Information for Students
Participation Eligibility
Students who have graduated officially in the following terms will be eligible to attend the Commencement 2008 ceremony :
AY 2006-07 : Term 3B
AY 2007-08 : Term 1 / Term 2 / Modified Term 2 / Term 3A
Double-degree graduands will attend ONE degree award ceremony ONLY ie. either their first or second degree. They have to indicate their choice when they register (online) for the ceremony.
Reporting Time / Venue
- All graduands are to report at Convention Hall 603 by 1215 hours. Please bring along your SMU Student Card for registration purpose.
- You may put on your academic gown at Convention Hall 603.
- Thereafter, please proceed to the registration counter to collect a namecard. The namecard is pre-printed with your name, degree, prizes awarded.
- During the degree award ceremony, the reader on stage will read out your name and degree awarded based on your namecard. Hence, please do NOT lose your namecard. You will pass this card to the reader's assistant prior to "walking" the stage.
- Graduands have pre-assigned seats in Hall 601-602. Please note the seat number printed on the top-right hand corner of your namecard and check your seat location from the seating plan displayed in Hall 603.
- After all of the above is done, please proceed to Hall 601-602 and be seated for the university-wide ceremony before 1300hr.
- If you are driving, please note Road Closure Info (due to NDP rehearsals).
Dress Code
The full academic regalia consists of a gown, a hood and a mortarboard (tam for PhD candidates) with tassel. The colour of the hood indicates the discipline of the degree. SMU has adopted the standard colour scheme used by most universities in the US .
| Bachelor's Degree | Drab with gold trimmings for Accountancy Drab for Business Copper for Economics Golden Yellow for Information Systems Management Citron for Social Sciences |
| Master's Degree | Drab for Applied Finance, Wealth Management, Finance Drab with gold trimmings for Professional Accounting Copper for Economics, Applied Economics |
To look good in your academic gown, please heed the following dressing tips:
- For the men, please wear a long-sleeved shirt with collar, a tie and dark coloured long pants.
- For the ladies, please wear a long-sleeved shirt or blouse with collar and dark coloured skirt or pants.
- No sport shoes or slippers.
Things to Note During the Ceremony
- You will wear the academic gown and mortarboard (tam for PhD candidates) throughout the entire ceremony.
- You are not required to remove your mortarboard/tam while the national anthem is being played.
- Guests will not be allowed to take photos inside the ceremonial hall (Professional photographers have been engaged. Camera flashes from guests’ cameras will over-expose / spoil the professional photography.)
- Guests are to remain in their seats at all times. No one will be allowed to move to the aisle or near the ceremony platform at all times.
Stalls at Commencement
To add buzz to the event, the university will invite various vendors to set up stalls on the day of Commencement. You can buy SMU souvenirs, plaques/frames (for degree scroll), studio photography packages at attractive prices.
Degree Scroll and Transcript
During the degree-award ceremony, you will be given an empty degree scroll cover. For those who graduate in Term 2 or before, you may collect the degree scroll and transcript after the ceremony from the registration counter (in Hall 603). For those who graduate in Modified Term 2 or thereafter, your degree scroll and transcript will be ready at a later date after the ceremony. The Registrar's Office will inform you via email/letter the date of collection. You have to collect the documents personally or by proxy from the Registrar 's Office.
Please note that you must clear all outstanding debts, fees and library loans owing to the university. Otherwise there will be an administrative “hold” on you and you will not be able to collect your degree scroll and transcript.
If you wish to purchase additional copies of official transcript after graduation, you may place your order via the Alumni website.
However, please note that unlike the transcript, the degree scroll cannot be replaced. No duplicate will be made if the degree scroll is lost or damaged. Instead, a letter of certification on your graduation status can be issued by the Registrar 's Office.
Update Your Contact Info
If you have recently changed your address or telephone number, please update your contact information via OASIS (before graduation) or the Alumni website (after graduation).
