Information about getting your name into the commencement program, honors and more can be found below. You can also view 2023’s commencement program below.
2023 Commencement Program
View the 2023 commencement program above. If you have trouble viewing it, visit https://issuu.com/friendsu/docs/2023commprogram_digital.
How do I make sure my name is in the program?
To be included in the Commencement Program, students must submit their Intent to Graduate application by February 1.
Students that complete the Intent to Graduate application between October – February will be included in the program if the student has not signed a FERPA Complete Non-Disclosure form.
Students that have signed a FERPA Complete Non-Disclosure form will not be included in the program unless the University Registrar’s Office has received written permission to take the student’s name off of the Complete Non-Disclosure list by February 1.
The program is not an official list of confirmed graduates for the ceremony. Students listed in the program are candidates for degrees in the current academic year. Students’ names are read during the university commencement ceremony as they appear on the graduation name card provided by the graduates.
Students should be sure to file an Intent to Graduate application with their intended graduation date. The Intent to Graduate application is used to determine which program the student’s name will be printed in. Please note that the graduate’s name may only be printed in one program.
Honors
Degrees are conferred with distinction upon undergraduate students who have shown exceptional scholarship in their cumulative and Friends University grade point averages. Candidates for degrees and university honors have been tentatively determined based on the work completed through the semester prior to the student’s graduating semester.
- Summa Cum Laude – 3.9 out of 4.0
- Magna Cum Laude – 3.75 -3.89
- Cum Laude – 3.6 – 3.74
Order of the Tower
Students graduating with a bachelor’s degree and receiving honors automatically become eligible for the Order of the Tower, the honorary society of the University. These students are presented the crimson honor cord at Commencement and receive special mention during the exercises. Students who earn both an overall grade point average of 4.0 and a 4.0 on Friends University coursework are awarded a gold honor cord at Commencement.
Friends University does not confer honors upon students completing degrees in the Graduate School.