RSVP
Students must RSVP through the Tassel system by end of day Friday, February 28, 2025. Graduates must RSVP in order to attend. Even if you will not be attending, please still RSVP and indicate that on the form. You will receive an email from Tassel with your individual RSVP link.

Validate Your Address
Degree Progress/Mailing Info: Log in to my.usc.edu and check in OASIS to make sure all your requirements have been completed, and that your mailing information is correct. Please note that diplomas are mailed to your permanent address approximately six weeks after Commencement. Please validate your address no later than March 14.
There is no cost for shipping; diplomas are mailed to the student’s permanent address on file. Local students may come to campus to pick up their diploma. Contact the USC Diploma Department at 213-740-7070.

Save Your Stage Pass
You will receive a Stage Pass the week before Commencement from Tassel, our Commencement partner. You will need your Stage Pass to check in at the Commencement site as well as to present to the scanners as you wait to walk across the stage. We recommend taking a screenshot of or printing your Stage Pass in case of connectivity issues. You may also save your Stage Pass to your Apple or Google Wallet.

Invite Your Guests
We are excited to host you and your guests on Commencement day! Due to limited seating in our space, while we do not ticket the event itself, we do ask that you bring no more than 5 guests so that all graduates have an opportunity to celebrate with their loved ones.

Ordering Your Regalia
The deadline to order your regalia for delivery is April 13, 2025. Orders will be delivered by May 12, 2025.

Students may rent or purchase regalia online starting in February by following the instructions here. A hood is included with your regalia rental order by indicating which degree you will receiving. The hood color for USC Bovard College is white. Unless you purchase your hood, it must be returned.

Additionally, students can purchase announcements, rings, sashes, and diploma frames online at the USC Bookstore.

For questions related to regalia and other purchases, please contact the USC Bookstore Grad Shop at (213) 740-7414 or gradproducts@usc.edu

Getting to Campus
Make sure your guests know the location of the ceremony. This map indicates the location of USC Bovard College’s commencement ceremony. Your guests should allow plenty of time to travel to campus, park, and walk to the ceremony.

Parking is free but limited on campus on the day of Commencement. Please follow all instructions from traffic control staff and DPS and park where directed. If possible, we recommend using a ride share or public transportation. The Metro E USC/Exposition Park station is the closest transit stop to our ceremony site.

Access to Campus for Students and Guests
To ensure the safety of graduates and guests, the University will be ticketing entry to both the USC Main Ceremony and the USC Bovard College Ceremony. The University will be sending more information about tickets closer to May. Plan to bring your ID and ticket for campus access. You and your guests may arrive starting at 12 pm. Guest seating is on a first come, first served basis.

Arriving to the Ceremony Site
Graduates should line up in your designated line (line 1 or 2, as designated on your Stage Pass) in full regalia between 12:15 and 12:45 p.m. along Watt Way near the Epstein Family Plaza (E-Quad). A Bovard College staff member will scan your Stage Pass to check you in.

Ceremony Procession
The procession will begin promptly at 1:00 pm. Graduates will proceed to reserved seats. Please follow usher instructions and do not leave empty seats between graduates.

The ceremony will begin once all graduates have been seated and will last about 1 1/2 hours. Out of respect to your fellow graduates, please plan to remain at the ceremony during this time. Instructions for what to expect when you walk across the stage will be sent out the week of the ceremony.

Reception
There will be a reception for all students, faculty, and guests immediately following the ceremony on the Bridge Hall Lawn, behind the Traveler statue, immediately following the ceremony. Light appetizers will be served. We will have digital maps available to help you navigate to the reception location.

Ceremony Attire
You will likely be walking around campus before and after graduation, so we recommend dressing for comfort. Part of the ceremony may require walking through grass, so keep that in mind when choosing shoes.

Photography
At Commencement, there will be a photographer with USC Bovard College who will be capturing images of our students at both ceremonies. Those photos will be shared with students after the event.

GradImages will also be taking photos of every student as they collect their diploma and exit the stage during the USC Bovard College ceremony. You may register with GradImages before the event to receive a discount on photo packages.

Personal items
Please leave your personal items (purses, bags, backpacks, etc.) with your guests so that you do not have to wear/carry them walking into or during the ceremony. Ensure your guests are around early enough, so that you may give them your personal items before you line up.

Returning your regalia
After the ceremony and reception, please return your rented regalia (excluding the cap and tassel) to the USC Bookstore (located just north of our reception area). There will also be return bins located throughout campus.

How Will I receive My Diploma?
Diplomas are mailed 4-8 weeks after the conclusion of your final semester. Please log in to my.usc.edu and check in Oasis to verify that your name and permanent address are correct by March 14th.

Diplomas are mailed in a cardboard envelope sent via first class mail to the student’s permanent address on file. There is no cost for shipping.

Local students may also come to campus to pick up their diploma. Contact the USC Diploma Department at 213-740-7070 for details.

Will we receive tickets for our guests to attend commencement, and if so, how many?
Each graduate will receive a ticket and 10 guest tickets. These tickets provide graduates and their guests access to the Coliseum for the university-wide celebration on Thursday and to campus on Friday for the Bovard College ceremony.

Graduating students will need to use their USC email account to access their tickets through their USC Ticket Office mobile account. Each graduating student will automatically be allocated ten guest tickets to download. Once tickets are downloaded and claimed, students must distribute them to their named guests.

Eligible graduating students will receive tickets in their USC ticket accounts on Wednesday, April 23, by the end of the day.

We want to remind you that the Bovard College ceremony site has limited capacity. So that all graduates can celebrate with their guests, we ask that you bring no more than 5 guests to the Bovard College ceremony. Our event will be live-streamed and a recording will be made available for those unable to attend the ceremony.

We are thrilled to announce that Michael Fenlon will be the USC Bovard College commencement speaker.

Michael Fenlon, PhD recently joined Harvard University and serves as Executive Director of Advances in Learning, dedicated to driving innovation in learning, expanding access through Harvard University Online and other initiatives to strengthen classroom learning within the university and with learners and organizations across the world.

Prior to joining Harvard, Fenlon served as Chief People Officer of PwC US, and drove improvements in employee experience and engagement, digital transformation, employee reskilling and leadership development, financial and operational outcomes, and employer brand. As the Chief Future of Work Officer, Fenlon drove initiatives on the impact of AI on workforce strategy, skills and learning, talent management, and led executive leadership development initiatives. Earlier, he served as associate dean for Executive MBA programs at Columbia Business School, and taught leadership and executive education.

His perspectives and thought leadership have been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, Fox Business News, and other media outlets.

Do you have questions not answered here?
Please contact support@bovardcollege.usc.edu

We will share more information as it becomes available. Please refer to the university’s Commencement website for the most up-to-date information.