I recognise how important an on-campus graduation ceremony is to you and I am writing to share with you our commitment to you about your graduation ceremony.
You have told me that it really matters to you to be able to come to campus to celebrate your success and achievements with your family, friends and classmates. You’ve told me that you want to be able to take photographs, in graduation gowns, to throw your cap into the air in the quad and take photographs with Founder’s in the background. I am also aware of concerns about the ability to travel to the campus, especially if you are currently studying overseas or you have vulnerable family members.
In his announcement on 22 February, the UK Prime Minister set out a roadmap to gradually move out of lockdown and create the conditions that will allow us all to return to something more normal. Testing, vaccination, social distancing and hygiene measures have helped us to restore some face-to-face, on campus, teaching. However, as yet, there is no date for when more students might be able to return to campuses, and we do not expect to get more information until next month. Last week the Chief Medical Officer updated universities on government plans, and social distancing will remain in place for some months to come.
An expectation has been created around the lifting of restrictions on 21 June however, this date might change; it may come forward, but it might also move to later in the year. The roadmap does not give us the guarantees and certainty we need to be able to plan and safely deliver the graduation ceremony you have told us you want, nor does it give students and alumni living overseas the assurances necessary to confidently organise international travel.
In light of these challenges and continued uncertainty, we have taken the difficult decision to postpone summer 2021 graduation ceremonies. We are committing instead to providing graduation ceremonies in 2022 for every student eligible to graduate in summer 2021, and every student who graduated in 2020, assuming conditions allow. This commitment means you will have the opportunity to come to campus and experience the graduation ceremony you’ve told me matters to you.
Once social distancing restrictions are officially removed and national guidance on larger scale, indoor events is confirmed, we will begin to plan graduation events in a way that seeks to ensure the safety of you and your guests. Our intention is to organise events at different times throughout 2022 and to give advance notice of a range of dates so that as many of you as possible can plan ahead to attend a ceremony with your family, friends and classmates.
I appreciate that this is not the news that you wanted to hear. We waited until we heard the Government’s roadmap in the hope that an announcement might give us the certainty we need to give you what you expect from a Royal Holloway graduation ceremony. We considered every possibility before reluctantly making this decision.
Successfully completing your studies during a global pandemic is a very significant achievement. You have shown remarkable resilience in unprecedented circumstances. Please be confident that we are committed to giving you the opportunity you deserve to celebrate your success and we will keep you updated in the months ahead.
You may have some questions about arrangements for completing your course and some questions and answers are provided below. If you have further questions, colleagues from the College, together with the Students’ Union (SU), host a weekly (Wednesday) student drop-in Q&A session via MS Teams. There is a session tonight (Wednesday 10 March) which will be chaired by SU Vice President Education Alissa Chohan, who will be joined by Professor James Knowles, Deputy Principal (Academic), and Jon Howden-Evans, Director of Student & Academic Services. Click here to join one of the meetings.
In the meantime, I wish you every success in completing your studies and getting the degree you have worked so hard to achieve. And we look forward to welcoming you and your family to campus again, to spend time with staff and friends, celebrating your achievement.
FAQs
How will I get my graduation certificate?
For students successfully completing studies at the end of the academic year 2021, your Degree Certificate, produced by the University of London, will be posted to you within three months of the award date of your degree; which is 1 August for undergraduate students. Final transcripts of results will be posted by the College within one month of the completion of your degree and publication of your final results.
If you graduated in 2020 and you have not received your Graduation Certificate please contact the University of London’s Diploma Production Office at diploma.enquirieslondon.ac.uk.
Will my graduation be marked in July 2021?
We will produce a graduation video that you can share with your family and friends which will include your name, along with the names of your classmates, in a roll of honour. This video is, in no way, intended to replace an in-person, on campus ceremony; we are committed to providing you with that opportunity in the future.
Why can’t the College just move the normal graduation weeks back to later in the summer or hold them next year in term one somewhere else?
All of the feedback we have received from students about graduation ceremonies has made it clear to us that you want a ceremony on campus with your friends and family. While an expectation has been created around the lifting of restrictions on 21 June, this date might change; it may come forward, but it might also move to later in the year. The roadmap does not give us the guarantees and certainty we need to be able to plan and safely deliver the graduation ceremony you want, nor does it give students and alumni living overseas the assurances necessary to confidently organise international travel.
When will I know the dates of ceremonies to be held in 2022?
We hope to have the certainty we need to be able to plan graduation ceremonies once the academic year begins in September 2021. We will contact you with information by email, so please make sure that, before you complete your studies, you update your contact details via Campus Connect and provide us with an email address that we can use to contact you.
If you graduated in 2020 and have not provided us with a current email address, please update your details here.
I would like to come onto campus and take photographs in a graduation gown, can I do that?
You are welcome to come back to campus to take pictures as long as you follow the travel, social distancing and hygiene requirements that may be in place at that time. You can hire a gown through our gown provider Ede & Ravenscroft.
Other universities are holding ceremonies this year, so why aren’t we?
We are in touch with other universities and have been sharing ideas as to how and when to hold ceremonies that meet both expectations and safety requirements. Some universities have always held their ceremonies at external venues or later in the year. We know how important the Royal Holloway ceremony is for you, your family and your friends. That’s why we’re committed to providing you with an on campus graduation.
I expect to graduate at the end of 2021, will my graduation ceremony also be postponed?
We all hope that, by the end of the year, we will have returned to a new normal on campus. However, at this time, there remains too much uncertainty for us to confidently plan and confirm what the position will be in relation to Winter Graduations. We will keep you updated as more clarity is provided by the UK Government.