To honor and celebrate our graduating students, Eastern Kentucky University hosts two commencement ceremonies annually, one at the end of the fall semester in December, and one at the end of the spring semester in May. This site has information for students as they seek to apply to graduate, and as they prepare for the big day. This site also contains information for family and friends who wish to join their graduating student in celebration. Specific ceremony details are added at the beginning of each semester.
Fall 2025 Commencement Information
The Fall 2025 Commencement ceremonies are scheduled for Thursday, December 4 and Friday, December 5, 2025, at the EKU Center for the Arts. There are five ceremonies scheduled to honor graduates from the university’s six academic colleges. The ceremonies will be as follows:
Thursday, December 4, 2025
1:00 pm: Master’s and Doctoral Graduates from all Colleges
3:30 pm: College of Justice, Safety, and Military Science and the College of Education and Applied Human Sciences
6:00 pm: College of Letters, Arts, and Social Sciences
Friday, December 5, 2025
9:00 am: College of Health Sciences and the College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
11:30 am: College of Business
More specific ceremony information will be emailed to you ahead of commencement. Please visit this webpage for updated information regarding graduate RSVP links, guest tickets and other commencement details.
Graduate RSVP Links
Guest Tickets
All guests must have a ticket to attend Fall 2025 Commencement.
- Guest ticket reservations open on Friday, October 31, 2025, at 10 AM.
- Graduates will be eligible for five (5) guest tickets.
- If you need more than 5 guest tickets, all remaining tickets will be released on a first-come, first-served basis at the same ticket link on November 17, 2025, at 10 AM. Each graduate can request up to 10 additional guest tickets dependent on availability. We encourage you to reserve additional tickets promptly if you are in need, as extra tickets are limited.
- Tickets are free of charge.
- To reserve a guest ticket, an EKU ID for a student graduating during the ceremony must be provided. A graduate will need to provide their guests with the ID to make their reservation or make the reservation on their behalf.
- If a guest requires ADA seating, they will need to reserve an ADA guest ticket. ASL interpretation will be provided at every ceremony and will be visible from every seat.
- You can only reserve tickets one time per EKU ID.
- Tickets will be emailed to the email address provided at the time of reservation 2 weeks prior to the ceremony.
- Guests will have their tickets scanned at the house doors upon arrival.
- Please contact the Box Office at (859) 622-7469 for any additional questions. The Box Office is open Monday – Friday, 10 AM – 6 PM.
Click here to reserve guest tickets.
Sold Out Ceremonies
- Thursday, December 4, 2025 at 6:00 pm:
College of Letters, Arts & Social Sciences - Friday, December 5, 2025 at 9:00 am:
College of Health Sciences and the College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Waiting List Form for Sold Out Ceremonies
**Please note that when a ceremony sells out, that means all available seats have been reserved. If you need tickets for a sold-out ceremony, graduates can be added to a waiting list by filling out the Waiting List Form above or calling the Box Office at (859) 622-7469. There will be no tickets available for a sold-out ceremony on the day of. Only if tickets are released by Monday, December 1, 2025, will the waiting list begin to be fulfilled.
Questions?
Check out the available FAQs below. If you have questions that aren’t answered below, click here to submit our commencement contact form.
All undergraduate students (Masters students are not awarded Latin Honors) earning Latin Honors must take at least 25% (30 GPA credit hours) of their degree applicable coursework at Eastern Kentucky University.
Baccalaureate Latin Honors Degrees:
(Honors GPA are calculated separately. See details below.)
- Summa Cum Laude – 3.9 to 4.0
- Magna Cum Laude – 3.7 to 3.89
- Cum Laude – 3.5 to 3.69
Associate Degrees:
- With High Distinction – 3.7 to 4.0
- With Distinction – 3.5 to 3.69
Determining University Honors Eligibility
Calculation of Adjusted GPA
A separate calculation is made to determine University Latin Honors. All semester hours attempted at EKU are included in the Honors GPA calculation. Grades for every course a student has repeated or bankrupted at EKU are entered back into the GPA for Honors calculation. The GPA reflected on a student’s transcript and/or Degree Works therefore cannot be seen as an indicator as to whether a student has earned University Honors.
Official University Honors Awards
Students earning Baccalaureate Latin Honors wear a maroon and white stole at commencement. Honors recognized during the graduation ceremony do not include the final semester’s course work, and are therefore un-official. Official University Honors on the diploma and final transcript will include the final semester’s grades.
Dates: Tuesday, October 14 and Wednesday, October 15
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 6 :00 p.m.
