• Please wear your cap and gown to both events. 
• Fraternity/sorority cords may only be worn at Baccalaureate.  
• The general dress is "Sunday dress" to both events.  No Flip Flops PLEASE!
• Ladies:  dress/skirt or dress pants.  You may not want to wear really high heels as you will be walking in the grass and up/down a short flight of stairs at Commencement.  Black shoes are preferred.
• Gentlemen:  shirt with collar and slacks (khaki is okay).  Remember that it will probably be on the warm side at Commencement and you will be wearing a BLACK gown.  Black shoes (and black socks) are preferred.
• Honor cords (University Honors-white, graduation honors-gold, and approved Honor Societies-silver) will only be worn at Commencement.  (Students will receive cords on Commencement morning.)
• On Commencement day - NO fraternity/sorority cords/sashes/stoles are worn.
• Also, no corsages, leis, etc. may be worn on the gown.  (Wrist corsages are okay.)
• Family members:  "Sunday dress" is preferred, but people will show up in everything from suits to shorts.

• There is not a limit to the guests that you can invite.  Tickets are not given out to students.
• Seating is limited to first-come-first-serve, if you have someone that needs special seating accommodations- please get there early and speak to the Marshals on hand as they are there to help you and they can seat you appropriately.
• Also, seating in the shade is limited so tell your guests to arrive early! 
• In the very slight case of rain, the ceremony will be held in Cuddy Arena in the Cannon Complex.

• Graduation honors are calculated using ALL college work attempted, but transfer work CANNOT raise the Wingate GPA.
• Cumulative GPA is calculated by taking ALL quality points and dividing that by ALL hours attempted.  Again, transfer work CANNOT raise the Wingate GPA.
• GPA's are NOT rounded.  (If you have a 3.999, it will not round to a 4.00.)
• Graduation honors are distinguished on your diploma, transcript and in the Commencement program.
• Cum laude = 3.500 to 3.649 (School of Pharmacy: Cum laude = 3.50 to 3.69)
• Magna cum laude = 3.650 to 3.899 (School of Pharmacy: Magna cum laude = 3.70 to 3.89)
• Summa cum laude = 3.900 to 4.000 (School of Pharmacy: Summa cum laude = 3.90 to 4.00)
• Graduate Education and MBA students are not awarded graduation honors due to the nature of their degrees.
• Please contact the Office of the Registrar if you have questions on how to calculate your GPA.

#10:  Where is parking available for Commencement?

• Parking is available at the George A. Batte Fine Arts Center, behind Stegall Administration Building, beside LaVerne Banquet Hall.
• Guests who may require assistance from a parking lot to the academic quadrangle, please see a member of the campus security at the 4-way stop intersection upon arrival to campus.

#11:  If I do not participate in Commencement, when will I receive my diploma?

• Diplomas are awarded at the Commencement ceremony.

• December and May Graduates:  Your diploma will be mailed to you by certified mail the week following Commencement.  If you would rather stop by the Registrar's Office to pick it up, please contact Laura West at 704-233-8393 or lwest@wingate.edu before May 6.

• August Graduates:  Your diploma will be mailed to you by certified mail.

#12:  Will there be pictures taken at Commencement?  Will the ceremony be recorded?

• A photographer from Chappell Photography will be present at Commencement to take pictures of award-winners and students as they receive their diploma from Dr. McGee.  Packets from Chappell Photography will be mailed to students after the ceremony that will include ordering information.

• The ceremony will be recorded.  Commencement DVDs may be purchased through the Alumni Relations Office for $20/ DVD.  Please contact Heather Horne at 704-233-8120 or hhorne@wingate.edu for more information on the Commencement videos. Click here for online purchase  Letters have been mailed home to all undergraduate parents (permanent addresses), so please check with family before ordering to avoid duplication.

#13:  When will I receive my hood for my Master's/Doctoral degree?

• Graduate Education - at a hooding ceremony held near Metro campus the evening before Commencement, TBA.  Please bring your hood to the Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 9th.

• Master of Business Administration (MBA) - at a hooding ceremony held near Metro campus in early May, TBA. Please bring your hood to the Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 9th.

• Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) - Hooding Ceremony prior to the ceremony.  Please bring your doctoral hood to the Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 10th.

#14:  If I have completed my academic course requirements, but I have not completed my Lyceums, will I be able to receive my diploma?

• NO!!!  Lyceums are a part of the graduation requirements.

• You will not receive your diploma or be awarded your degree until the Lyceum requirement is fulfilled.

• Lyceums apply to main campus undergraduate students only.

#15:  How long will seniors who live on campus have to check out of their on-campus housing?

• Please contact the Office of Residence Life (704-233-8244) for more information.

• Closer to Commencement, check-out procedures will be posted on the Commencement website and distributed to all residential students.

#16: When will my Wingate email address change?

• Graduates’ records will be rolled over as alumni records by the IT department sometime in August.  They will be able to keep their current student (wingate.edu) address until then, but will need to obtain their permanent alumni email address through our Alumni Online Community (under the alumni tab on our website) around mid-August.  Instructions to obtain the email address, post class notes, search for classmates, update demographic information, etc. is found on the Online community page.

Please contact the Office of the Registrar at 704-233-8006 or Laura West at 704-233-8393 if you have additional questions.

Back to Commencement Home Page

Revised: 05/12/2008