The Queens Commencement Ceremony will be held on Sunday,
May 19, 2013, at 10 a.m. on the Great Lawn, rain or
shine. Students from the Manhattan and Oakdale campuses will
participate in the Queens ceremony.
Attendance
- Students who have been deemed eligible to participate in
Commencement by their respective dean’s office may register to
attend Commencement. Students who are unsure whether they have
fulfilled all academic requirements should contact their dean’s
office immediately.
- Graduates must register and order academic attire in order to
attend and participate in the ceremony.
- All graduates should plan to attend the main ceremony, and if
receiving a doctoral degree, the school/college’s individual
hooding ceremony.
- Guests and graduates are expected to remain at the ceremony
until the conclusion and the recessional.
Academic
Attire
- Wearing academic attire (cap, gown and hood) is both
traditional and required for participation in both the Commencement
and the Doctoral Hooding Ceremonies. The graduate's academic attire
will serve to admit him/her to the assembly locations and
ceremony.
- All graduates must order academic attire. Academic attire is
ordered when you register for Commencement on the University Information
System. Academic attire is picked up on your
school/college’s scheduled Academic Attire Distribution day. Click
here for the schedule. There is no charge for academic attire
and students may keep their attire as a souvenir gift from St.
John’s University.
- For attire under your gown, dress with an eye to comfort and
the weather. Low heels or flats are appropriate for navigating the
Great Lawn. Sunglasses could prove useful. It is strongly
recommended to not bring personal belongings to the ceremony.
Ceremony Photography and
Video
- Guests will not be able to approach the stage area and graduate
seating area prior to the start of the ceremony or for the duration
of the ceremony for any reason, including photography and
videotaping.
- There will be professional photographers from Grad Images
taking photographs of the graduates. Click here for details.
- The ceremony will be captured on video and a DVD will be made
available to graduates after the ceremony. Click here for details.
Duration of
Ceremony
- Great care has been taken to ensure the ceremony is completed
as quickly and as smoothly as possible.
- The ceremony is expected to last approximately 2 ½ hours.
- Graduates and guests are asked to show respect for all of their
fellow classmates and are expected to remain until the end of the
ceremony.
Lost and
Found
- The Office of Public Safety will collect and hold any items
that are lost and found during the Commencement Ceremony. If you
need to report or find a lost item, please see a Public Safety
Officer.
Rules of
Conduct
- The dean for Student Life has advised graduates that the
University will not hesitate to take serious disciplinary actions
against students for alcohol abuse, destruction of property or
other violations of University policy during graduation activities
or Commencement ceremonies.
Ticket
Information
- All guests are required to present a ticket to attend the
Commencement ceremony. Children under the age of two do not require
a ticket; however, they must sit on an adult's lap.
- Seating for guests is on a first-come, first-served basis. As
the ceremony is heavily attended, we recommend that family members
arrive early and be seated on the lawn no later than 8:45 a.m. on
Sunday morning.
- Seats cannot be saved by any means other than someone sitting
in the seat.
- Each graduate participating in the Queens Commencement ceremony
will receive five (5) tickets.
- Tickets are available for pick up only during Academic Attire
Distribution. Tickets will not be distributed at any other
time.
- Lost or stolen tickets must be reported to the Office of Public
Safety. Tickets that have been reported as lost or stolen,
will be voided and guests with voided tickets will not be permitted
to enter the ceremony. You must provide a copy of a Public
Safety report in order to have tickets reissued.
- Tickets are also required for the Baccalaureate Mass and Family
Grad Dinner (click here) and certain Doctoral
Hooding Ceremonies (click here)
- • To enter the simulcast locations, guests must show their
general admission tickets. Click here to view a list of
locations.
Web Viewing
Vincentian Yearbook Senior
Portraits
- Undergraduate students will receive a copy of the STJ
Vincentian Yearbook. For more information regarding Senior
Portraits for the Yearbook, please contact the Office of Student
Affairs at (718) 990-6380.
- Please note that yearbooks apply only to undergraduate
students.