Ceremony Details
The College of Arts & Sciences' Commencement Ceremony will be held on Friday, May 9, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. in Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center.
Registration
To participate in the graduation ceremony, graduates must have a seating card. If you do not have a seating card, you will not be permitted to sit within the graduate section of the audience. You may pick up your card in front of Rocky Top Cafe in the University Center between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Monday, April 28 and Tuesday, April 29. Students must be present and must show a photo I.D. to receive their cards. Family members or friends may not pick up a student's card for him/her. If you are unavailable on April 28 and 29, you may pick up your card during two specified time frames at the graduation rehearsal. See below section entitled "Graduation Rehearsal" for date, times, and location.
Students Graduating with Honors (see Undergraduate Catalog, p. 46)
Honors are conferred upon graduating undergraduate students who have displayed a high level of achievement during their university career. To determine whether you will graduate with honors, please read the university's criteria below:
- Recipients of honors receive their degrees with cum laude (3.50 through 3.64), magna cum laude (3.64 through 3.79), and summa cum laude (3.80 through 4.00).
- IMPORTANT! These honors categories are based on a student's cumulative average at the end of the semester preceding the graduation semester (Fall 2007)--not this semester's!
- Students must have earned at least 60 hours at UT Knoxville to qualify for honors categories.
If you meet these requirements, your honor category will be listed with your name in the commencement program regardless of whether you attend the ceremony. Should you choose to participate in the ceremony, you will also receive a gold honor cord compliments of the College. (The cord's significance will be explained to the audience by Dean Bruce Bursten during his remarks.) Cords will be available with students' seating cards in front of Rocky Top Cafe in the University Center between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Monday, April 28 and Tuesday, April 29. Students must be present and must show a photo I.D. to receive their cords. Family members or friends may not pick up a student's cord for him/her. If you are unavailable on April 28 and 29, you may pick up your cord during two specified time frames at the graduation rehearsal. See below section entitled "Graduation Rehearsal" for date, times, and location.
Only those students whose names are submitted to the College by the Office of the Registrar as deserving honors will receive cords. If you have a question about your cumulative GPA (as of Fall 2007), visit the Office of the Registrar in Student Services Building, room 209. They are legally unable to discuss such matters by phone.
What if your GPA increases this semester? If, at graduation, a student's grade point average would allow a higher honors category than that determined at the end of the semester preceding the graduation semester, the student may, upon written request, receive a substitute diploma compliments of the Office of the Registrar indicating the higher category. The change in GPA does not affect a student's receiving an honor cord prior to the ceremony.
For Summer Graduates Only: Technically, Criteria #2 would not permit summer graduates to receive honor cords since spring grades will not be submitted in time for us to know your "cumulative average at the end of the semester preceding the graduation semester." However, we want to provide summer graduates the opportunity to wear the honor cord if they have earned it. Therefore, the Office of the Registrar will provide the College with the names of summer graduates who met Criteria #1 as of the end of Fall 2007 and are on track to meet Criteria #3 by the end of Summer 2008.
Graduation Rehearsal
For those able to attend, a rehearsal is scheduled for Wednesday, May 7 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. in Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center. The rehearsal will allow graduating students to see how graduation works and will include information concerning the process for crossing the stage (there is more to it than you realize!), professional photography provided, seating arrangements, etc. For these reasons, we highly recommend that you attend the rehearsal but understand if it conflicts with a prior commitment. If you are unable to attend, you (or a family member or friend) may pick up the printed materials distributed at the rehearsal between 8-5 on May 8 in the Office of the Dean, room 26 Alumni Memorial Building.
Seating cards and honor cords will be available at the rehearsal from 1:30-1:45. Cards and cords will not be distributed from 1:45 through the end of the rehearsal. If you do not receive your card and/or cord prior to 1:45, they will be available following the rehearsal until 3:30.
Arrival Time
Graduates must arrive at Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center, be dressed in proper regalia, and be seated in the graduate section by 8:45 a.m. The College may not be able to accommodate students arriving after 8:45 a.m., so please allow for sufficient travel time. Graduates and guests should enter Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center on the main concourse level where programs for guests and concessions will be available. (Programs will be provided to students in the graduate seating section.)
Guests with physical disabilities may access the concourse level (3rd floor) through the passenger elevator located inside the double-door entrance at McAlister's Deli on Phillip Fulmer Way. For further information regarding accommodations for persons with disabilities, please click here.
Please Note: Smoking is strictly prohibited inside the Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center.
Guest Seating
Tickets are not distributed for guests. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 7:30 a.m. Areas will be designated for guests requiring wheelchairs. One companion seat is allotted per guest in these designated areas. For further information regarding accommodations for persons with disabilities, please click here.
Graduate Seating
To be admitted to the graduate seating area, students must be dressed in proper regalia and present their seating cards to an usher. Students must be seated in the graduate section by 8:45 a.m. for guaranteed seating. Students are seated on a first-come, first served basis, not alphabetically or by major.
Please refrain from cell phone use before and during the ceremony and avoid bringing personal belongings (e.g., purse) into the graduate section as the College and Thompson Boling Arena and Assembly Center are not responsible for valuables left unattended.
Please Note: Any student suspected to be under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance will be subject to arrest and will not be allowed to participate in the ceremony.
Commencement Speaker
This year's commencement ceremony continues the College’s tradition of having an honored faculty member address the graduates. Dr. Loren W. Crabtree is a Professor of History and Former Chancellor of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He is also the Senior Fellow and Chief Executive for Global Education at the Institute for Shipboard Education (ISE), a program currently sponsored by the University of Virginia.
Crossing the Stage
Ushers will prompt students when to rise and move toward the stage. Make sure you take your seating card with you! Upon reaching the stage you will receive a diploma tube, and you will give your seating card to the Reader of Names to receive recognition as you cross the stage to accept congratulations from Dean Bruce Bursten.
Photography
As a courtesy to all in attendance, guests will not be permitted on the arena floor for photography purposes. A professional photographer will photograph graduates as they shake the dean's hand on stage. A second photographer will take a professional studio shot once they exit the stage. Questions regarding the professional photography (e.g., ordering prints) should be directed to Big Orange Professional Photography at (888) 325-2677 or http://www.boppspot.com/.
Webcast
http://mediabeast.ites.utk.edu/mediasite4/Viewer/?peid=dadd7ba064024ab9910afa34f45d6102
To view the webcast, simply click on the above link (or open your browser and cut and paste the link into the URL field). A window should open up and the webcast should start.
Please note that you will need a fairly up-to-date version of Media Player. Quicktime and other players may not be compatible with the webcast format.
CLICK HERE for a test link which should help determine if your computer and software will allow you to view the webcast. Click on the link and wait a few minutes for the video to load and begin playing. If you experience any problems, please contact Mr. Justin Johnson, ITES, at 865-974-8281.
Adjournment
Immediately following their second photo, graduates will be directed to the graduate seating section where they will remain until the conclusion of the ceremony. Once the ceremony has been adjourned, students may meet their guests and depart from the Arena. The ceremony will last approximately two (2) hours.