University Commencement
Columbia University’s Commencement ceremony of the 271st academic year will take place on May 21, 2025. This time-honored tradition dates back to 1758 and has been held outdoors on the Morningside campus since 1926, celebrating the graduates from Columbia's nineteen schools, colleges, and affiliate institutions on Commencement Day. The President of the University symbolically confers degrees en masse upon all candidates.
All eligible February, May and June 2025 degree candidates, and October 2024 graduates, from all schools and colleges affiliated with Columbia University, are encouraged to participate in the celebration. You will receive information from your individual school about how to register your family and friends to join the Commencement ceremony.
An archived video of the ceremony and digital program will be available for viewing shortly after the live webcast.
By participating in the University Commencement ceremony and/or your School Ceremony, all participants are giving consent to being photographed, filmed, and recorded. Please note that these recordings may be shared publicly and made available online for viewing after the event.
For questions related to school ceremonies, where each graduate has the opportunity to be announced and walk across the stage, please visit the School Ceremonies page for further details.
Use these links below for helpful resources and your guide to commencement
University Commencement is a centuries-old tradition which dates back to 1758. During the ceremony, degrees are symbolically conferred en masse to graduating students from nineteen schools, colleges, and affiliate institutions. During this ceremony, remarkable members of the Columbia community and special guests are also recognized through the bestowal of medals, awards, and honorary degrees.
While each school holds an individual graduation ceremony, the University President is the only person who can confer the actual degrees. As part of the ceremony, each dean steps forward to request that the President confer degrees on the school's candidates; a tradition that has become a memorable part of the ceremony. After the University President has symbolically conferred all degrees, cheers, applause, and celebration ensue as the class officially graduates.
The sequence of degree conferrals is meticulously structured—reflecting historical precedence, the size of the school, and the distribution of advanced and terminal degree programs. Thus, undergraduate schools lead the procession, followed by schools with master's degree programs, and culminating with those offering the highest number of terminal degrees.
With thousands of degree candidates, participants, and guests in attendance, the ceremony is an unforgettable, grand-scale celebration that appropriately marks the academic achievements of the University graduates. No degree candidate officially graduates until the University Commencement ceremony concludes.
Commencement History & Regalia
University Commencement has been a Columbia tradition since 1758, when the first ceremony was held at St. George's Chapel on Beekman Street. Learn more about the history of the ceremony and some of the traditions still observed today. Click here to learn more.
Teaching Awards
Presidential Awards for Outstanding Teaching are given to faculty and graduate student instructors who have significantly influenced the intellectual development of Columbia students. For more information about this award, visit Office of the Provost.
Mentoring Awards
Faculty Mentoring Awards, inspired by the incredible mentoring legacy of Columbia Business School Professor Katherine W. Phillips, are given to senior faculty who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to the professional development of their junior colleagues. For more information about this award, visit Office of the Provost.
Service Awards
Faculty Service Awards recognize full-time faculty whose extraordinary and creative voluntary service has contributed significantly to the University’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. For more information about this award, visit Office of the Provost.