Celebration Days & Commencement FAQs

Celebration Days are a series of program and section-specific ceremonies hosted on the Law Center Campus on Friday, May 16, and Saturday, May 17, 2025. Graduates will hear remarks from Dean Treanor, a faculty speaker, and a student speaker. The names of each candidate for graduation will be read aloud as they cross the stage for individual recognition.

The Law Center’s Commencement Ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 18, 2025 on the Hilltop Campus (on the other side of Washington D.C). Students will process onto Healy Lawn (37th & O Streets, NW). Dean Treanor and our honorary degree recipient will address the class, and Georgetown University senior leadership will ceremoniously confer degrees. Please note: Graduating students do not walk across the stage at the Sunday Commencement Ceremony.

Celebration Days will take place on the Law Center campus on Friday, May 16, and Saturday, May 17. Graduate candidates should plan on arriving 30 minutes before the start of your scheduled ceremony start time and check-in at the Hotung Atrium for robing and line-up. Please check the Celebration Days schedule for your program date and time. Guests can go straight to the seating area under the tent on the Eleanor Holmes Norton Green.

For the Commencement Ceremony on Sunday, May 18, Graduate candidates should plan to arrive at the Hilltop Campus by 1:30 p.m. for robing and line-up. J.D. students will robe and line-up in Dahlgren Quad and graduate students (LL.M., S.J.D., M.L.T., M.S.L.) will robe and line-up in the Davis Arts Center. The academic procession will start promptly at 2:30 p.m., and the ceremony will begin at 3:00 p.m.

The Commencement Ceremony will take place on the Hilltop Campus on Sunday, May 18, 2025. The academic procession will start promptly at 2:30 p.m. and the ceremony will begin at 3:00 p.m. The procession and ceremony lasts approximately 90 minutes.

Celebration Days are the individual section and program-specific ceremonies on the Law Center campus happening on Friday, May 16, and Saturday, May 17. The schedule for the Celebration Days events can be found here. Celebration Days events will last approximately one hour to 90 minutes, including the procession, ceremony, stage walk, and reception (reception will take place immediately following the ceremony on the Paul R. Dean (Law Library) Green).

Tickets are not required. Candidates for graduation are welcome to invite as many guests as they would like for both Celebration Days and the Commencement Ceremony.

For the Celebration Days events, we anticipate there will be enough seating under the tent on the Eleanor Holmes Norton Green to accommodate all guests, and seating is available on a first come, first serve basis. There will also be standing room outside the tent as well as various livestreaming locations. All guests are welcome to attend the reception on the Paul R. Dean Green after each ceremony.

For the Commencement Ceremony, tickets are also not required and there are no seating limits for guests. Seating is available on a first come, first serve basis. However, the number of guests will be limited if the weather is so severe that it would be unsafe for graduates and guests to be under the tent. Only in this unlikely scenario will the Commencement Ceremony be moved indoors.

At the Celebration Days events, a student representative from each section or program will deliver remarks.

There will not be a student speaker at the Commencement Ceremony. At Commencement, Dean William M. Treanor, our honorary degree recipient, and Georgetown University leadership will address graduates and their guests.

Graduates can order regalia through Josten’s website. The deadline to order your regalia is Thursday, March 27.

Regalia orders will be ready for pick up at the Law Center Bookstore starting Monday, May 5, through Saturday, May 17, during regular business hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. The Law Center Bookstore will also be open on Saturday, May 17 (the only Saturday opening).

If you need to make special accommodations to pick-up your regalia outside of normal business hours, or anyone who missed the deadline to pre-order regalia, please contact the bookstore at sm8199@bncollege.com (preferred) or call 202-662-9676.

Please note: The vast majority of graduates wear regalia; however, nobody is required to wear regalia to participate in Celebration Days or Commencement.

Graduates are always welcome to attend another section or program ceremony, whether it is in place of their assigned time (switch a section), or in addition to their original ceremony (so guests can hear their graduate’s name read and see them walk across the stage).

Please fill out this form to request any changes to your assigned times.

Yes! The Graduation Gala will be held on Saturday, May 17, at 8:00 p.m. at the National Portrait Gallery. This is a ticketed event and space is limited. Each graduate will be able to have up to three guests at the event. Dress is black tie optional. Stay tuned for more information about registration. Questions can be directed to the Office of Student Life at lawstudentlife@georgetown.edu.

Georgetown Law alumni are welcome to participate in a graduate’s Celebration Days ceremony by presenting the ceremonial scroll to their family member after they have crossed the stage. Please fill out this form to request to participate, and we will be in touch with additional details.

Please note: Diplomas will not be presented at the Celebration Days ceremonies, but will be shipped directly to graduates after degrees have been conferred in June. At each Celebration Day ceremony, graduate candidates will be presented with a ceremonious scroll as their names are read and they cross the stage for individual recognition.

Georgetown Law does not present diplomas at the Celebration Days events or Commencement. At Celebration Day, graduate candidates will be presented with a ceremonious scroll as their names are read and they cross the stage for individual recognition.

Diplomas will be shipped directly to graduates after degrees have been conferred in June. The Law Center’s Registrar’s Office will send prospective Spring 2025 graduates additional information and diploma delivery instructions. For any questions, please email the Office of the Registrar at lawreg@georgetown.edu.

Celebration Days will be livestreamed on our Georgetown Law YouTube Channel.

