Commencement 2023 FAQ
General Questions
Liberty will be hosting ceremonies and events from Thursday, May 11th to Saturday, May, 13th. Please see the Commencement schedule for more details.
The Main Ceremony at 7:00 pm on Friday, May 12 in Williams Stadium. No tickets are required. Graduates will be seated on the field and addressed by a keynote speaker.
No, tickets are not required for any activities for Commencement 2023.
All RSVP submissions must be completed by March 23, 2023.
Students will receive their diploma 4-6 weeks after their degree has been conferred by their academic evaluator upon completing all program requirements for their degree. If you have not yet finished all degree requirements, then you will not receive your diploma until they have been completed.
The speaker for the Commencement Main Ceremony is Franklin Graham – President and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.
No. Due to the multiple days of Commencement activities this year, there will not be on-campus housing. For assistance finding lodging, please refer to these pages:
Liberty University Visit Guide
Lynchburg Tourism Guide
Similar to 2022, Baccalaureate will be combined with the Main Ceremony as one event.
Yes, there will be a Commencement Welcome Fair this year. It will take place on May 10th-12th. Please see the schedule at this link.
Yes. Each academic department will host their own ceremony at various venues across campus. These events are where graduates will have their name called as they walk across the stage.
If you need assistance determining which ceremony you will attend, please contact commencement@liberty.edu.
Yes. All ceremonies will be livestreamed online during the week at this link.
Yes. This event recognizes military graduates and their families. This event will take place on Friday, May 12th at 1:00 pm in the Thomas Road Baptist Church Worship Center. Please stay tuned for more information to RSVP to this event in the spring.
Registration & Regalia Questions
Potential graduates are required to submit a degree completion application, submit an RSVP, and purchase regalia in order to participate in our ceremonies.
A degree completion application can be submitted within ASIST. This application helps the University track your degree progress and serves as your application to attend Commencement. After logging into your ASIST account you can access the application by following these links;
Student > Student Records > Submit Degree/Certificate Completion Application
Upon submission, this application is sent directly to your Academic Evaluator within the Registrar’s office. Their team will review your application and reach out to you within a few business days to discuss your remaining degree requirements. Correspondence from their office will be sent to your Liberty email account.
Once you have received a degree evaluation from them please contact the Commencement team (commencement@liberty.edu) to confirm your eligibility to participate in the spring ceremonies. The deadline to submit your degree completion application is March 23th, 2023.
If you have trouble submitting a degree completion application please contact Commencement@liberty.edu.
After submitting your application and receiving confirmation from the Commencement Team that you are approved to attend, please submit an RSVP here by March 23th, 2023.
If you will not finish your degree by the end of the spring semester please contact Commencement@liberty.edu to discuss your eligibility to participate.
If you have submitted your degree completion application in ASIST, and received confirmation from the Commencement team that you can participate in Commencement, you can submit an RSVP at this link.
Please note: the RSVP deadline is March 23th, 2023. Please contact Commencement@liberty.edu with any questions.
Yes, graduates will need to wear regalia if they plan to attend in person. Please make sure to purchase regalia online by April 16th.
Liberty University is currently in the process of switching regalia vendors. Processes to order regalia will be in place in late January.
Please use this website to place your order. Regalia orders are usually shipped within 4 weeks of the purchase. If you are unable to find your area of study when selecting regalia please email commencement@liberty.edu for further assistance.
Please note the following regalia online order deadlines:
March 5th – Custom Doctoral regalia (purchase only) order deadline
April 16th – Regalia order and Doctoral regalia rental deadline
For additional information regarding regalia please visit;
https://www.liberty.edu/commencement/regalia/
There will be limited items available on campus at the Bookstore for Commencement week. We encourage you to plan to purchase your regalia in advance online.
Yes, we encourage students to decorate their cap. Please be creative but remain within the Liberty code of conduct.
Honors cords/medallions and military cords can be picked up at our Commencement welcome fair. The University provides these items to eligible graduates for free. Please read over our honors qualifications here;
https://www.liberty.edu/commencement/honors-cords/
Military cords are provided to active duty and veteran students only.
Yes! Please contact the Commencement team (commencement@liberty.edu) after our ceremonies in the spring have ended. Please provide your Liberty ID number and mailing address and we will have these items mailed to you.
Yes, you may wear your military uniform instead of regalia.
Main Ceremony Questions
The Main Commencement ceremony is open for all graduates to attend. This event is held inside of Liberty’s football stadium and begins with the traditional graduate processional march – in which the graduates will make their way into William’s stadium. Graduates are asked to arrive early for this event so they can lineup at a separate location before marching into the football stadium. Once the graduates have been seated on the field the ceremony begins and features praise and worship as well as an address from a special keynote speaker. It’s important to note that graduates do not walk the stage or have their names read at the Main Ceremony. Please refer to this page for more information:
No, tickets are not required for any activities for Commencement 2023.
Yes. Please review to the website below for more information. Suites and cabanas are sold out.
Yes. Accessible seating will be available along the main concourse level of Williams Stadium and is available on a first come basis.
**If a graduate is in need of accommodations for the Main Ceremony, or their degree ceremony, please email Commencement@liberty.edu as soon as possible. Special arrangements will be coordinated and planned prior to the event.
Please refer to the Commencement Security Measures and Allowable Items website for more information.
Degree Presentation Ceremony Questions
Each academic department will host their own degree presentation ceremony at various venues across campus. These events are scheduled across several days. This is where graduates will have their name called as they walk across the stage. We have a schedule of degree presentation ceremonies available here:
Degree Presentation Ceremony Schedule
Please note: some schools are listed twice on the schedule as the number of graduates are too many for one ceremony. Students are divided based on their academic level (Undergraduate / Graduate & Doctoral) or their program within that department. If you need assistance determining which ceremony you will attend please contact Commencement@liberty.edu.
Degree presentation ceremonies are expected to last between 1.5 and 2.5 hours long (this can vary depending on the size of each academic department and the number of attending graduates).
These ceremonies open with an address from the department Dean. The department may acknowledge award recipients during this time. Most of the ceremony is dedicated to graduates walking across the stage and receiving their ceremonial scrolls.
If a graduate attends their degree ceremony they’ll need to purchase regalia online from Oak Hall. Please arrive at your ceremony venue at least 30 minutes early with your regalia on. Regalia information is available here; Commencement Regalia | Commencement | Liberty University
Graduates also need to bring their “reader card” with them to a degree ceremony. The University will mail reader cards to graduates in late April. To receive a reader card you need to submit your degree completion application and Commencement RSVP by the deadline. (Information on how to submit these is provided below). If you do not receive a reader card or lose your reader card you can claim a replacement at The Commencement Welcome Fair.
Yes. Degree presentation ceremonies will be livestreamed online. A link will be available on the main Commencement website that family/friends can use to watch online. These links will be available on the day of the event and will be archived online to be watched later.
Graduates need to arrive at their degree ceremony venue at least 30 minutes early. This means you’ll want to be on campus finding parking and making your way to the venue well in advance.
Liberty partners with GradImages to provide graduates with their Commencement weekend photos. Photographers will be at each degree ceremony and will take a photo of you as you walk across the stage.
Graduates need to provide their contact information on the back of their Commencement reader card, which is turned in to GradImages just prior to walking across the stage. Only the photos taken by GradImages will be sent to students.
If you have any questions regarding these photos, please contact GradImages at GradImages – Contact Us.