2018 Merrill College Commencement Ceremony
Saturday, June 16, 2018
UCSC Quarry Amphitheater at 5:30 PM

The Merrill Commencement ceremony is one of the finest of Merrill traditions and a joyful community celebration. Faculty, staff, and students are led in a procession to the Quarry Amphitheatre. The ceremony includes keynote and student speakers before the presentation of the graduates and the awarding of scrolls. 

                        Commencement vs. Graduation

Your college commencement ceremony and graduation from UCSC are two separate things.

• At UCSC, graduation is the act of conferring an academic degree – receiving your degree or diploma.
• Commencement is a ceremony where you walk across the stage symbolizing the end of your undergraduate career.

Graduation and commencement have separate online processes and timelines:

Graduation

Apply to graduate (degree completion and diploma) the quarter in which you will be finishing your graduation requirements. DO NOT apply to graduate in Spring if you will be finishing your final graduation requirements in a subsequent quarter.

Apply to graduate via your Student Portal. There is more information about how to apply to graduate on the Registrar’s Office website.

Check in with your departmental adviser (to have your major requirements reviewed), and on your student portal (to make sure you have reviewed all degree requirements outside of your major, like GE credits, writing component, etc.).

Be sure to consult with an academic adviser at your college if there are discrepancies, or if you have questions about graduation requirements.

Registering for the Merrill Commencement Ceremony is NOT the same as registering with the University to Graduate.

You must meet two conditions to be eligible for participation in the Merrill College Commencement Ceremony.

1. You must have completed at least 150 credits by the end of Winter Quarter 2018.
2. You must complete all requirements & coursework and graduate by the end of Fall Quarter 2018.

If you are eligible to participate, you can register for Merrill’s Commencement Ceremony via our online form.

The deadline to apply is May 4th, 2018. Please note: Individuals who register late, after the May 4th deadline, MAY NOT be included in the printed Commencement program. 

Non-Merrill Affiliates Deadline - Friday, April 27th

Non-Merrill affiliated students must:

1) register to walk and

2) submit a Petition to Participate to the Merrill College Office

Commencement Rehearsal

Friday, June 15th @ 10:15 AM

Quarry Amphitheater

Rehearsal lasts about 45 minutes. All graduates are asked to attend if you plan on participating in Commencement. Many departments have major celebrations during this time; if you attend one of these celebrations, you may still participate in commencement but are encouraged to connect with a friend who went to rehearsal to understand how commencement will run.

Parking Passes

Available: Monday, June 4

Location: Merrill College Office, bring your student ID

Hours: 9:00am-Noon, 1:00 - 4:00pm

Each graduating student receives 2 parking passes. Bring your student ID when you pick-up your parking passes. Cars displaying a Merrill Commencement parking pass will be directed to the East Remote parking lot. Public transportation and ride sharing are highly encouraged.  Guests may shuttle (or walk) to the ceremony site.

Disability Parking

You may exchange one (or both) of your standard commencement parking passes with a pass for the disability parking lot, as needed. Disability-related accommodation for grads or guests, if it involves sign language interpretation, should be requested by the student by Friday, April 27th.