Students must apply for graduation to receive their degree award. Failure to apply for graduation will necessitate registering and applying for graduation the following term. Students should apply for graduation by the posted deadline for the term, but no later than the last day of the term. Late application for graduation will cause the student to miss important communications from the College of Graduate Studies and the Registrar's Office, as well as delay the the degree audit process. A one-time graduation services fee of $125.00 will be assessed the first time a student applies to graduate from a degree program (graduate certificates are excluded) and the payment portal link will be sent during the degree audit process to the student's Rocket email. Graduation information (deadlines, application, diploma, transcripts, etc.) is available on the Registrar's Office's website and the College of Graduate Studies website. 

It is the responsibility of the student to meet all requirements for graduation. To ensure graduation proceeds as planned, it is important for students to meet with their advisor very early in the semester of intended graduation or even during the semester prior. Graduate students completing all degree requirements will receive the official diploma approximately four to six weeks after the commencement ceremony. The degree will be posted to the official transcript between five and forty days after the commencement ceremony. Students who fail to graduate in the semester for which they have applied must submit a new application for a future term.

The University graduation exercises (commencement) are conducted to honor those who have earned their degrees. The graduate is encouraged to attend the commencement exercises. Candidates shall wear academic dress with appropriate hoods. Arrangements for academic dress must be made through the University Bookstore well in advance of commencement. The student should contact the University Bookstore early in the semester of graduation. Participation in the commencement ceremony is not a guarantee of graduation. Two University ceremonies are held a year--spring and fall. Summer graduates are automatically invited to the fall ceremony, but if they wish to participate in the spring ceremony, they must apply for graduation no later than the fifth week of the spring term. Some colleges hold separate commencement exercises, and these are announced well in advance.

Early Filing for Graduation

Early Filing is a graduation status option which allows a graduate student who applied to graduate but missed the deadline to submit their electronic thesis/dissertation (ETD) to the OhioLINK ETD Center due to extenuating circumstances, to reapply for graduation the following term and have the mandatory registration requirement of one graduate-level credit hour waived.

What Early Filing does: Early Filing waives the registration requirement for the reapplied term of graduation, which saves the student money; allows speedier degree posting and diploma mailing after the term ends; allows COGS to write letters for the student affirming that all graduation requirements were met prior to the degree award date.

What Early Filing does not do: Early Filing does not allow the student to graduate in the term they originally applied for; does not extend the deadline or give a ‘grace period’ for submission of the ETD; does not award the degree before the end of the term for which the student has reapplied to graduate.

Who Qualifies: A graduate student completing a thesis or dissertation (not a scholarly project); currently registered and applied for graduation; failure to meet the ETD submission deadline is the result of extenuating circumstances beyond the student’s control (will require documentation/confirmation from adviser or department). The following students should verify potential impacts on their status: International Students, Financial Aid Recipients, and Assistantship Recipients.

When to Apply: Strive to meet the graduation deadline for your current term. After the term has ended and you have missed the ETD deadline, please submit the application if you quality. If you know prior to the end of the term that you will not meet the deadline, e.g. your committee would/could not schedule the defense prior to the submission deadline, etc., then you may turn in your Early Filing application at that time. Under no circumstances should you submit this application if you do not meet the qualifications.

As an Early Filer, the student will not be registered during the term of intended graduation and will have limited or no access to campus resources and services, including but not limited to department administrative assistance, faculty advising, the libraries, or the recreation center. To be an Early Filer, the student must meet all graduation/degree requirements [ETD, forms, fees, etc.] by 12:00 pm (noon) the Friday prior to the beginning of the next term.

Additional information is included in the Early Filing for Graduation Application, which is available on the College of Graduate Studies website. Students seeking Early Filing status must complete the application and send it to GCAcademicSvcs@utoledo.edu.