Graduation

Graduation is the official awarding of a PLU degree. PLU awards degrees four times per year, once per term. The Office of the Registrar manages graduation (degrees). Commencement is the ceremony celebrating the PLU experience. Participation in a commencement ceremony does not guarantee a degree will be awarded. The PLU Commencement Team manages the commencement ceremony (commencement@plu.edu, www.plu.edu/commencement).

Students are able to evaluate their degree completion status at anytime by reviewing their CAPP report via their Banner Self-Service account.  Using the ‘Generate New Report’ feature, students and advisors can run a new CAPP report that will show the student’s most current information with regards to registration and where the student is in terms of addressing degree requirements.  The CAPP report is the official record that the Office of the Registrar uses to evaluate and award degrees.  If a student feels that a requirement is inaccurately showing ‘not met’ it is their responsibility to seek clarification from their advisor, department chair and/or the Office of the Registrar.  ‘Not met’ requirements will prevent a degree from being awarded.

PLU has one commencement ceremony.  This ceremony is held at the end of the spring term.  Students must have completed their degree in the previous August, December or January or be enrolled in their final classes in the spring term to participate.

Students intending to complete their degree the August following the spring ceremony must apply for graduation by the deadline for May candidates (March 1st).  After the application is submitted, the Office of the Registrar will verify that the student has a viable plan to graduate with an August degree date. If on track for an August degree, the student will be allowed to participate in the spring ceremony.  Students who cannot complete their degree until fall or later will not be allowed to participate in an early ceremony, their commencement opportunity will be the spring after they graduate.

Participation in a commencement ceremony and/or inclusion of a student’s name in the commencement bulletin does not indicate that a degree will be awarded.

Eligibility by Degree Term

• December 2023, January 2024, May 2024 and August 2024* graduates/degree candidates are eligible to participate in the Spring 2024 Commencement Ceremony.
• December 2024, January 2025, May 2025 and August 2025* graduates/degree candidates are eligible to participate in the Spring 2025 Commencement Ceremony.

*August candidates must have a viable graduation/degree plan reviewed by the Registrar’s Office in order to participate.

All graduation and commencement information is sent to students’ PLU e-mail.  Students are responsible for all information sent to their PLU e-mail and should see the Help Desk immediately if they experience any difficulty with their PLU e-mail account.  In addition to e-mail communication, commencement information is made available at www.plu.edu/commencement.

Undergraduate degrees with honors of cum laude, magna cum laude, and summa cum laude are granted. A student must earn a cumulative grade point average of 3.50-3.74 for cum laude, 3.75-3.89 for magna cum laude, and 3.90-4.00 for summa cum laude.  Graduation honors are determined by the cumulative grade point average of all PLU coursework (defined as courses taught by PLU faculty for PLU). Students must complete a minimum of 32 semester hours at PLU to be eligible for graduation honors. Study Away courses at a PLU-approved program count towards the 32-hour minimum, but do not count towards graduation honors unless the courses are taught by PLU faculty. Term honors will be determined on the same basis as graduation honors.

Candidates for graduation/degree completion must complete ALL requirements by the stated deadline to receive a degree.  Candidates who fail to complete their degree requirements by the deadline are not awarded a degree and are notified directly via email.  No degree can be awarded unless all requirements are met and all final grades are submitted by the deadline, this includes final grades for I (incomplete) and IP (in-progress) courses.

December 2024 Requirement Deadline: December 20, 2024
January 2025 Requirement Deadline: February 4, 2025
May 2025 Requirement Deadline: May 30, 2025
August 2025 Requirement Deadline: August 13, 2025 (UG); August 29, 2025 (GR & ABSN)

PLU partners with Parchment diploma services to provide paper and digital diplomas to our graduates. This innovative service provides graduates with the traditional paper diploma and an official electronic diploma. The official digital diploma complements the paper diploma but is faster to access and makes it easy to share your accomplishment with family, friends and potential employers.

How to Claim Your Digital Diploma
2-3 weeks after the term grade deadline, graduates will receive an email and text notification from Parchment. The email is sent to the graduate’s PLU email address. Once the email/text is received, graduates claim their digital diploma in 4 easy steps…
1) Click on the link in the email
2) Create a password
3) Update Parchment account to your personal email address (this ensures permanent access once your PLU email address is discontinued)
4) Share your digital diploma on social media, download a copy for your records, etc.

Receiving Your Paper Diploma
3-4 weeks after digital diplomas are issued, paper diploma will be mailed. Diplomas are mailed to the Permanent Address (NOT Mailing Address) the graduate has listed in Banner Self-Service.  Graduates are responsible for keeping this address up-to-date (update instructions); address changes made after the diploma issue process has started may not be honored. Graduates receive an email notice when their paper diploma has shipped.

Technical Issues with Parchment Account or Claiming Digital Diploma?
Visit Parchment’s customer support website to submit a support ticket, search for help articles, or browse Parchment’s FAQ. You can also contact Parchment Support at (847) 716-3005 or congratulations@parchment.com.

Damaged Diploma?
Don’t throw your damaged diploma away yet! Take a photo of the damaged item and contact Parchment support at diplomaprints@parchment.com to request a one-time reissue of your original diploma.

Duplicates and Additional Copies
Should a graduate need a new diploma or additional copy, they need to submit the Duplicate Diploma Order form and payment.