in August, you may pick up your diploma in person from the Registrar's Office or by certified mail after grades have been submitted. If you would like to receive your diploma by certified mail, you will need to download this form and return it to the Registrar's Office.
Petition to Walk Early	Those students who will be completing their program during the summer are eligible to take part in the May Commencement under the following guidelines: Students with 8 or fewer credits yet to complete for their degree will not need to complete this form. We routinely approve participation in the commencement ceremony assuming that you intend to finish your program requirements during the subsequent semester. Students with 9-12 credits yet to complete must submit a Petition for Early Graduation Participation along with their Diploma Application to the Graduate School Office. This will be approved only on the condition that they are registered for the remainder of the credits during the next semester. Information for Dual Degree Students Dual degree students have the option of not counting their cross-over credits from Law as unfinished credits for their graduate degree for the purposes of participation in commencement.