Preparing for Commencement

• The conferral date indicated on your application to graduate.
  • This also means: you cannot walk a semester earlier than your graduation date.
• The assigned date and time designated to your college or department.
  • This also means: you cannot participate during a different ceremony, even if it matches your conferral date.

If you or your advisor notify the Office of the Registrar that you're not eligible to graduate when expected, your application for graduation will be deleted and you will not be eligible to participate in commencement.

You must reapply for a different term's graduation and will have the option to participate in that term's commencement ceremony.

The ticket allotment per candidate is 10 tickets, with the opportunity to get 10 additional tickets.

Ticket reservations are available for a limited time during your final semester. Monitor your mySFA email for instructions from graduation@sfasu.edu.

When the reservation window opens, tickets are reserved through mySFA:

1. Log in to mySFA.
2. Click on the "Academics" tab.
3. Locate the "Graduation" box.
4. Locate the "Confirm Graduation Details" link.
   • Note: This link will only be visible during the reservation window.

If you need more than the maximum number of allotted tickets, your additional guests will need to follow the ticket procedure for general public. Guests unable to attend are invited to watch the ceremony via live-stream.

View the hood colors for master's and doctoral candidates. Undergraduate students do not wear a hood with their regalia.

Visit Balfour's SFA Regalia webpage to purchase your official graduation regalia now and have it shipped to the address you provide. The deadline to order for spring 2024 commencement is 11:59 p.m. April 7. Orders may take a minimum of 14 business days to ship.

When your regalia arrives

We strongly suggest you try on the regalia at least one week prior to the ceremony, allowing time to secure a replacement if problems with sizing or zippers occur.

Watch: How to wear your academic regalia

A purple stole, which students are permitted to decorate, is included in the official SFA regalia package.

Some campus organizations may provide additional stoles to their members. Inquire with your specific organization(s) to learn if they offer those.

Honor cords of any color may be ordered through the vendor of your choice. The Office of the Registrar does not have information regarding how or where you can purchase honor cords.

The mortarboard is made to be worn flat on the head (parallel to the floor) and candidates will wear their tassels over the right eye throughout the conferral of all degrees. The ceremony will conclude with a welcome from the Alumni Association, at which time you will be instructed to move your tassel to the left.

Candidates are permitted to decorate their mortarboard.

Learn the history of the SFA Ring and details on ordering your own by visiting the SFA Alumni Association's website.

The Big Dip ceremony is a Lumberjack rite of passage. Invitations to participate are extended to students who have earned at least 60 credit hours and have purchased the official SFA Ring. If you have any questions, contact the Alumni Association at 936.468.3407 or alumni@sfasu.edu.

Appropriate business-casual attire is to be worn under your gown. Casual sandals and stiletto heels are not appropriate. You will do a considerable amount of standing and walking as you are escorted to your ceremony seats located on the floor of the Johnson Coliseum.