April 2024 graduation celebration
Latest update: Get ready for your graduation celebration and parade, read the graduation guide for all the information you need.
Graduates have now been emailed information for booking tickets for whānau and friends, bus tickets for the parade and celebration regalia.
Please check your student email and spam/junk folders. If you have not received an email and believe you should have, please contact events@canterbury.ac.nz
Graduation celebrations will take place on Tuesday 9, Wednesday 10 and Thursday 11 April 2024. Please see the table below for your celebration date.
The parade will take place on Wednesday 10 April at 10am. The parade will assemble in Hack Circle on the corner of Cashel and High Streets, and will proceed along Cashel Street, Oxford Terrace and into Victoria Square. Whānau and friends are invited to cheer you on as you walk through the city with your fellow classmates.
More information on celebrations, regalia hire and the parade will be released in early 2024. Please note, all graduates attending a celebration need to be in their regalia at the arena one hour before the below celebration start time.
2024 Graduation Celebration programme
Celebration date and start time | Faculty | Parade date and start time |
Tuesday 9 April 10am | Engineering | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Tuesday 9 April 2pm | Science | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Christchurch City Graduation Celebration Parade | All welcome | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Wednesday 10 April 2pm | UC Business School and Law | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Thursday 11 April 10am | Arts and School of Product Design - Faculty of Engineering | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Thursday 11 April 2pm | Education and Health | Wednesday 10 April 10am |
Eke Tangaroa | Celebration for Māori graduates
Date: Friday 12 April 2024
Time: 10.30am
Venue: Ngā Hau e Whā Marae
Click here for more information>
Pasifika Graduation Celebration
Date: Friday 12 April 2024
Time: 3pm
Venue: Rata - Engineering Core
Click here for more information>
Please note if you are not attending a Faculty Graduation Celebration but will be attending either the Eke Tangaroa or Pasifika Graduation Celebration you will need to order regalia from GWC Regalia Hire. You need to indicate in the order that you are only attending the Eke Tangaroa or Pasifika Graduation Celebration.
How many friends and whānau can I bring with me and can they walk with me?
As many as you like, the more the merrier and yes, they can walk with you in the parade or choose to line the streets and cheer you on as you walk past.
Are dogs or pets allowed?
No, unless they are a disability assistant or support animal.
Which roads are closed?
The parade roads, including Oxford Terrace and the tram line, will be closed and a traffic management plan is in place.
Does the parade start on time and how long is the walk?
Yes, the parade starts at 10am sharp and the 850m walk will take about 15 minutes.
Will there be food and drink at the parade?
Once the parade concludes in Victoria Square, there will be two beverage vendors there for hot and cold drinks and ice cream. We recommend once the festivities have concluded you plan to have lunch either in the park self-catered, by making a booking, or simply visit a restaurant, café or food stall in the CBD.
How do the buses work?
Hopefully you would have told us at the time of booking your guest tickets whether you will require a seat on the bus from, and back to, Wolfbrook Arena for the Street Parade on Wednesday 10 April. This is the easiest way for you and your guests to get to and from the parade without worrying about parking or paying for other transport. Buses leave Wolfbrook Arena promptly at 9.15am and will be leaving the Town Hall at 12.45pm; providing you plenty of time to get lunch.
Please note, you do not have to have your ceremony on the Wednesday to use this service for the parade.
What should I wear at the parade?
Wear your graduation clothes and regalia over the top. We advise you wear sensible footwear made for walking in, especially for the parade. There will be a short opportunity to change footwear once you are back at Wolfbrook Arena, or on the 12.45pm return bus.
What about bad weather?
In the event of bad weather, we will have to cancel the parade. This includes persistent rain, snow, hail and severe wind. You will be texted at 6am on the day of the parade if it is to be cancelled.
Is the parade filmed?
Yes! We have Shipley’s Audio Visual live streaming to the UC Facebook page for anyone wanting to watch away from home. We will also have UC photographers and videographers capturing the parade. If you don’t wish to be in the video or have photos taken of yourself, please contact events@canterbury.ac.nz and also make yourself known to any videographers/photographers you see on the day.
Why is there only one parade?
