Spring Graduation

Academic Attire is required for UW-Madison Commencement as well as the School of Nursing event. To ensure your academic regalia is reflective of the University’s current specifications, please place your order through the University Book Store.

To receive the Early Badger pricing of $20.00 off, students must submit their rental order by March 31, 2023. Starting April 1, all academic attire rentals will be regularly priced. Graduating students can rent academic attire online through May 8, 2023; in person rentals can be make at the Lower Level Service Counter of the 711 State St. store through May 10, 2023. Call (608) 257-3784, extension 5907, if you have questions.

Review the University Book Store’s May 2023 Timeline for additional instructions and deadlines.

Undergraduate Students

Accelerated BSN, Traditional BSN, and BSN@Home students should select the Bachelor Degree Cap and Gown Rental Package. Once you “ADD TO CART,” you will receive a pop-up menu; under School/College select “School of Nursing-Apricot” and enter “Nursing” under Subject of Studies.

Stoles
If you are in the Honors Program or if you qualify for Distinctive Scholastic Achievement, you are eligible to wear a stole for graduation. Academic stoles are available through the University Book Store by purchase only. For students in the Honors Program, the School of Nursing will notify you when stoles become available for purchase. The School of Nursing will notify students who qualify for Distinctive Scholastic Achievement by the end of April, at which point those students can purchase a stole if desired.

Doctoral Students

Doctor of Nursing Practice and Nursing PhD students should select the Doctoral and MFA Cap and Gown Rental Package. Once you “ADD TO CART,” you will receive a pop-up menu; under School/College select “Doctor of Nursing Practice-Apricot” (DNP) or “Doctor of Philosophy-Blue” (PhD), then enter “Nursing” under Subject of Studies.

Diplomas

Diplomas will be mailed to the designated Diploma Address in your MyUW Student Center 6-8 weeks after final grades are reported. Please be sure to update your Diploma Address in MyUW to ensure that these items reach you at the correct address. Learn how to update your Diploma Address here.

To avoid a delay in receiving your diploma, verify that you do not have any holds on your account in MyUW > Student Center > Tasks that will prevent the release of your diploma. These holds will be marked as “Hold Records.” Instructions are available here.

International students must add a Diploma address in MyUW Student Center in order to receive their diploma. The Diploma address can be the same as your home address, but there must be an address listed in Student Center with an address type of “Diploma.” F-1 and J-1 students must have a “Diploma” address on file in order for their diploma to be ordered.

The Office of the Registrar has compiled a comprehensive list of frequently asked questions regarding receiving diplomas here, as well as a visual timeline for Spring 2023 graduates which is available here.

Diploma Covers

Diploma Covers for Baccalaureates: Diploma covers are available for pick up at the UW Bookstore State Street location. Covers will not be handed out at the Camp Randall or Shannon Hall events.

Diploma Covers for Doctorates: Diploma covers will be available at the May 13 Kohl Center Ceremony. They are also available for pick up at the UW Bookstore State Street location.

Student Name on Diploma

Starting in 2023, students now have the option to indicate whether they want their legal name or their name in use/preferred name to be printed on their diploma! Previously the only option was legal name.

Students can select their diploma display name by completing the application for graduation (see Apply to Graduate tab) and selecting the name of their choice. More information on how to select your diploma name can be found in steps 6 and 7 of this KnowledgeBase document. Please note, indicating your commencement preferences and name in the commencement program are separate from the diploma name.

From the Office of the Registrar, a few things to note:

• Students need to acknowledge and check two boxes when indicating their diploma name:
  • I confirm and agree that the name I selected here is the name that will appear on my diploma. I will be responsible for ordering and paying for another diploma if I wish to receive a copy with a different name in the future.
  • I understand that there may be scenarios in which my legal name is required or recommended on my diploma. Some professional licenses, certifications, visa documents, or official government purposes may require that the name on the diploma match legal name. In the case that I need another diploma in the future, including a diploma with a different name, I will be responsible for ordering and paying for another diploma.
• Students can make changes to their name in use or legal name in their student records after selecting the name they would like on their diploma. If they indicate they would like their name in use on their diploma and they make changes to their name in use after they apply to graduate, the name in use at the time of diploma order is what will be printed on the diploma. The same is true for changes to legal name. Any changes after the degree conferral date are not guaranteed to be reflected on their diploma due to the timing of degree posting and diploma ordering.
• Changes to name in use after the apply to graduate deadline will not impact the name that appears on the commencement program.
• Students can go back into the application for graduation to change their diploma name preference if they wish (e.g. to change from legal to name in use). Again, the name at the time of diploma ordering is what will appear on their diploma, so final selections should be completed by the degree conferral date each term.
• Students that don’t or aren’t required to apply to graduate will have their legal name printed on their diploma, unless they complete an application for graduation.
• The transcript will still retain the legal name only.

If you have any questions about the name that will print on your diploma, please contact the Office of the Registrar directly.

Every year, students graduating with their BSN are given the opportunity to order an alumni pin through our partners at J. Brandt Recognition. You can learn more about the nursing pin’s symbolism and history here. The Academic Affairs Office coordinates with J. Brandt Recognition to set up accounts for graduating undergraduate students through which students can order a customized School of Nursing pin. Nursing pin online ordering instructions are emailed to students in February. Instructions will be emailed from J. Brandt Recognition and will include the year’s ordering deadline.

