By Rachel Measures, BA (Hons) Media, 3rd Year.
After three years at Sheffield Hallam University, you can soon see the end mark, the light at the end of the tunnel, the start of the rest of your life… which means that you’ll be graduating very soon, and it will come faster than you think!
Like you, I will be graduating this November (12th – 23rd), and I have been fortunate to work in Hallam’s very own Graduation Office, so I know some top tips that will make sure you don’t forget anything for your very important day.
- Make sure your details are correct on My Student Record
When you finish your course, you lose access to SHUspace and your university email (this happens to each student at different times) but not My Student Record. It is extremely important that you have all the correct details on there so that when you lose access to everything else, you will still receive graduation correspondence.
- If you cannot book from the 1st August, do not panic
Booking for graduation usually starts in August, but not everyone can book right away. For some people, their grades haven’t cleared yet, so the system doesn’t know they are eligible for graduating in that year. This will happen in time and you will receive an email from graduation letting you know when you’re able to book. However, if you do have any doubts ensure to contact the Graduation Office via email or over the phone for peace of mind.
- Make sure to book your tickets, your gown and anything else before the deadline
It seems obvious, but you’ll be surprised how many people leave things to last minute. You will be told the deadline for booking everything as soon as you receive graduation correspondence. Please follow this, because the suppliers and the graduation team will not be able to guarantee that things will still be available after this point.
- For certificates, contact the certificates team
Many people confuse graduation with their certificate or transcript. The two are dealt with in entirely separate offices and this is because your certificate is actually sent out before graduation. Graduation is optional to attend and therefore you aren’t handed anything there. If you have certificate issues, make sure to contact the correct team as it will speed up answering your query.
- The Graduation Office is not the supplier of gowns and photographs
It’s easy to get everything confused with so much to get organised, but it’s important to remember that Ede and Ravenscroft is the supplier for gowns and photographs, and not the university. This isn’t to say that the Graduation Office won’t be able to help, but it will make it 100 times easier for you to go directly to their website.
- Don’t put too much pressure on yourself
Graduation is meant to be a special day to celebrate the journey you have taken over your time at university. There’s a lot to organise but don’t let that distract you from being proud that you’ve got a degree and are about to graduate! Well done!
You can find FAQs here and for more information on graduation in general, visit the Graduation website or their blog.
Contact details:
Graduation Office
Phone: 0114 225 5353
Email: graduation@shu.ac.uk
Certificates
Email: certificates@shu.ac.uk