Due to the planning requirements for the street parade and the guests who attend, UC can only accommodate one parade during graduation week.
What is the timetable for the parade?
All graduates gather at Hack Circle (outside H&M in Cashel Mall) by 9.45am. The parade begins at 10.00am sharp and will follow this route.
The parade is led by the NZ Army Band and concludes at Victoria Square. There, you and your guests will be provided a glass for a toast that will be led by the president of the UCSA:
Once the whole parade is in Victoria Square there will be two or three short speeches followed by this celebratory toast. You will then be free to mix and mingle, purchase any drinks and decide on your next movements before heading to your afternoon ceremony or home for the day.
Are there parking options for the street parade?
Christchurch CBD has plenty of paid parking options. The easiest will be The Crossing carparking building you can enter off Lichfield St. However, do know there will be road closures and changes to the roads around the area for this event that may cause it to take longer to access the building.
The cheapest and easiest method to get ‘parking’ for the event is to park for free at Wolfbrook Arena and catch the free bus to the parade, and back again.
You can use this service even if you are not graduating that day.
Academic regalia
Full academic regalia is required to attend a graduation celebration, and Aotearoa New Zealand universities have a system of academic regalia which is worn by graduates to indicate their degree. The colour of the hood denotes the different faculties or disciplines, except for the peony red PhD hood.
The stock of academic dress for Ōtautahi Christchurch graduation celebrations of the University of Canterbury is owned and maintained by GWC Regalia Hire. You will receive an email from the Events Team when you can order your regalia. Please do not try to order regalia prior to this. The process to follow is outlined below and the link will become available when regalia can be ordered.
Ordering regalia
- Follow the link provided in the email from the UC Events Team to GWC Regalia Hire
- Click on 'University of Canterbury'
- Follow the GWC Regalia Hire step-by-step process to the end, and ensure you select your correct qualification and celebration
- Please include your height and head circumference when selecting your regalia
- Once your order is complete you will receive a confirmation email.
Collect your regalia from GWC, Dovedale Campus, Wairarapa building, Block ED15, Ilam.
If you are unable to collect your regalia at the specified time, you may ask a friend or relative to collect it for you.
On the day of your graduation celebration, you must wear appropriate academic regalia when taking part. Please note, if you are not wearing academic regalia, you will not be able to attend the graduation celebration.
Outstanding credits with GWC Regalia Hire
If you have outstanding credit from a previous order when you didn’t hire your regalia, please email info@gwcregaliahire.nz to receive an individual credit code.
If you have ordered for this graduation celebration and you will no longer attend, email info@gwcregaliahire.nz for a refund of your order.
Late orders
A late fee will apply for any orders placed later than two weeks prior to graduation.
- UC graduation processions and ceremonies are filmed and photographed. Footage and photos will be publicly accessible on UC’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube pages. Photos may also be used in University publications and promotional materials (digital and print). If you have any questions regarding graduation photography, please email communications@canterbury.ac.nz.
- The graduation procession is live-streamed onto screens inside the main auditorium.
Graduation Photography
Linton Photography are the Official University of Canterbury Graduation Photographers.
They have been photographing graduations since 1994 and have the skills and ability to create graduation photos that you and your family can be proud of.
They will be photographing every graduand as they are presented on stage.
A studio portrait service is available either at their studio or at the venue on graduation day, so you can have formal portraits taken with family or friends.
Portrait session times may be booked in advance, plus it is also possible to be photographed without a booking on a first in, first served basis following your ceremony.
To learn more about the portrait services available or to view your on stage photos after the ceremony visit https://lintonphoto.com/events/graduation/
Future Graduation Celebration Dates
9 - 11 April 2024
3 - 5 September 2024
8 - 10 April 2025
26 - 28 August 2025
14 - 16 April 2026
25 - 27 August 2026
*Please note these dates are subject to change
Autumn and Spring Graduation Celebration Events
UC continues to hold two graduation celebration weeks throughout the year, with these events now held during the Autumn and Spring mid-semester breaks.
These changes ensure graduates and their whānau and friends can celebrate their achievements together. They also help to relieve some time and financial constraints at the end of the year.
