Registration for the Hooding and Recognition Ceremony and Commencement is now closed. Registration opened on January 31, and closed on April 28, 2023. Please contact [email protected] with any questions. 

Hooding and Recognition Ceremony: Monday, May 29, 2023

The Hooding and Recognition Ceremony is a special recognition for graduates receiving a final master's degree or a Ph.D. This ceremony is for graduate students only and does not replace Commencement. The Commencement Ceremony, held the next day, is the official conferring of degrees. 

Presided over by President Christopher L. Eisgruber and Dean Priestley, the program lasts for approximately 2.5 hours. All candidates are individually recognized, and all faculty and students wear academic regalia. Ph.D. candidates may receive their hood from a faculty member (usually their adviser), or from the chief marshal.  

Guest seating begins at 3:30 p.m. Guests are not permitted in the student assembly area. 

• Location: Cannon Green (behind Nassau Hall)
• Eligibility: Ph.D. and final master's candidates
• Honorees / guests: Open to all advanced degree (Ph.D. and final master’s) candidates and guests, no tickets required. Please limit guests for the Hooding and Recognition Lunch to five people (details below).

11:30 - 2:00 p.m.  – Hooding and Recognition Lunch

• Location: Tent on Poe Field (see Parking and Transportation map)
• Honorees / guests: Open to all Ph.D. and master's degree recipients and guests (children are welcome). We ask that you observe a five-person guest limit for the lunch. Graduates will be assigned an arrival time upon registration. 

3:30 - 4:00 p.m. – Assemble for ceremony

• Assemble on Chapel Drive in front of Whig Hall. Stand by the sign representing your academic division (for Ph.D. students) or your school and degree type (for master's candidates). 
• Ph.D. students: If multiple people are being hooded by one faculty member, please sit together, with the faculty member taking the second position in line.
• You must present the name card mailed with your Commencement tickets. The card must clearly list your name and its phonetic spelling. If you are a doctoral candidate being hooded by a faculty member, the card must also include their name and phonetic spelling.

4:30 p.m. – Ceremony begins

• Master’s Students: You will be sent to the stage by row, and the marshal will assist you. At the stage, you will hand your name card to the dean at the podium and walk across, wearing your hood. There will be an opportunity for individual photos before you return to your seat, where you are asked to remain until the ceremony concludes.
• Ph.D. Recipients: Please carry your hood over your arm. You will be sent to the stage by row, and the marshal will assist you. Make sure you have removed your hat before leaving your seat. At the stage, you will hand your name card to the dean at the podium and walk to the center of the stage to receive your hood. There is a large X indicating where to stand. Once you have been hooded you will walk off the stage. There will be an opportunity for individual photos before you return to your seat, where you are asked to remain until the ceremony concludes.

The Princeton Ring and Frame Agency will be at the Hooding and Recognition Ceremony from 3:30 p.m. until 15 minutes after the ceremony completion selling diploma frames and class rings. 

276th Commencement Ceremony: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Guest seating begins at 8:30 a.m. For complete details, visit the Commencement website.

• Location: Weaver Stadium
• Eligibility: Ph.D. and final master's candidates
• Honorees / guests: All registered graduates will receive eight guest tickets. (Registered degree recipients themselves do not require tickets.) Tickets will be grouped together, then mailed to the graduate after registration closes. International students who need invitation letters to secure family visas should submit requests to [email protected]. 

8:30 a.m. – Formation for Commencement

• Degree candidates assemble on Weaver Track for the procession. 
• If you would like to sit near a particular person, please make sure they are either in front of or behind you. 
• Candidates for advanced degrees assemble in the following order: Doctor of Philosophy, Master of Architecture, Master of Arts in Near Eastern Studies, Master in Public Affairs, Master in Public Policy, Master of Science in Engineering, Master of Engineering, and Master in Finance. Marshals will be available to assist.

9:30 a.m. – Commencement begins

• Guests must be seated, and the academic procession begins.

10:00 a.m. – Commencement exercises

Time may shift later in the case of inclement weather.

• Students should remain standing until President Eisgruber sits down. Please remove your cap when President Eisgruber does.
• Conferring of Advanced Degrees: Dean Priestley will ask candidates receiving various degrees to rise and remain standing until the president confers the degrees. 

11:30 a.m. – Commencement concludes

• At the conclusion of the program, all will stand to sing “Old Nassau.” Remain standing, put on your cap, and follow the faculty marshals onto Weaver Track.

12:00 p.m. – Commencement Reception

• Alumni Engagement is proud to welcome its newest members into Princeton’s alumni community. Immediately following Commencement, celebrate the completion of your graduate degree with family and friends at a casual reception. Formal invitation and location will be mailed to the graduate closer to the date of the event.

Diplomas

• Advanced degree recipients for the May degree period will receive their diploma by mail. Please make sure to submit the advanced degree application by May 12, 2023 as your diploma will be mailed to the address provided on your advanced degree application. Please note that it may take six (6) to eight (8) weeks after the degree date for the diploma to arrive. We strongly encourage you to supply an address that you will have access to for at least six (6) months after graduation. 
• September '22, November '22, January '23, and March ’23 advanced degree recipients should have received their diploma by mail.