Senior Recognition Ceremony, Graduates and Guests

Preparation for Commencement and Recognition Ceremonies

 

Ceremony Details 

Saturday, May 17, 2025

10 a.m. — Ceremony begins

Recreation Center   

161 Commonwealth Avenue  

University of Massachusetts  

Amherst, MA 01003 

The HFA Senior Recognition Ceremony, which is hosted by the College of Humanities & Fine Arts will be held on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at 10 a.m. in the UMass Campus Recreation Center. The ceremony is held in addition to Commencement and is a more personalized celebration. Each graduate will be recognized individually and presented with a University of Massachusetts commemorative medal. For a list of Commencement events, please visit the Commencement website.

When and Where 

The HFA Senior Recognition Ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at 10 a.m. in the UMass Campus Recreation Center located at 161 Commonwealth Avenue, across from the Mullins Center on Commonwealth Avenue (the green-roofed building that's home to Minuteman basketball and ice hockey) and near Commonwealth Honors College Residential Campus on Hicks Way. See the “Student Information” section below for more information about what to do when arriving at the Recreation Center.

Preparation for Commencement and Recognition Ceremonies

Here are actions to take now to start getting ready for graduation:

Eligibility - verify that your degree requirements are satisfied in time for the ceremony.

An undergraduate student’s year of graduation is established by the Registrar’s Office. To be eligible to participate in 2025 commencement ceremonies, students must have fulfilled all requirements by the date of the ceremony or be scheduled to do so by September 2025.

Diploma Name - please verify or update your diploma name in SPIRE. 

This is the name that is printed on your diploma, listed in the commencement program, and read as you walk across the stage at your commencement ceremony.

Visa Requests - if your guests are traveling from outside the U.S. to attend the ceremony, learn how to request a letter of support. 

Parking & Shuttles 

Parking across campus is free throughout Commencement Weekend. 

Parking lots 25 and 12 are the most convenient lots in relation to the Recreation Center. See the interactive campus map or quadrant A3 on the detailed campus map.  

Guests with impaired mobility may park in the Recreation Center’s lot 64 and its adjacent, smaller lot. While official handicapped parking stickers, license plates, and placards are not required, we kindly ask our guests to leave these spaces open for those who need them most. 

The Recreation Center is located across Commonwealth Avenue from the Mullins Center (the green-roofed building that's home to Minuteman basketball and ice hockey) and across Hicks Way from Commonwealth Honors College Residential Campus.  

The Commencement: FAQs webpage can help those who need directions to campus. Although traffic will be heavy, the University and its security services do an excellent job directing the flow of vehicles on campus.  

Shuttle buses will be available to drop you off near the Recreation Center.  

Student Information

Ceremony information and timeline will be posted on a later date.

  • All Humanities and Fine Arts majors and secondary majors are welcome to attend the ceremony.
  • During check-in, you will receive: medals, name card, and QR code for photo registration.
  • All guests and graduates will be required to walk through metal detectors when entering the venue. To expedite the process, we ask guests and graduates to remove cell phones from their pockets. Small purses and diaper bags are allowed but will be inspected at all entrances. Bags larger than a clutch are not allowed. Weapons of any kind, and tobacco products are not permitted inside the building. Please consider the appearance of some objects, such as key ring tools/accessories, and leave anything that could be perceived as dangerous at home, in your car or hotel room. Prohibited items will be confiscated and not returned.

Graduating students should wear their cap and gown during the ceremony. No pre-order is necessary for undergraduates. Caps, gowns, and tassels may be picked up free of charge in May at the Commencement Fair, in the week leading up to commencement, and at the undergraduate ceremony. A limited supply will also be at each of the senior recognition ceremonies. A pickup schedule will be shared as soon as it is finalized. 

Held in early May, the Commencement Fair has everything graduates need for commencement:

This year, the university has partnered with MarchingOrder to coordinate registration for commencement and to ensure that graduating seniors have their names pronounced correctly as they walk the stage at their senior recognition ceremonies.

Instructions on how to RSVP for your ceremony and verify your name with MarchingOrder will be shared via email in the spring semester and updated here. Graduating seniors are required to respond to the MarchingOrder email, even if they are unable to attend. In the meantime, please verify or update your diploma name in SPIRE. This is the name that is printed on your diploma, listed in the commencement program, and read as you walk across the stage at your commencement ceremony.

All events are ticketed and free of charge.

Guest tickets are required for all senior recognition ceremonies. Candidates will register in MarchingOrder to RSVP for the ceremony and reserve their tickets. Due to the finite number of seats available, we cannot exceed the designated allotment of tickets per graduate. More information about tickets, including the number of tickets each candidate will receive and how they will be distributed, please refer to the Commencement page!

The number of commemorative medals that a student may receive at the HFA Senior Recognition Ceremony depends on the number of degrees earned in HFA, not their number of majors. All medals are identical. 

  • Graduates earning one degree (including graduates with double majors) receive one medal.
  • Graduates who earn multiple degrees from different colleges will receive a medal at each college senior recognition ceremony that they attend.
  • Graduates earning two degrees in HFA receive one medal and may request to pick up two medals at the HFA Senior Recognition Ceremony. More information about receiving two medals will be announced at a later date.

Graduating seniors are automatically approved for permission to stay late and will receive an email in April confirming their status.

Students affiliated with commencement activities as a student employee, performer, or ambassador will have their names submitted for permission to stay late by their supervisor or group leader in the spring semester and will also receive an email in April confirming their status.

Other students, for instance students with a graduating sibling, may request permission to stay late in the spring semester. All students who are granted permission to stay late will need to move out no later than May 19 at 10 a.m.

Learn more about UMass Move-Out and Permission to Stay Late from Living at UMass Amherst.

Security and Comfort at the Ceremony

Metal detectors will be in place at the entrance to the Recreation Center. Guests are advised to pack lightly for the day because all bags taken into either venue are subject to search—the less you are carrying, the more quickly your party will be able to proceed through security.

The UMass Campus Recreation Center is a modern, air-conditioned building. However, please keep in mind that the large audience may make the room hot, especially if the weather is unseasonably warm and sunny. Graduates and their guests are encouraged to dress in layers and wear comfortable shoes. It is also recommended to bring water and a snack.

Building Accessibility  

Guests who enter the Recreation Center on the first floor from Commonwealth Avenue may take one of two elevators up to the gymnasium on the second floor. Both elevators are near the Center’s information desk on the first floor.    

A few seats will be held for guests with limited mobility. However, since all seating is on one level, guests with a wheelchair or walker may prefer to sit with family members in the general seating area rather than in the handicap-designated seats. Graduating seniors will have an opportunity to advise the University about guests who need a special seating arrangement when they complete their MarchingOrder registration. 

Pictures and Videos

Guests are welcome to take photos and videos during the ceremony. However,  when doing so, please be considerate of those around you. Do not block the aisles or interfere with the professional photographers or ceremony participants.  

A professional photographer will be at the ceremony to take photographs of each graduate. The photography company will contact students directly after the ceremony.

A full range of dining options will be available in The Blue Wall, the food-court located on the lower level of the Campus Center. The Berkshire, Hampshire, and Worcester Dining Commons will be open throughout Commencement Weekend.

Please contact hfa-src@umass.edu for any questions or concerns. Please allow up to three business days for a response to inquiries.

Faculty Participation

Faculty participation is encouraged in all commencement ceremonies. Information on how to reserve faculty regalia, pick up and return locations, the doctoral hooding ceremony and masters ceremony will be sent in the days to come, please refer to the Commencement Website.