Overview

Flinders holds graduation ceremonies twice a year. The main ceremonies are held on campus in April for students who completed their studies in the previous year. 

Ceremonies are also held in the city in December for international and Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery students, and other students who completed their course in Semester 1. 

It is not compulsory to attend a graduation ceremony but most students do. They see it as a great way to formally celebrate their success and to share the moment with family and friends, many of whom may never have come to Flinders.

Graduands each receive 5 complimentary guest tickets for December graduation ceremonies and 3 for April ceremonies.

December 2008 Graduation

There will be two graduation ceremonies held on December 17 at the Adelaide Convention Centre. The ceremony times are as follows:

10:30am - Faculty of Education, Humanities, Law and Theology and Faculty of Social Sciences

3:30pm - Faculty of Health Sciences and Faculty of Science and Engineering

Applications are now closed for the December gradaution ceremonies, regrettably late applications can not be accepted. Applications for our next round of graduation ceremonies in April will open early in 2009.

Further information:

• How do I get my parchment?
• What if I don't want to attend a graduation ceremony?
• Can I defer my graduation?
• How do I apply for a graduation ceremony?
• How do I view and update my individual ceremony details?
• Degree conferral at a University Council meeting

How do I get my parchment?

All students need to apply for degree conferral in order to get a copy of their parchment. Degree conferral is the official awarding of your degree, diploma or certificate by the University. This can only be done by applying for a Graduation Ceremony or a meeting of the University Council.

What if I don't want to attend a graduation ceremony?

When you fill in the online form to graduate you will select from two options for degree conferral. The most common option is to attend a graduation and have your degree conferred on the day. The second option is to have your degree conferred in absentia. This means you will not be attending the ceremony, but your degree will be conferred by the University on the day of your ceremony, in your absence. If you choose this option you will be able to collect your parchment after the ceremony. You will not be able to attend a later graduation ceremony if you have your degree conferred in absentia.

Can I defer my graduation?

If you wish to postpone this, please do not submit a form - we will automatically send you graduation information in the following year if you do not respond. Please note you will not receive a parchment until you do attend a ceremony.

How do I apply for a graduation ceremony?

Applications for the December graduation ceremonies are now open.

There are several steps you need to ensure you can graduate:

Step 1 - Check eligibility: are you 

• an international student completing your degree in semester 2 or
• a domestic or international student completing the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery in semester 2 or
  
• PhD student completing in semester 2 or
  
• a domestic or international student who completed their degree in semester 1 2008 or earlier?

If you answered yes to any of the above, you are eligible to apply for graduation in December. Please note that due to time contraints PhD citations will not be read out in December. PhD students wishing to have their citation announced on stage may wish to wait until April to graduate so that their achievements can be recognised on stage.

If you answered no to all of these questions, the next ceremony which you may apply for will be in April 2009. Applications for this will open in early 2009.  

Step 2 - Online application: Submit an online application form by Friday 14 November. If you are attending and wish to hire your academic dress, you will need to know you height and head circumference before you submit this, you can measure your head with a tape measure. If you submit your application correctly you will receive a confimation of application at your nominated e-mail address.

Step 3 - Payment: Pay for your academic dress hire if you wish to hire it. This can be done by downloading a Payment Form (DOC 145KB) online. Please also arrange for prompt payment of postage for your parchment, using the Payment Form (DOC 145KB) , if you are not attending the ceremony. Parchments will not be sent until payment has been received. Students must also pay all debts to the University, these include debts to the library, as well as other fees.

Step 4 - Login to iFlinders: Check your Graduation Status on iFlinders. This will become active within 10 days after you apply to graduate (usually 2-3 days). If your status shows as "Expected to Graduate", your eligibility to graduate is yet to be confirmed. A status of "Pass" indicates your degree is completed and you are approved for graduation. Please also ensure your current postal address is up-to-date on iFlinders so you receive all communication regarding your graduation.

Step 5- Check Confirmation Letter: Ensure you receive a confirmation letter from the Graduation Office in early December. Letters will be posted between 2-5 December. If you have not received one by 10 December, please contact the Graduation Office immediately to ensure you can participate in the December ceremony.

Step 6 - Academic Dress and Tickets: Collect your academic dress and tickets from the Function Centre at Flinders University at least one day prior to your ceremony. There will not be enough time to do this on the morning of your graduation, so please arrange a friend or relative to collect this for you if you are unable to do so yourself.

Step 7- Graduation Day Procedures: Register on the day one hour prior to the ceremony.

How do I find out my individual ceremony details?

Students are strongly advised to check their allocated ceremony on iFlinders for confirmation. After you have logged into iFlinders you will need to select Student System, enter your Student ID and password and then select 'My Graduation'.

This will provide information on:

• the ceremony you have been allocated to (eg Faculty)
• the ceremony time and date
• whether you have applied to attend or have your degree conferred in absentia
• how many tickets you have requested
• your formal name to be printed on your parchment (you can view this under the 'My Details' menu).

Students can also update information on name pronunciation. This will be used by the speaker on the day of the graduation ceremony and is useful for students who have names that are more difficult to pronounce.

Degree conferral at a University Council meeting

Students wishing to have their degree conferred in absentia can apply to have this done at the next meeting of University Council by filling out a council application form.doc (DOC 204KB) and returning this to the Graduation Office by the due date.

Please note that if you choose this option you will not be able to attend a graduation ceremony at a later date.

Council Meeting Date	Conferral Application Due
13 March 2008	18 February 2008
1 May 2008	7 April 2008
5 June 2008	12 May 2008
7 August 2008	14 July 2008
9 October 2008	15 September 2008
4 December 2008	10 November 2008