In the event of severe weather, the HLS Diploma Ceremony will be held indoors in Milstein East beginning at 1:15 pm. Commencement organizers will make the call to move to the Severe Weather Plan no later than 11:00 am on Commencement day.
The ceremony will be split into four sequential “mini ceremonies,” broken up by section, with fixed start times.
Guest and Graduate Logistics
Ceremony Start Times
11:00 am – Severe Weather Plan Call Time
1:15 pm – Reflections and Dean’s Remarks – Viewable via simulcast in your viewing & gathering location
1:15 pm – L.L.M., S.J.D.
2:35 pm – Joint Degree, Section 1, Section 2
3:40 pm – Section 3, Section 4, Section 5
4:50 pm – Section 6, Section 7, Section 8
Guests
All guests should proceed to the designated lunch pickup and viewing & gathering locations outlined below before their graduate’s mini ceremony. Viewing & gathering locations will open at 11:00 am. Lunch pickup will begin at 11:30 am. We strongly encourage you to pick up your lunch at staggered times throughout the afternoon to reduce congestion and wait times.
Due to space limitations, only two guests per graduate will be admitted into their graduate’s mini ceremony. Guests should hold onto their Morning Exercises tickets from the University’s morning ceremony, as these tickets will be used as their entry tickets for their graduate’s mini ceremony.
Guests with Morning Exercises tickets may start lining up in the basement of WCC, with the line beginning at B010, for entry into their mini ceremony 35 minutes before their graduate’s ceremony begins. Commencement staff will lead guests to the WCC 2nd floor to the ceremony as space allows. Guests will not be permitted to enter any additional ceremonies. Guests without Morning Exercises tickets may view a simulcast of the ceremony in their designated viewing & gathering locations or in the overflow viewing rooms listed below.
For ceremony start times, and pre-ceremony lunch pickup and viewing & gathering locations for your graduate’s assigned mini ceremony, please review the information below.
Graduates
All graduates should proceed to the designated lunch pickup and viewing & gathering locations outlined below before their mini ceremony. Viewing & gathering locations will open at 11:00 am. Lunch pickup will begin at 11:30 am. We strongly encourage you to pick up your lunch at staggered times throughout the afternoon to reduce congestion and wait times.
Graduates must report to the WCC 2nd floor classrooms 35 minutes before their mini ceremony start time to be lined up by program and/or section. Graduates will be guided by Commencement staff from the WCC 2nd floor classrooms into Milstein East.
Immediately after crossing the stage in Milstein East, graduates will enter Milstein West B for section photos, diploma pickup, and portrait photos by Grad Images. Grad Images will also be in Milstein East taking a photo of each graduate as they cross the stage. Grad Images photos will be available to purchase online post-graduation.
For ceremony start times, and pre-ceremony lunch pickup and viewing & gathering locations for your assigned mini ceremony, please review the information below.
Guest Services
Please find the Severe Weather Plan locations for important services below:
- Accessibility Desk – WCC, lounge across from the Pub Grill
- Information Desk – WCC South Lobby, bottom of the lobby staircase
- First Aid – WCC 1050
- Florist – WCC North Lobby
- Nursing Room – WCC 1049
- Water Station – WCC South Lobby, bench alcove across from WCC 1010
Campus Map
In this map of the Harvard Law School Campus, HLS buildings are indicated in red. Other Harvard campus buildings are indicated in blue.
HLS campus buildings are connected via an underground tunnel system which may be utilized to travel between buildings without needing to go outdoors.
L.L.M., S.J.D. and Guests
11:30 am – Lunch Pickup: Harkness Dining
Viewing & Gathering Locations:
- Harkness
- Hark South
- Hark TV Lounge
- WCC 1010, 1015, 1019
12:25 pm – Graduate Lineup: WCC 2nd Floor Classrooms
12:25 pm – Guest Lineup: WCC Basement
1:15 pm – Ceremony: Milstein East
Joint Degree, Section 1, Section 2, and Guests
11:30 am – Lunch Pickup: South Lobby elevators on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th floors of WCC
Viewing & Gathering Locations:
- Section 1 and 2: WCC 3rd floor – all classrooms
- Section 2: WCC 4th floor – all classrooms
- Joint Degree: WCC 5th floor – all classrooms
1:15 pm – Reflections and Dean’s Remarks: Watch via simulcast in your gathering & viewing location
2:00 pm – Graduate Lineup: WCC 2nd Floor Classrooms
2:00 pm – Guest Lineup: WCC Basement
2:35 pm – Ceremony: Milstein East
Section 3, Section 4, Section 5, and Guests
11:30 am – Lunch Pickup: Pound Hall Foyer
Viewing & Gathering Locations:
- Pound Hall Foyer
- Pound 100, 101, 102, 201
- Landgell North
- Langdell South
1:15 pm – Reflections and Dean’s Remarks: Watch via simulcast in your gathering & viewing location
3:05 pm – Graduate Lineup: WCC 2nd Floor Classrooms
3:05 pm – Guest Lineup: WCC Basement
3:40 pm – Ceremony: Milstein East
Section 6, Section 7, Section 8, and Guests
11:30 am – Lunch Pickup: Austin Hall Basement
Viewing & Gathering Locations:
- Austin 100, 101, 111
- Ames Courtroom (Austin 200)
1:15 pm – Reflections and Dean’s Remarks: Watch via simulcast in your gathering & viewing location
4:15 pm – Graduate Lineup: WCC 2nd Floor Classrooms
4:15 pm – Guest Lineup: WCC Basement
4:50 pm – Ceremony: Milstein East
Overflow Gathering & Viewing Locations
- Haas Lounge
- WCC Fireside Lounge
- WCC Gameroom
- Griswold 100