All UC students who complete their qualification must apply to graduate so their qualification can be conferred (legally awarded) by the UC Council. Once a student has had the qualification conferred they become UC Graduates. UC qualifications are conferred in advance of any graduation celebration events, as these events celebrate our graduates achievements. The UC Council meetings in 2024 are held on the third Monday of each month.
An application to graduate can be made at any time in the student's final year of study via myUC. However, if a student wishes to attend a graduation celebration event, they must apply during specific time periods, choosing "Attend a graduation celebration" as their graduation option. The specific time periods to apply to graduate and attend a graduation celebration are detailed in the Apply to Attend a Graduation Celebration section above.
If a student does not wish to attend a graduation celebration, they may apply to graduate via myUC and should choose the in absentia option.
Conferment, the legal process of awarding the qualification, is subject to a successful completion check of academic requirements. An application to graduate must be received prior to the UC Council meeting by the deadline detailed below for the conferment to take place.
Usually within five working days after the UC Council meeting, at which the student’s qualification is conferred, the graduate will be able to access their digital qualification certificate (testamur) and transcript, via the My eQuals platform. The physical copy of the testamur will be posted to those graduates who choose not to attend a graduation celebration. All graduates attending a graduation celebration will receive the physical copy of their testamur at a celebration event.
Application deadline for conferment * | Council conferment date |
02 February 2024 | 19 February 2024 |
23 February 2024 | 11 March 2024 |
25 March 2024 03 May 2024 | 15 April 2024 20 May 2024 |
31 May 2024 | 17 June 2024 |
28 June 2024 | 15 July 2024 |
19 July 2024 | 05 August 2024 |
30 August 2024 | 16 September 2024 |
04 October 2024 | 21 October 2024 |
01 November 2024 | 20 November 2024 |
22 November 2024 | 11 December 2024 |
* If an application is not received by the deadline listed above, the conferment at Council will automatically be deferred until the following month's UC Council meeting.
Note: There are no conferrals by UC Council occuring in January 2024.
Applications
Applications to attend the April 2024 Graduation Celebrations have closed. Late applications will not be accepted.
Applications to attend the September 2024 Graduation Celebrations will open on 8 April 2024 and close on 14 July 2024. Late applications may not be considered.
If you are completing your qualification in Semester One, 2024, or have completed your qualification and have yet to have your qualification conferred (legally awarded), and you wish to attend the graduation celebration in September 2024, please apply online, between 8 April - 14 July 2024, via myUC selecting the following option:
Attend a Graduation Celebration.
Information with respect to the actual dates/times for each Faculty for the September Graduation Celebrations will be made available towards the end of July 2024.
Multiple qualifications
If you are graduating with more than one qualification and they are from different Faculties, you may receive both qualifications together at one celebration. You must apply to graduate in separate applications for each qualification.
Multiple qualification application process
When you apply to graduate, please indicate in the 'Comments' field which Faculty Celebration you wish to attend to receive both qualifications.
Multiple qualification celebration options
You can choose which Faculty hood you wear at the celebration but it must relate to the Faculty Celebration you are attending. You cannot wear both together but may wish to order both hoods for photographs.
If your qualifications are being celebrated at the same celebration, they will be called out together and both testamurs (certificates) will be in the graduation folder presented to you. That is, you do not cross the stage twice in one celebration.
Planning further study?
If you have completed the required points for a qualification, but intend to undertake further study towards that qualification to complete a second major, or you intend to transfer your courses to a higher qualification (for example, from a postgraduate certificate to a postgraduate diploma), you must seek further academic advice from your Faculty Office. See Student Advisors (Continuing Students) for details.
If you have completed the required points for a qualification and you are planning to continue to a new qualification, for example, you have completed a BA and plan to enrol in a BA(Hons), these are separate qualifications and you can graduate with them separately.
Transcripts and Letters
If you require your official academic record or an official letter from the University confirming your eligibility to graduate, please see Academic Transcripts and Letters. Once your qualification has been awarded, your name will be added to the online Graduate Search which is publicly accessible. The University also gives names of graduates to their former secondary school.
Stay connected with UC
When you graduate, you become a member of the UC Alumni. To join the Alumni network and remain connected to UC, visit the Alumni and Fundraising website.
