Commencement
UPDATE: Due to a high probability of rain, the Baccalaureate and Commencement Ceremonies will be held in the James M. Grant Student Life Center (GYM).
Because of rain, the Baccalaureate and Commencement Ceremonies will be moved into the James M. Grant Student Life Center and each graduate who registered as of 5/1/2024 will receive a maximum of SIX wristbands for guests to be present in the gym.
Graduates will receive their wristbands at the conclusion of the Baccalaureate Ceremony on Friday evening. All additional friends and family will be welcome to our on-campus viewing room in the student union.
Important Dates
| Event | Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graduation Rehearsal (Student attendance required) | Friday, May 3, 2024 | 3:25 – 3:45 PM | Practice Field |
| Academic Reception | Friday, May 3, 2024 | 3:45 – 4:45 PM | Varies by Academic Department |
| Baccalaureate (Student attendance required, parents invited) | Friday, May 3, 2024 | 5:00 – 6:00 PM | Practice Field |
| President & Parent Reception (Graduates and their families) | Saturday, May 4, 2024 | 8:00 – 9:00 AM | Student Union |
| Commencement | Saturday, May 4, 2024 | 10:00 – 11:30 AM | Practice Field |
REGALIA
Caps/Gowns: Regalia is usually received around March or April. Please continue to check our website and your Simpson email for updates on when and where to pick it up. If you do not plan to attend Commencement but would still like your cap and gown, please fill out the Request to Mail Cap and Gown form and return to registrar@simpsonu.edu. Only Simpson issued regalia is permitted to be worn. You may decorate your caps; however, personalized stoles or other cords are prohibited.
Honor cords (Undergraduate Students ONLY) are calculated by your final GPA or your previous semester’s GPA (if final courses are still In-Progress). They will be handed out with your caps/gowns.
Master’s Hoods are handed out with your caps/gowns.
Cap Tassels will be handed out at the GRADUATION REHEARSAL.
- Cum Laude: 3.5-3.59 GPA (1 Cord)
- Magna Cum Laude: 3.6-3.84 GPA (2 Cord)
- Summa Cum Laude: 3.85-4.0+ GPA (3 Cord)
- Distinction: 3.8+ GPA (Degree Completion only)
- Highest Honors (Degree Completion only)
COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: Will my graduation fee be refunded if I choose not to participate in Commencement?
No, students will not receive a refund if they do not participate in Commencement. Graduation and Commencement are separate. Graduation is completing your requirements, receiving your diploma, and having your degree posted on your transcript. Commencement is the ceremony where you walk across the stage. The graduation fee funds many aspects of graduation, including administrative costs, graduates’ diplomas, mailing, etc. This fee is paid by all students whether or not they participate in the Commencement ceremony. (See Simpson University Catalog).
Q: When do I get my diploma?
Diplomas are mailed 8-10 weeks after the conferral date. The conferral date is the date listed on your transcript as the date your degree was received, and for SP22 graduates, the conferral date is May 13, 2021.
Q: When will my degree appear on my transcript?
Degrees cannot begin to be posted until all final grades are in after the conferral date. It generally takes 1-2 weeks to post all degrees. Please be sure you do not have any outstanding balances on your account; this may cause your degree to be delayed. If you want proof of your degree before it’s posted or before you get your diploma, please complete the Enrollment Verification form and send it back to the Registrar’s Office or registrar@simpsonu.edu.
If you have outstanding courses (for example, you are finishing credits at Shasta College and their term ends after ours) you will need to fill out the Graduation Exception Petition form and return this to the Registrar’s Office. If approved, this allows you to still walk in the SP22 Commencement and still have your degree posted for the SP22 term, even though you are technically finishing after the term ends.
Transcripts take time to process; please allow 2 weeks for processing. To request a transcript, please fill out the Transcript Request Form and return to registrar@simpsonu.edu.
Q: What is a baccalaureate ceremony?
You may be thinking, “I know that I am getting a Baccalaureate degree, but what pray tell, is a Baccalaureate ceremony?” Good on you, as your inquisitive nature shows that we have taught you well. To answer your question the Baccalaureate Ceremony is one of the high holy days on the collegiate calendar that traces its origins back to Oxford University where it is said to have originated in 1432 (60 years before Columbus sailed the ocean blue!).
Originally, the services were held the Sunday before commencement and the graduates were required to deliver a sermon, in Latin. It would be another 300 years before the tradition apparently took root in America, with the first Baccalaureate Ceremony allegedly being held at the College of New Jersey (better known as Princeton) in 1760.
Given the Christian origins of the event and focus on sermons and worship, it is likely that other institutions held these ceremonies earlier than this, especially since almost without exception the institutions of higher education that were first established in America were primarily intended to train individuals for the ministry.
In any event, the Baccalaureate service throughout the centuries has been primarily intended as an occasion of prayerful reflection and the expression of gratitude for the privilege of learning and the vocation of service.
As such, Simpson’s Baccalaureate service sets the academic accomplishments which we will honor at Commencement into the frame of the eternal and unfinished quest for godly wisdom. It is built upon the greatest commandment to love God with all one’s heart, soul, mind, and strength and its close companion command, to love your neighbor as yourself.
The ritual acts of praise, reflection, and remembrance elicited through prayer, praise, and prose, conspire to make us mindful that knowledge is not a destination, but rather a path leading toward the quality of community for which we continue to yearn as we seek to see God’s will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
In this common spirit, in this remarkable company, in service to this noble goal, we will gather on [the eve of Commencement] to remember, to rejoice, and to give thanks.