Location: Lower Level of Powell
GradFest is an event hosted each semester where graduating students can:
- Purchase and pick up their cap and gown
NOTE: Doctoral students must pre-purchase or rent regalia. Learn more information here. - Verify the degree they are earning
- Confirm their mailing address for the shipment of their diploma
- Order graduation announcements and class rings with Jostens
- Visit with the EKU Alumni Office
Graduation caps and gowns are required for all commencement participants. This is a recognition ceremony that is optional and candidates should be appropriately attired. Undergraduate students earning University honors will be provided with an honor sash. Approved honor societies may provide optional regalia for their members to wear at commencement. It is the student’s responsibility to attend GradFest in order to acquire the required regalia. Students should contact their honors societies regarding stoles, cords or pins.
Doctoral Students Only
If you would like to purchase or rent doctoral regalia, you will need to contact the EKU Barnes and Noble Bookstore at 859-622-2696. Before you purchase or rent regalia, please confirm with the Graduate School that you are eligible to participate.
Student Pre-Commencement FAQs
If you are an online or off-campus student and will be attending the commencement ceremony but are unable to attend GradFest, an order link will be made available after the GradFest event is over. Please continue to monitor your EKU email for commencement updates.
The graduation fee covers expenses incurred in awarding, producing and mailing diplomas, as well as official graduation transcripts. Each student who graduates receives an EKU diploma and an official transcript listing their awarded credentials: degree, minor, concentration, certificate, etc. Each student individually decides whether they will attend a graduation ceremony—only those who attend must have regalia—and therefore, the cost of regalia is a separate and distinct charge.
Regalia refers to the caps, gowns, hoods and stoles worn by participants at the commencement ceremony.
Jostens is the contracted vendor that provides personalized announcements. Personalized announcements take two weeks to be produced. The Barnes & Noble Bookstore at EKU also has generic announcements for sale. Invitations, announcements and class rings can be ordered during GradFest or directly from Jostens.
Candidates will walk across the stage individually by department to receive a diploma cover, and individual professional photos will be taken by GradImages.
Caps, gowns, hoods for graduate students, and honors stoles can be picked up during GradFest.
Please contact the Barnes and Noble Bookstore at EKU at 859-622-2696.
Attend GradFest! GradFest is not just for undergraduates. This is also where you will pick-up your packaged master’s regalia, including your master’s hood.
es! GradFest is for all graduating students: Associates, Baccalaureate, Master’s, and Specialist. GradFest only takes a few minutes of your time, but provides you with everything necessary to make commencement a success and to make sure your diploma information is correct and is mailed to the proper address. GradFest is THE opportunity to acquire your cap and gown and offers a chance to buy invitations and class rings. GradFest is scheduled during the day and evenings for two days each semester to accommodate students that work and have other obligations.
If you are unable to attend GradFest, there will still be an opportunity to acquire your cap and gown. The Office of the Registrar will email a link, after GradFest, to order your cap and gown and have the items shipped to your residence. Regalia will be available for pick-up at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore at EKU located on the EKU Richmond campus. This service will still be available once GradFest is over, and will continue through the day of your commencement ceremony.
You indicate how you want your name to be printed on your diploma when you apply for graduation. The last name on your diploma must be the legal name that is listed in EKU’s database but you may choose to have your preferred first name printed on the diploma. Middle names are optional on the diploma, and a middle initial may be used in place of a full middle name. Maiden names may be used as second middle names if requested. Suffixes may be used if they are part of the legal name on record at EKU. For more details about your diploma, go to the Diploma Guide.
Your name, degree, primary major and secondary major are on your diploma. Concentrations and minors are not shown on your diploma, but they will be on your transcript.
Diplomas will be mailed out approximately six (6) to eight (8) weeks after degree conferral. Degree Conferral dates can be found on the Diploma Guide. Your diploma will be mailed to the address you provided on your graduation application and a copy of your official EKU transcript will be emailed to your EKU student email account. For more details about your diploma, go to the Diploma Guide.
If you have a hold that prevents you from receiving your transcript and diploma, you will receive an email letting you know what your options are. Your diploma and transcript will be released after you have notified us that your hold has been released. EKU only holds diplomas and transcripts for certain financial obligations so if you are not notified your diploma is on hold, there will not be a delay.
Diplomas are mailed to the address provided on the graduation application. If the address changes before the diploma has been printed, students must use this form to update their diploma address. Please make sure that diploma address is selected.
Variations of a graduate’s official name may be printed on a diploma. Variations of a name must be requested when submitting a Graduation Application. If the name changes before the diploma has been printed, students must use this form to update their diploma name and include all appropriate documentation.
