Information for Graduates

Feel free to contact the Commencement planning team in DOS-CEEB with any questions or concerns.

 

View graduation checklists, information surrounding regalia and tickets, day-of schedules, and more.

Graduating Student Checklists

There are a number of steps to complete prior to and after Commencement. Keep yourself on track with these program-specific checklists.

Commencement 101

Class Day: May 27, 2026

The Class Day Program is a celebration of the achievements of the graduating class, with speeches, awards, and a keynote address.

Tickets are not required for Class Day events.

Commencement Day: May 28, 2026

Commencement Day is comprised of the following two events:

  • The ceremonial University Morning Exercises in Harvard Yard, where the Harvard President and the University Commencement Speaker deliver their addresses, and the president confers degrees.
  • The HLS Diploma Ceremony on Holmes Field, where the Law School Dean presents diplomas to each graduate.

Tickets are required for University Morning Exercises. Each degree candidate receives two (2) guest tickets to Morning Exercises. For more information on tickets, visit the Ticket section of this webpage.

Tickets are not required for the HLS Diploma Ceremony.

  • Sunrise Breakfast | Haas Lounge/Crossroads, 6:45am (tentative)

    Commencement Day will begin with a Sunrise Breakfast (call time usually around 6:30am!) where you will get a lanyard. This lanyard, along with your Harvard ID, is required to enter the Yard. You will also receive everyone’s favorite keepsake, the Graduate’s Gavel!

    Please note that the exact time to report for assembly will be updated later this spring. 

  • Class March | Kumble Plaza/Crossroads, 7:45am (tentative)

    Please note that the exact time to report for assembly will be updated later this spring. 

    All HLS graduates assemble in front of Harkness Commons’ main entrance to join the Law School Dean and the Class Marshals in a procession to the Yard. Degree candidates typically march to Sever Gate for entry into Tercentenary Theatre. Following this procession, you will be seated in a designated section of Tercentenary Theatre for the duration of the University Morning Exercises. Have no fear, restrooms, water, and coffee are available in the Theatre. Backpacks, however, will not be permitted. Bags must be less than 12”x12”x12” and are subject to inspection before entering. More information on Morning Exercises can be reviewed here.

    Note: All degree candidates must be in academic regalia, wearing a University lanyard with your Harvard ID. 

  • Morning Exercises | Tercentenary Theatre, 9:30am

    Watch the pomp and circumstance of the University’s historic Morning Exercises with fellow degree candidates from across Harvard. Note that backpacks will not be permitted in the Yard, and bags must be less than 12”x12”x12” and are subject to inspection before entering. More information on Morning Exercises can be reviewed here.

    Note: All degree candidates must be in academic regalia, wearing a University lanyard with your Harvard ID. 

     

  • HLS Diploma Ceremony & Lunch | Holmes Field, 1:15pm

    Immediately following the University Morning Exercises, return to Holmes Field for lunch and to begin the HLS Diploma Ceremony.

    In order to begin the ceremony on time and minimize disruption throughout, we ask that degree candidates arrange to meet guests on the Law School campus at the conclusion of the Diploma Ceremony.

Need-to-Know: The HLS Diploma Ceremony

  • Degree candidates will be called to walk across the stage by program and then by section.
  • Following the University Morning Exercises, SJDs, LLMs, and Joint Degree students should proceed to Hauser Hall immediately for lineup.
  • Sections will be called to Hauser for lineup throughout the Diploma Ceremony. Please listen carefully!
  • In Hauser, you will be asked to produce your pronunciation card with the phonetic spelling of your name, which you will hand to the announcer prior to crossing the stage. Commencement staff will have extra copies and blank cards on hand.
  • After exiting the stage, you will receive your diploma and gather with your section-mates on the steps of Langdell Hall for a section photo.
  • Graduates and guests with pre-purchased lunch tickets may pick up lunch at the Lunch Tent throughout the Diploma Ceremony.

What to Wear

Business casual attire is common dress for the Class Day and Commencement ceremonies and you are advised to wear shoes appropriate for walking on grassy areas.

As in past years, graduates are welcome to express themselves with clothing decorations such as stoles, pins, or decorated tams, or other cloth items that can be worn or draped on their person. At the Law School ceremony, to ensure their hands are free to accept a diploma cover and to be congratulated by the Dean, graduates may not carry onto or across the stage any item, thing, or object. However, graduates with young children may carry or be accompanied by them across the stage.

All ceremonies are held outdoors, except in the event of severe weather.

Have International Guests?

For J.D. students with international guests, the Registrar’s Office can provide an invitation letter to support visa applications. You may request a Commencement invitation by completing a Document Request Form.

LL.M. and S.J.D. students will receive visa support letters via the Graduate Program office.

We encourage your guests to submit visa applications as soon as possible.

Tickets

Tickets are required for the University Morning Exercises held in Harvard Yard on Commencement Day.

  • Your “entry ticket” to Morning Exercises as a student is your Harvard ID and the lanyard you will be provided at Sunrise Breakfast on the morning of Commencement Day.
  • Each Degree Candidate receives two (2) guest tickets to Morning Exercises. Under University policy, there are no exceptions to the two ticket rule.
  • Your Morning Exercise guest tickets must be reserved through the HLS Exit and Commencement Survey, typically distributed in late April. Ticket pickup is typically held during week before Commencement.
  • Please note: Morning Exercises guest tickets are generated by the University and cannot be replaced if they are lost.

Tickets are NOT required for any ceremonies or events on the HLS campus, including Class Day and the HLS Diploma Ceremony.

Please be advised that the sale of Morning Exercise tickets is strictly prohibited.

Learn more about and request disability accommodations for HLS Class Day and Commencement 

Lunch

Graduates are provided with one (1) complimentary lunch ticket for use during the HLS Diploma Ceremony at the Lunch Tent. You will be prompted to select your lunch choice in the HLS Exit and Commencement Survey, typically distributed in late April.

Please note: Guest lunch tickets must be pre-purchased through Eventbrite. Lunch ticket purchasing typically opens in late April.

Graduate and guest lunch tickets will be available to pickup at Commencement ticket pickup, which is typically held the week before Commencement.

For guests who do not have pre-purchased lunch tickets, limited offerings will be available in alternate HUDS food outlets. Hours of operation to be announced.

Guests are also welcome to bring their own lunches to the ceremony.

Regalia

All students participating in May Commencement Ceremonies are required to wear the official Harvard regalia sold by Herff Jones and distributed by The Harvard COOP.

Required items of official Harvard regalia include:

  • Gown
  • Tam
  • Tassel
  • Hood

All other items sold by Herff Jones (keychains, class rings, diploma frames, etc.) are optional.

Students may choose whether to purchase or rent regalia items. All rented regalia items must be returned after Commencement. Pickup and drop off dates will be published later this spring.

Severe Weather

University Orations Competition

One of the oldest and most cherished traditions of the Morning Exercises is the Orations Competition in which three students chosen by a panel of judges deliver an address to an assemblage of approximately 32,000.

An information workshop about the University Orations Competition will be held on Thursday, 3/5 from 4-5pm in Harvard Yard, Emerson Hall, Room 105. A recording will be posted following.

Submission Deadline: Friday, 3/27