After graduating
Your years of study at UC may be over, but we want your connection with us to last a lifetime.
Graduation may mark the beginning of your career, or you might be considering further study. Whatever you do next we'd love to hear about it.
Stay connnected with UC
We offer a wide range of postgraduate qualifications. Find out more about your options.
As a UC graduate you become an alumni and can benefit our extensive networks.
UC graduates have full access to Careers, Internship and Employment services.
Graduation through the ages
University graduation ceremonies are part of an 800-year tradition which stretches back to the establishment of the first universities in Europe in the 12th century, when Latin was the language of scholarship.
Origin of the word 'university'
A universitas was a guild or union of masters (MAs) who had a licence to teach. Both "degree" and "graduate" come from gradus, meaning "step"; the first step was admission to a bachelor’s degree, followed by the second masters step which won the graduate admission to the universitas.
Why gowns are worn
The University of Canterbury's foundation in 1873 owes much to the graduates of Oxford University's cathedral/college Christ Church and the Canterbury ceremonies reflect that tradition. The gowns and hoods which characterise academic dress have evolved from the daily dress of university staff in the Middle Ages, which was in turn based on the attire worn by medieval clergy. Nowadays the gown and the hood are strictly controlled and indicate the wearer’s university and degree.
The gowns for Canterbury graduates are the same as for Cambridge University graduates; the hoods are of a standard shape and size with a slate grey exterior. The colour of the lining indicates the degree of the wearer. The rich variety of academic dress worn by Canterbury staff reflects the many universities which they attended.
Graduation ceremony
At each ceremony the procession of graduands and staff is led by the Esquire or Madam Bedel carrying the University mace, the symbol of institutional authority. Historically the Bedel had a number of functions but in a modern university only the ceremonial role at graduation survives. The University mace provides a tangible link with Christ Church, Oxford, where it was designed and made. The shaft of the mace is of oak from a beam removed from Big Tom Tower when the bell was rehung in 1953. Even in 1680, when the beam was installed in the Sir Christopher Wren-designed tower, the timber was described as ‘well-seasoned oak’. The mace has been used for every graduation ceremony since 1957.
Graduation at UC
The first Canterbury degrees were conferred in 1878 in the Canterbury Provincial Chambers with the ceremonies moving to the College Hall, now the Great Hall of the Arts Centre, after its completion in 1882.
The early graduation ceremonies, known as Diploma Days, were decorous affairs but by 1884 discordant notes were sounded in the form of ‘tootings on a very unmusical instrument’. A tradition of specially-composed songs developed, reaching its heyday in 1899.
After a break during the First World War, ceremonies resumed in the College Hall in 1921 but pressure of numbers forced a move in 1946 to the Civic Theatre, the first year in which an academic procession through the city was held. This format continued, apart from three occasions when it was held in the St James Theatre, until 1962 when further pressure of numbers prompted a move to King Edward Barracks.
In 1968 the ceremony was divided into two and in 1971 it was made voluntary. The Christchurch Town Hall became the venue in 1973, with a move to three ceremonies in 1987, four ceremonies in 1994 and to five ceremonies, four in autumn and one in summer, in 1997. Following the merger with the Christchurch College of Education on 1 January 2007, there are now eight ceremonies, including a ceremony held in Rotorua for College of Education students based in the North Island.
In April 2011, graduation celebrations were held in a marquee on Ilam fields. To accommodate greater numbers of students opting to graduate in person with their whānau and friends in attendance, the modern Christchurch graduation ceremonies are held in the Christchurch Arena, with several large ceremonies planned each year in Autumn and Spring graduation weeks.
Academic Regalia
Refers to the academic gown, hood and trencher worn at the graduation celebration (also known as Academic dress).
Awarded
When you officially receive your diploma.
Conferred
When you officially receive your degree.
Testamur
The official certificate you receive when your degree has been conferred or your diploma awarded.
Graduand
When you are eligible to graduate but have not yet done so.
Graduate
Once your degree has been conferred or your diploma awarded.
In absentia
You will not be attending a graduation celebration and instead receive your diploma by mail.
Graduation contacts
Email: graduation@canterbury.ac.nz
In person: Level 2 North, Matariki Building
Post: Academic Records, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch 8140