The Commencement Ceremony will be livestreamed on the Georgetown University Facebook Page.

Yes! However, if your family is traveling to the United States, they will need a visa to enter and stay for the duration of the Commencement weekend events.

If your family members are not eligible for the visa waiver program, then they will need to apply for B-2 tourist visas to enter the United States to attend Commencement weekend events.

If you are a citizen from a visa waiver program country, you can apply for ESTA authorization. Details can be found from the Department of Homeland Security.

The University does not issue commencement invitation letters for visa purposes. The Department of State has indicated that a letter of invitation would not be helpful during the visa application process. A letter written by you may be beneficial. Our colleagues on the Hilltop Campus have created an invitation letter template that you can use to create a letter inviting your family members to visit for commencement. That template is available here.

At Celebration Days, children may not sit in the graduate candidate seating area, but children are permitted to walk with the parent / graduate candidate as they cross the stage for recognition. You may arrange to meet a partner at the steps on the right side of the stage. The child must return to the guest seating area after crossing the stage. The graduate candidate will return to his/her/their seat in the graduate seating area.

Children may not sit in the graduate candidate seating area during the Commencement Ceremony on the Hilltop Campus.

At Celebration Days, there will be a professional photography service present to take a photo as graduate candidates cross the stage to shake hands and receive their scroll (actual diplomas are mailed in June after degrees are conferred). Graduates will be sent a link to purchase photos approximately a month after the ceremony.

Please note: The photos from GradImages will cost approximately $60 at the lowest package rate. The Law Center will provide various photo opportunities around the ceremony where graduates can pose for friends and family to take photos.

If graduates have any questions or concerns regarding graduation photos, please contact GradImages at (800) 261-2576 or ecc.giservice@gradimages.net.

Law Center: Parking is not available on the Law Center campus. If you are using a rideshare, please use 600 New Jersey Ave., N.W., and enter campus at the Eleanor Holmes Norton Green. There are also several parking garages within a few blocks of campus.

Georgetown University’s Hilltop Campus: Parking around the Hilltop Campus is very limited. You may park in the Southwest Quadrangle garage (no charge) or behind Lauinger Library in Lot 9. Please visit the Commencement Travel and Parking website for more details.

No, there will not be a hooding ceremony. The Law Center ended the hooding ceremony component of Commencement in 2009 as our numbers of graduates increased the event to an unmanageable length. Since then, students have hooded themselves or asked a faculty member or loved one to place the hood on them before the procession. If you consider hooding an integral part of your celebration, consider reaching out to a friend, family, or faculty member of significance ahead of time to meet and hood you in Hotung Lobby before your Celebration Day group processes. Staff will also be available to assist.

While there is no official policy on the size limit and type of bags guests may bring, we recommend that guests carry small bags for personal items during the ceremonies and to be mindful of other guests’ personal space. During the ceremonies, there are no secure storage locations for your bags, purses, coats, etc.

For the safety and enjoyment of all guests, we ask that you leave the following items at home: weapons (including pocket knives), non-collapsible umbrellas, metal or glass containers (there will be water stations throughout campus), backpacks or large bags, brooms or poles, animals (except service animals), noisemakers (including loudspeakers, cow bells, air horns and whistles), large signs or hanging items that block the views of others, drones, and skateboards, hoverboards or non-ADA use scooters (bicycles should be parked at designated bike racks).

Our focus is on celebrating the graduates and their families. As we plan for many scenarios, we maintain a commitment to our Speech and Expression policy, which ensures freedom of expression but does not permit disruptions.

Celebration Days will take place rain or shine! If the weather is so severe that it would pose a danger for guests and graduates to gather beneath the tent, we will notify you via email and Hoya Alert (text) with any changes. In this unlikely scenario, Celebration Days will be moved indoors, and guests may need to watch on a livestream from an adjoining room.

The same standard will be applied in case of severe weather on Sunday, at which point the Commencement Ceremony will move indoors to the McDonough Arena on the Hilltop Campus. Please note this may impact the number of guests allowed to attend. More details on inclement weather plans will be shared via email.

Please note that these scenarios are very unlikely, and we have held these ceremonies in many instances of severe weather without separating the graduates from their guests.

The Graduating Class Gift Campaign is aimed at encouraging graduating students to support scholarships and/or other causes at the Law Center that are important to them in honor of graduation.

This tradition began over 30 years ago with the Class of 1991, who wanted to ensure that future students would have access to the same quality experiences they benefited from.

Success for the Graduating Class Gift Campaign is measured by class participation. Our goal this year is to break 30%. You can make a gift here.

For more information, you can visit the Graduating Class of 2025 Gift Campaign website, or email the campaign at lawgiving@georgetown.edu with questions.

Students who participate in the Graduating Class Gift Campaign by making a minimum $10 donation to support financial aid, student groups, clinics, or other causes at the Law Center are eligible to receive a special Class of 2025 mug. The mug is an extra thank you for your generosity and support of the Law Center.

You can make a gift here: give.georgetown.edu/lawgift

For more information, you can visit the Graduating Class Gift Campaign website, or email the campaign at lawgiving@georgetown.edu with questions.

Yes! The Commencement group will have a stall at both ceremonies, selling bouquets, leis, and a variety of Georgetown-specific gifts. You can pre-order items ahead of time for pickup on their website here.