Students with work “In-Progress” or who have classes with grades of “Incomplete” will be allowed to participate in the Commencement Ceremony. However, all “In-Progress” work and “Incomplete” grades must be converted to official grades by the degree conferral date in order for a degree to be awarded during any given term.
Contact a College Graduation Expert in your College and request deferral to the following semester as soon as possible. This will enable your graduation application to be transferred to the following semester and will enable you to register for any classes you need to complete your degree. Be sure to email from your EKU email account and include your name and EKU ID in your email.
Student Commencement Day FAQs
Yes. Graduates will need to register for their respective ceremonies to attend commencement. Graduates can RSVP starting October 16, 2025. Important graduate registration information will be emailed to graduating students and can be found on this webpage.
Yes. If a commencement ceremony is sold out for guest ticket reservations, that does not necessarily mean graduate reservations are also sold out. If a graduate is interested in registering for their ceremony, see Graduate RSVP Links.
Yes. All guests will be required to reserve a ticket to attend the ceremony. Due to the size of the Center for the Arts, each graduate is allotted five (5) tickets. You will have to provide an EKU graduate’s student ID to reserve tickets. A graduate can reserve tickets on behalf of their family, or they will need to provide their ID to those seeking tickets. Click here to reserve guest tickets.
If you need more than 5 guest tickets, all remaining tickets have been released on a first-come, first-served basis at the same ticket link as of November 17, 2025, at 10 AM. Each graduate can request up to 10 additional guest tickets dependent on availability. We encourage you to reserve additional tickets promptly if you are in need, as extra tickets are limited.
If you need guest tickets for a sold-out ceremony, graduates can be added to a waitlist by filling out the Waiting List Form or calling the Box Office at (859) 622-7469. There will be no tickets available for a sold-out ceremony on the day of the event. The waiting list will begin to be fulfilled only if tickets are released by Monday, December 1, 2025.
Due to the change in ceremony time for the College of Business graduates, if you have already purchased printed invitations that include the previously scheduled time, EKU will reimburse you for this cost. Please email your name, 901 number, and proof of purchase (receipt) to Sarah Gilbert at sarah.gilbert@eku.edu. Reimbursements will be processed through EKU Accounts Payable with the payment information on file for each student. If there is not a payment type on file, the student will receive a check via mail.
Parking is available near and around the Center for the Arts. The parking map is available online. Shuttle services will be available to transport graduates and their guests from the lots designated for event parking to the Center for the Arts.
Everything you bring must fit in your pockets. You will not be able to have a purse or bag with you. You can either 1) bring your cap, gown, and any honors cords or sashes with you and dress onsite, or 2) wear your graduation items to graduation.
Many students dress in business casual outfits beneath their regalia. We recommend wearing comfortable shoes. All participating candidates must wear EKU graduation regalia for the ceremony. Latin Honors (cum laude, magna cum laude, summa cum laude) applies to undergraduate students only.
Check-in for graduates begins 45 minutes before their College’s ceremony in the EKU Center for the Arts. Once checked in, graduates may find a seat in their designated section, inside the theatre. Only participating students are allowed in the check-in area. Please leave your personal items in your car for safekeeping. Personal items cannot be left anywhere in the check-in area.
Yes. Please allow yourself plenty of time for arrival taking into consideration traffic, parking, and the time walking to the venue.
Accessible parking is available and will be clearly marked. The parking map is available online. ADA seating is also available. For deaf and hearing-impaired guests, interpreters are provided for each ceremony.
Yes. Graduates are expected to stay for the entirety of the ceremony.
Unlike previous years, EKU has made efforts to reduce the length of each ceremony. Our goal is for each ceremony to be 90 minutes or less.
Family members and friends who are unable to attend EKU’s Commencement may view the ceremony online at youtube.com/ekustories.
Professional photography will be provided. Candidates will be photographed walking across the stage and with their diplomas. Proofs and information from the photographer will be sent to the student’s EKU email address approximately one week following the ceremony.
A student is selected to speak at each of the commencement ceremonies. Visit this page for more information about applying to become a student speaker.
Due to the need to prepare for the next commencement ceremony, we ask that you and your guests leave the Center for the Arts lobby promptly, but encourage you to take photos throughout campus.
Yes. The following items are prohibited inside of the venue:
- Deadly Weapons or Dangerous Materials
- Tobacco/Nicotine Products (Including vapes and e-cigarettes)
- Professional Photography Equipment
- Outside Food or Beverage
- Oversized Bags
- Airhorns
- Balloons & Signs
- Boxes/Wrapped Packages
A small clutch/wallet no larger than 6.5” x 4.5” and medical bags are permitted, though subject to thorough inspection.
