FAQs

Ceremony times can be found on the Event Schedule portion of the website.

Ceremony times were based on the math from preliminary registration numbers. Some colleges were divided by graduation semesters.

• If you see an entire college listed such as "EDUCATION" then the entire college has their ceremony on that date and time.
• If you see a portion of a college listed such as "ARTS (spring)" then only the college's graduates from that semester will attend that ceremony, the college's graduates from the other semesters are scheduled to participate in a different ceremony.

Every 2020 graduate who confirmed their registration through the REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION between April 2 and April 12 are guaranteed 2 pairs of tickets (4 tickets total), which will be electronically distributed in late April.

All guests, regardless of age, will require a ticket. This includes infants, children, caretakers, etc.

Graduates will receive the electronic tickets for their guests on April 28. They will then be responsible for sending their tickets to their guests. More specific information on the ticket receiving and distribution process will be made available after registraiton confirmation is complete.

There will not be an opportunity for additional tickets for any ceremony.

A person coming into the O'Connell Center requires a ticket, regardless of age. This is necessary to ensure we maintain the 20% capacity of the venue.

Graduates who confirm their ceremony registration through their REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION  between April 2 and April 12 will receive 2 pairs (4 total) guest tickets. These tickets will be assigned in pairs. Tickets will be distributed to the graduates electronically on April 28.

Only graduates who confirm their registration on time will receive tickets. Graduates who are not coming will not register and will not receive tickets.

There are just over 300 graduate seats per ceremony. This math was based on the original registration numbers, it's what allowed us to hold in person ceremonies WITH 4 guests. If a graduate who does not intend to come registers only to give away their tickets to a friend, they would be taking away a seat from a graduate who does intend to come and who would like their 4 guests to watch them. This is not for the Gator Good. This deprives other graduating gators of the opportunity to have guests at all.

We cannot give additional tickets because we must maintain a capacity of 20% in the venue, and tickets must be evenly distributed to every graduate.

Graduates who confirm their registration for their ceremony through their REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION between April 2 and April 12 will receive 2 pairs (4 total) guest tickets. Tickets will be distributed on April 28 electronically.

There will not be watch parties for the Make-Up 2020 Ceremonies in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

While UF hosted "watch parties" in the stadium for additional family and friends to view the live stream link on campus for the Spring 2021 graduates, this was because they were provided with only 2 guest tickets.

We've made each Make-Up 2020 ceremony smaller in order to provide 2020 graduates with 4 guest tickets instead. 

Live streaming for home devices will be provided for all ceremonies and can be found on the live stream links page of our website.

We fully anticipate holding these in-person Make-Up 2020 graduation weekend  May 6-9 as scheduled.

That said, we cannot account for any dramatic changes that may happen with respect to COVID-19. 

We urge our graduates and guests to plan accordingly, building as much flexibility as possible into travel arrangements and lodging reservations.

The safety of our campus, our community and all those who might attend commencement is our first priority. Guided by UF Health and CDC guidelines, the University of Florida has taken appropriate precautions to create a safe environment and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 during commencement. Every person attending graduation is required to wear a face covering and maintain a physical distance of 6 feet. In addition, UF will increase cleaning protocols between ceremonies in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, signage will be placed outside and inside to remind guests of all CDC and university restrictions for the event. Sanitizing stations will also be conveniently available throughout the venue.

Yes. Masks are required for all persons in the building. The only exception is that graduates may temporarily remove their masks as they cross the stage and have their picture taken.

Graduates are encouraged, but not required to, quietly exit the building after they cross the stage. Guests of the graduates are also encouraged, but not required to, quietly exit after their graduate is called.

There will be no hand shaking as graduates cross the stage.

There will be no processional or recessional. 

Yes. All visitors, faculty, staff, and graduates are required to wear face coverings with the exception of children less than 2 years old. Seating has been configured to maintain 6 feet of physical distancing. For additional information, please review the university’s Masking and Physical Distancing Policy.

No. However, if candidates wish to get tested prior to the ceremony, UF has made scheduling testing easier using One.UF. Simply go to One.UF, complete the screening questionnaire again and schedule the test within the next two days, and results will be emailed to you no later than 48-72 hours after the test.

Yes. Approximately one week before the Make-Up 2020 graduation weekend, the links for these ceremonies will appear on the Make-Up 2020 Livestream  page.

We will hold 11 ceremonies the extended Make-Up 2020 graduation weekend of May 6-9.

The full schedule can be found here: Make Up 2020 Schedule

In order to adhere CDC guidelines, just under 2,000 people will be in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center at one time. This is approximately 20% of the venue's capacity.

While the numbers will vary slightly from ceremony to ceremony, the approximate breakdown is 300-ish graduates, 1200 guests, and 225 UF employees and vendors.

Generally, you should plan on each ceremony lasting about 2 hours.

Video, film, and digital cameras are permitted, including those with interchangeable lenses. For both the safety and consideration of those around you, the following rules are in place:

• Camera bags are permitted in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center, but they are subject to individual security inspection.
• Tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, or similar apparatuses that can obstruct aisles or others' view are not permitted in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.

Professional photographers from University Photography take photos during our ceremonies, they've been our ceremony photographers for more than 25 years. Proofs of those photos are sent to graduates approximately 10 days after the ceremony.

Family members nor privately hired photographers will be allowed in graduate seating areas or the stage.

We will print out agendas for attendees; these will outline what will take place during the ceremony. These are not full programs with graduate names.

Graduates received two copies of the printed university commencement program when they graduated. We are not making additional copies for these ceremonies.

The full PDF of the program from each 2020 semester can be found online at https://commencement.ufl.edu/past-programs/. This version can be viewed and/or downloaded at any time.

In a typical spring semester, we hold two ceremonies: a University Wide Commencement Ceremony, and a College Recognition Ceremony. We do not use this model in the summer or fall semesters.

For this make-up ceremony weekend, each graduate will attend only one ceremony. All ceremonies will be run identically. All ceremonies will be held in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center where President Fuchs will preside and serve as the commencement speaker, after which we will recognize each graduate individually.

If a person graduated from more than one college and those two colleges are participating in the same ceremony, the graduate must choose which college they would like to line up with and walk with in that ceremony. We do not call any student’s name twice during a single ceremony.

If they graduated from more than one college and those two colleges are participating in different ceremonies, they can choose to participate in one or both ceremonies. It is completely their choice, but one they would probably wish to discuss with their family. Remember, the ceremonies will be identical, aside from the persons participating.

When ordering regalia, a student chooses one college or the other as their “graduating college.” This simply determines which color their tassel (and hood if the student is a master’s degree graduate) will receive. A second tassel can be purchased at the bookstore separately if desired, so the graduate has one to represent each college. Questions about regalia should be directed to cap-gown@ufl.edu.

These ceremonies are rain-or-shine events, as they are scheduled indoors at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.

In the event of extremely severe weather, such as a hurricane or tornado, the ceremonies could be delayed or canceled. In a case such as this, we will provide timely updates via the commencement website (https://commencement.ufl.edu), UF's radio station WUFT 89.1, and, in the event of a cancellation, our UF Alert system. UF's online weather center is https://ufweather.org/.