J. Brandt Recognition only manufactures the UW-Madison nursing pin once a year; if you do not order the pin during the spring semester before your graduation, but decide you would like to in the future, you can contact the School of Nursing Alumni Relations Officer at that time and they will provide you with a timeline and details on ordering a pin.

NOTE: The above information does not pertain to the NAO Alumni Pin Recipient Award; this is YOUR alumni pin. Information about NAO Alumni Pins can be found here.

2/11/2023 Update

J. Brandt sent online ordering instructions to graduating undergraduates on February 11, 2023. Students have until 5:30pm CST on Thursday, March 9, 2023, to place their order. No late orders will be accepted!If you have any questions regarding the ordering process, contact J. Brandt Recognitions directly.

3/13/2023 Update

Alumni pin ordering for Spring 2023 has concluded. Ordered pins will be shipped directly to student from J. Brandt Recognitions no later than May 4, 2023.

Undergraduate Students

Guest ticket information for the Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration

Tickets are required for guests to attend the Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration in Shannon Hall on May 13, 2023, at 4pm. Students should indicate how many guest tickets they need in the RSVP that is sent out in March. Each student is allotted a maximum of 4 guest tickets*. If there are remaining guest tickets after the RSVP deadline, the Academic Affairs Office will send out information regarding a ticket lottery where graduating students can enter their name for a chance to receive ONE additional guest ticket if desired. Ticket distribution will take place in Cooper Hall during student programming hours or between classes – dates and times will be announced closer to graduation.

*Due to fire code, every individual entering Shannon Hall must have a ticket, regardless of age or intended seating arrangements. For example, a child who plans to sit on an adult’s lap still needs a guest ticket and thus must be accounted for when considering your allotted guest ticket recipients. 

The Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration will be livestreamed to the School of Nursing’s YouTube page. Guests who do not have a ticket for Shannon Hall, but will be on campus for graduation events, are welcome to watch the event elsewhere in Memorial Union via livestream on their own device. Support people unable to attend graduation events on campus are also welcome to watch the livestream via the School of Nursing YouTube page!

Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration guest documents

Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration Announcement **THIS IS NOT A TICKET

Doctoral Students

Guest ticket information for the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony

The School of Nursing Doctoral Hooding Ceremony is a ticketed event. That being said, we typically have enough room in the Auditorium to accommodate all guests. To help us determine if we need to cap the number of guests per student allowed in the Auditorium, when filling out the RSVP survey in March students will be asked to indicate the total number of guest tickets they would ideally receive. Once the RSVP deadline has passed, we will compare the number of guest tickets requested to the number of guest seats available. We will then send out an email confirming how many guest tickets each student will receive for the event.

The Hooding Ceremony will be livestreamed to Enroth Hall for guests who do not have a ticket or who need to step out of the Auditorium during the ceremony. If Enroth becomes crowded, we will also stream the ceremony into an ALC. Support people unable to attend graduation events on campus are also welcome to watch the livestream via the School of Nursing YouTube page! 

Doctoral Hooding Ceremony guest documents

Doctoral Hooding Ceremony Announcement **THIS IS NOT A TICKET

Undergraduate Students

2023.05.08_FINAL DETAILS Nursing Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration
Attachment: 2023 Baccalaureate Graduation Celebration Final Details
2023.04.18_2023 Graduation Awards and Recognitions Recipients
2023.04.17_Baccalaureate Graduation Walkthrough and Guest Ticket Pick Up
2023.04.13_Baccalaureate Guest Ticket Lottery
2023.03.29_Reminder of March 31 Deadlines – BSN
2023.03.15_FINAL REMINDER Nominations for Nursing Graduation Awards and Recognitions – Students
2023.03.08_Graduation RSVP and Additional Updates and Deadlines for BSN Candidates
2023.02.28_Hoods for 2nd Bachelors Degree Candidates Action Required by 3.1
2023.02.22_Nominations for Nursing Graduation Awards and Recognitions Student Communication
2023.02.11_Alumni Pin Ordering Instructions
2023.02.03_Baccalaureate Save the Date, Pin Opt Out, Apply to Graduate REMINDER
2023.01.30_Baccalaureate Save the Date, Pin Opt Out, Apply to Graduate

Doctoral Students

2023.05.08_FINAL DETAILS Nursing Doctoral Hooding Ceremony
Attachment: 2023 Doctoral Graduation Celebration Final Details
2023.04.18_2023 Graduation Awards and Recognitions Recipients
2023.04.18_2023 Hooding Ceremony Guest Ticket Pick Up
2023.03.29_Reminder of March 31 Deadlines – Doctoral
2023.03.08_Graduation RSVP and Additional Updates and Deadlines for Doctoral Candidates
2023.02.22_Nominations for Nursing Graduation Awards and Recognitions Student Communication
2023.02.06_Doctoral Save the Date & Apply to Graduate

Campus Communications

To view communications that campus has sent out, visit the Campus Commencement site’s Communications tab.

Faculty & Staff

2023.05.08_FINAL DETAILS for Faculty – Nursing Graduation Events
Attachment: 2023 Faculty Graduation Celebrations Final Details
2023.04.18_2023 Graduation Awards and Recognitions Recipients
2023.03.29_Graduation RSVP & NAO Pin Nomination Reminder – Faculty
2023.03.15_FINAL REMINDER Nominations for Nursing Graduation Awards and Recognitions – Faculty
2023.02.22_Nominations for Nursing Graduation Awards and Recognitions FacStaff Communication