Graduation & Honors
COMMENCEMENT
Commencement exercises are held in May of each academic year. Conferral of a student’s degree is contingent upon the successful completion of all graduation requirements as noted in the catalog. Students completing requirements for a degree in any calendar year will be permitted to participate in the commencement ceremony held in May of that calendar year.
Only students completing a degree program are eligible to participate in the ceremony.
CANDIDACY FOR GRADUATION
A graduation application must be completed on the student portal. If a student is receiving two degrees, two separate graduation applications must be completed. The deadline is two terms before degree completion.
The student has 30 days after the end of the term to complete requirements. If requirements are not met (i.e. Incomplete grades, waiting on transcripts) the graduation application will be moved to the next term.
Once a degree has been posted to a student's record, it cannot be altered in any way. Majors, minors and concentrations cannot be added to or deleted from the original degree.
GRADUATION FEE
The Graduation Fee is a one-time, non-refundable fee that is added to the student’s account with each degree or program for which the student applies. The Graduation Fee covers the conferral of the degree, including a final audit to determine whether all degree and program requirements have been met, the cost of the diploma, and other administrative functions related to degree conferral.
The Graduation Fee will be assessed regardless of attendance at the commencement ceremony. Students who participate in the commencement ceremony must pay the additional costs to purchase regalia, and regalia must be purchased through the Chaminade University Bookstore.
HONORS
Latin Honors: Candidates for a bachelor’s degree who have completed at least 60 semester hours with letter grades at Chaminade University may be awarded the following honors at graduation: Cum Laude with a cumulative GPA of 3.51, Magna Cum Laude with a cumulative GPA of 3.76, and Summa Cum Laude with a cumulative GPA of 3.96.
Candidates for a bachelor’s degree who have completed 30 but less than 60 semester hours with letter grades at Chaminade University and who have cumulative GPA at least 3.51 may be graduated with Distinction. Normally, courses such as Student Teaching are conducted on a Credit/No Credit basis; however, students wishing to have these credits included for Honors consideration may opt to have these courses conducted on a graded basis. The election to have these courses graded must be made prior to the beginning of the semester and be approved by the instructor.
For candidates to be announced at Commencement as having received an academic honor, they must have met the requirements indicated in the paragraphs above prior to the time Commencement arrangements are finalized. Grades or credits anticipated in the semester in which one is enrolled immediately prior to Commencement or which one will complete after Commencement are excluded from consideration for the purposes of determining the announcement of honors at Commencement. The transcript of a graduate will reflect the official record of any academic honors.
AWARDS
Outstanding Student awards are presented to graduating seniors on the basis of leadership, scholarship, and service. Special awards and departmental awards for outstanding scholarship are presented at the semi-annual Awards Ceremony conducted during commencement week.
DIPLOMA AVAILABILITY
Diplomas will be mailed after grades have been entered and the degree is conferred.
DIPLOMA FORMAT
A diploma carries signatures of the Chaminade University president; Board of Regents chair; and the official University seal.
Undergraduate diplomas specify the degree. Majors and minors will be listed on the official transcript. Graduate and Doctoral diplomas include the degree, major, and concentration/emphasis, if applicable.
Undergraduate students will receive two diplomas when they complete two or more majors in different degrees (i.e. Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts). If both majors are in the same degree, one diploma will be issued.
DUPLICATE DIPLOMA
Graduates can order a duplicate diploma through the Chaminade website. Fees apply.