Guest Commencement Day FAQs
Yes. All guests will be required to reserve a ticket to attend the ceremony, and ticket reservations will open on Friday, October 31, 2025, at 10 AM. Due to the size of the Center for the Arts, each graduate is allotted five (5) tickets for guests. You will have to provide an EKU graduate’s student ID to reserve tickets. A graduate can reserve tickets on behalf of their family, or they will need to provide their ID to those seeking tickets. Click here to reserve guest tickets.
All remaining tickets have been released on a first-come, first-served basis at the same ticket link as of November 17, 2025, at 10 AM. Each graduate can request up to 10 additional guest tickets dependent on availability. We encourage you to reserve additional tickets promptly if you are in need, as extra tickets are limited.
If you need tickets for a sold-out ceremony, your graduate can be added to a waitlist for guest tickets by filling out the Waiting List Form or calling the Box Office at (859) 622-7469. There will be no tickets available for a sold-out ceremony on the day of the event. The waiting list will begin to be fulfilled only if tickets are released by Monday, December 1, 2025.
Yes. Accessible seating is available. When reserving your ticket, please specify ADA accommodations if needed. Each ADA ticket will receive a companion seat. For deaf and hearing-impaired guests, interpreters are provided for each ceremony.
Parking is available near and around the Center for the Arts. The parking map is available online. Shuttle services will be available to transport graduates and their guests from the lots designated for event parking to the Center for the Arts.
Yes. Accessible parking is available and will be clearly marked. The parking map is available online.
All guests should plan to be parked no later than 45 minutes before the ceremony begins and to be inside the facility 30 minutes prior to the start. Graduates can begin checking in 45 minutes before the start of the ceremony. Guests are welcome to arrive with their graduate, but only graduates are allowed in the check-in area. Please allow yourself plenty of time for arrival taking into consideration traffic and parking.
Family members and friends who are unable to attend the event may view the ceremony online at youtube.com/ekustories.
Yes. The EKU Bookstore and a flower vendor will have EKU graduation items and flowers available for purchase.
Professional photography will be provided. Candidates will be photographed walking across the stage and with their diploma. Proofs and information from the photographer will be sent to the student’s EKU email address approximately one week following the ceremony.
There will not be food or drinks available at the Center for the Arts.
We ask that once your graduate has walked across the stage, you remain in your seat until the ceremony has concluded.
Unlike previous years, EKU has made efforts to reduce the length of each ceremony. Our goal is for each ceremony to be 90 minutes or less.
Yes. The following items are prohibited inside of the venue:
- Deadly Weapons or Dangerous Materials
- Tobacco/Nicotine Products (Including vapes and e-cigarettes)
- Professional Photography Equipment
- Outside Food or Beverage
- Oversized Bags
- Airhorns
- Balloons & Signs
- Boxes/Wrapped Packages
A small clutch/wallet no larger than 6.5” x 4.5” and medical bags are permitted, though subject to thorough inspection.
Faculty Commencement Day FAQs
Faculty members have two options for attending the ceremonies:
- Participate on Stage
- Faculty who wish to be seated on stage during the ceremony must RSVP by Friday, November 14, 2025, using the proper link sent to you via email.
- The stage can accommodate 50 faculty members per ceremony. These seats will be available until the maximum capacity of 50 is reached.
- Participating faculty seated on stage do not need a separate ticket for entry; you only need to register through the Slate form.
- Attend in the Audience
- Faculty who prefer to attend the ceremony but not sit on stage will need to obtain a ticket. Ticket reservations open on Friday, October 31. The guest RSVP link can be found here once it is live.
- When reserving a ticket, select “Faculty/Staff” as the ticket type and use your EKU ID.
Faculty tickets can also be picked up at the Center for the Arts Box Office on the day of the ceremony.
Parking for faculty will be available near and around the EKU Center for the Arts.The parking map is available online.
All faculty who are attending commencement can enter the venue through the main entrance. Faculty who are participating on stage should check in at the graduate check-in table and proceed to the “Faculty Robing Room”. Faculty who plan to attend a ceremony as an audience member will use the main entrance and find their seat in the theatre.
No. Faculty robing will take place in a designated area in the EKU Center for the Arts. The robing area will not be locked, so please leave valuables in your vehicle or at home. Staff and signage will be present to point you to the robing location upon arrival.
Faculty and staff who are unable to attend EKU’s Commencement may view the ceremony online at youtube.com/ekustories.
Visit this page for more information about student speakers.
Please point graduates to the commencement webpage for more information.