Apply to Graduate

Apply to Graduate and Announce Your Candidacy

Ready to finish your degree? Find out how to apply for graduation, meet candidacy deadlines, and confirm your graduation status. This section covers the difference between graduation (receiving your degree) and commencement (the ceremony), how to apply through MyUCSC, what happens after you apply, and when to expect your diploma.

The information on this page pertains to Undergraduate Students. Graduate Students, please refer to the Graduate Student Handbook.

Commencement vs. Graduation

Your college or department commencement ceremony and graduation from UC Santa Cruz are two separate things, and have separate online processes and timelines.

At UCSC, graduation is the act of conferring an academic degree.
After graduation, diplomas will be ordered. More information about diplomas can be found here.
Commencement is a ceremony, where you walk across the stage, symbolizing the end of your undergraduate career. UCSC commencement ceremonies are held each June for students who graduate that year. Students do not receive their diploma at commencement.

Apply to graduate (degree completion and diploma) for the quarter in which you expect to finish your graduation requirements; do not apply for spring if you will finish your final graduation requirements in the summer or during a future term. However, you can sign up for commencement, which only happens once per year in the spring.

Applying for Graduation

Identify the term in which you expect full completion of degree requirements (all university, college, and major/minor requirements); this is the term you apply for. The application to graduate triggers a review of your final degree requirements, and begins the process for conferring your diploma.
To apply to graduate, you must submit an application via your MyUCSC Student Portal by the posted quarterly deadline to announce candidacy.
- Log in to MyUCSC. Go to the Student Center and find the Graduation Application.
- Choose your graduation term. Select the quarter when you will finish all degree requirements.
- Submit your application by the deadline.
Students without MyUCSC access, or those who need to reschedule a previous application, may use the Apply/Reapply for Graduation (Undergraduates) form.

Deadlines

All applications for graduation candidacy must be completed and turned in to the Office of the Registrar via the student portal, mail, email, fax, or in person by the deadline to be accepted. Quarterly deadlines for announcing candidacy can be found on the Academic and Administrative Calendar. Students applying for graduation after the posted deadlines will receive a retroactive degree.

Once you are in applied status, the deadline to complete all requirements and receive transcripts from other institutions is the end of the quarter. If items are not received by the deadline, this may result in delayed processing of your degree, or rescheduling your graduation. After the quarter ends, your records will be evaluated to determine degree completion.

Final Degree Audit

The Office of the Registrar will begin evaluating student’s eligibility for a degree after the quarter has ended. Please allow several weeks for the status of your degree to be updated from “applied” to “degree awarded” or “denied.” Students are only notified by the Registrar’s office if they have not fulfilled degree requirements. Students should check their @ucsc.edu emails and consult with their departmental advisors and college advising offices for specific questions about their program requirements.

Final transcripts including degree information may be requested in advance by indicating on your online transcript order that you would like your transcript request to be held for processing until your degree has posted to your transcript.

Confirming your graduation status

Confirmation of your graduation status can be found by navigating from your MyUCSC student portal. Follow these steps:

Log into MyUCSC
Select Student Center (“Full Site Login” for mobile devices)
Select Student Advising Summary at the top of the Student Center.
Select the Degree tab. Your degree status will be displayed. If your degree has been conferred, your “My Academics” tile will no longer show academic records and access. When reviewing, make sure you are looking at “Student Center.”

Diplomas

Learn about diplomas: Diploma Information

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