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Pepperdine | Seaver College

Instructions for Graduates

The following instructions will help the commencement ceremony move smoothly and in an orderly fashion. Please review additional details on the Seaver Class of 2024 Commencement FAQs page.

MarchingOrder

(Open January 28 - March 22, 2024)

Get your name pronounced correctly at graduation with MarchingOrder.

Access MarchingOrder to RSVP for graduation and have your name pronounced by a professional voice actor and displayed on the screens at graduation. This is a requirement for all students planning to walk in the Class of 2024 commencement ceremony.  Students planning to walk must do this by Friday, March 22, 2024.

  1. Provide your full, preferred name. This is the name that will be read aloud at graduation and displayed on the screen. Please carefully proofread your name to check for any typos or accidental autocorrections. 
  2. Provide a phonetic spelling of your name.
  3. If you wish, you may also provide a voice recording of you saying your name to better help the voice actor nail the pronunciation. 

At this time, we are not requiring tickets for guests, as we are planning on hosting a regular, outdoor ceremony at Alumni Park. In the event of rain, inclement weather, or these plans change in regard to Covid-19 protocols, the students will be notified and instructed on guest information. 

Please email seavergraduation@pepperdine.edu with any additional questions.

Senior To-Do List

  1. Go to Marching Order and create your graduate profile. Instructions are detailed above.
  2. Order your cap and gown with Herff Jones.
  3. Get cleared to graduate with OneStop by Friday, March 22, 2024 to guarantee your name in the commencement program.
  4. Complete the two surveys for seniors. Prizes are available for each of the surveys for students who complete the surveys before the indicated dates.
    1. National Survey of Student Engagement (emailed on February 13) - This is a follow-up survey to the survey you completed during your first year at Pepperdine. You will receive a $5 Starbucks gift card for completing the survey by March 29. For more information, please contact Jazmin Zane in the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.
    2. First Destination Graduation Survey (opens on April 7) - Students who complete the survey before graduation will be entered into a raffle for a prize from the Seaver College Career Center.
  5. Connect with the Seaver College Career Center for:
    1. Career counseling appointments
    2. Finding online job postings via Handshake
    3. Resume and cover letter assistance
    4. Access to recruitment events and career fairs
  6. Give to your senior $5 for 5!
    1. We hope you will continue the legacy of giving $5 for the next 5 years! Donate via Venmo, @Give2Pepp, and comment with your name and Pepperdine passion.

Graduation Lineup

  1. BRING NAME CARD. You receive this card from the Seaver Dean's Office at Regalia Distribution. You must have this card in order to cross the stage. 
  2. HONORS students (cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude), please assemble at Alumni Park promptly at 9 AM to check in and receive your honor cords.
  3. Military Honor Cords (military veterans, currently serving active duty, National Guard, or Reservists, and/or graduating Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets who will begin their military service upon graduation, please assemble at Alumni Park promptly at 9:15 AM to check in and receive your military honor cord.
  4. All other graduates please assemble at Alumni Park by 9:30 AM and proceed directly to your seats in the student area. Check-in is required for all students, guests, staff, etc. at the appropriately marked check-in locations.
  5. Graduates, please do not bring purses, backpacks, bags, and other non-essential items to the graduation ceremony as there will be no place to put them.
  6. Find a seat in the staging area; feel free to sit with other graduates with whom you would like to walk. Master's degrees will be seated at the front; all other seats are available for bachelor's degrees. 
  7. The line of march will be organized by the marshals and faculty ushers. Please remain in order as you are ushered to the graduation area and take the seat that is in the same position as the one you occupied in the staging area. No one may enter the line of march after it leaves the staging area.  Watch faculty ushers for cues during your march into the graduation area.
  8. The graduation area may be warm and there is no shade, so be sure to wear sunscreen.

Receiving Your Diploma

  1. The dean of Seaver College will ask the respective candidates for master's and, later in the ceremony, bachelor's degrees to rise.
  2. Remain standing until your particular degree has been formally conferred by the president.
  3. When instructed by the faculty ushers, your row will stand and you will march forward to receive your diploma.
  4. Enter the stage on the right, shake hands with the president, exit to the left, and return to your seat.  Be aware of the photographers who will take your picture upon receipt of your diploma and when you exit the stage.

Graduation Recessional

  1. Following the benediction, the platform party will exit, followed by the graduates, and then the faculty.

 After Graduation

  1. Before you leave campus, please deposit your rental gown at the Herff Jones table in Alumni Park. The cap and tassel are yours to keep, as well as the sash you received if you purchased one in advance.

Consistent with university policies, pets are not allowed at commencement services except for guide, service, or signal dogs.