Graduate Information

All students in all programs are required to apply for graduation on WebAdvisor and be approved in order to participate in commencement. Individuals eligible to participate in the Commencement Ceremony will be notified via their Student Email Account once your Associate (AA/AS) degree and/or certificate application has been reviewed. Your eligibility to participate as AA/AS degree and/or certificate recipient will be noted in WebAdvisor once you receive an email. If you have not activated your student email account, please do so immediately. All information regarding your degree and/or certificate and commencement ceremony will only be sent to your student email.

The application deadline for spring graduation is April 1.

Apply to Graduate

It is our goal to provide a ceremony that is festive, formal, and memorable to all our graduates and guests. We ask for your help in making the ceremony a pleasant experience for all by attentively considering the rights and feelings of the other participants and guests.

The ceremony is marked by dignity and seriousness where the conferring of degrees signifies long, hard work on the part of everyone involved: students, faculty, staff, administrators and families. Everyone in attendance is expected to maintain a measure of decorum consistent with the occasion:

• Students must wear appropriate academic regalia.
• Items that detract from the ceremonies are prohibited (umbrellas, bullhorns, beach balls, large signs, etcetera).
• All electronic devices should be silenced or turned off during the ceremony.
• Graduates and guests must remain seated until the ceremony concludes unless otherwise instructed during the ceremony.

Students will be arranged first by degree recipients with required regalia followed by certificate recipients with required regalia.

Assistance for Students with Disabilities

Students who need special assistance, contact Disability Support Services. For information about disabled parking and wheelchair access, view the college map.

Procession and Seating Order

1. Associated Student MVC (ASMVC) Associate Degree Graduates
2. Dental Hygiene Associate Degree Graduates
3. Dental Assistant Associate Degree Graduates
4. General Associate Degree Graduates
5. Dental Assistant Certificate Graduates
6. General Certificate Graduates

Your seating placement may be affected by your regalia

If you have applied and are eligible for both an associate degree and certificate, you will be required to march and sit per the regalia you purchased. Students in specialized programs such as Dental Assistant, Dental Hygiene, EOPS, Puente, or Umoja will be required to march and sit per the procession and seating order. There are no exemptions to regalia and seating order.

• Example 1: If you are eligible for both an associate degree and certificate but decided to purchase the certificate regalia, you will be required to march and sit with certificate graduates.
• Example 2: If you are graduating with your associate degree, you must purchase the associate degree recipient required regalia and will be required to march and sit with associate degree graduates.
• Example 3: If you are graduating with a certificate, you must purchase the certificate recipient required regalia and will be required to march and sit with certificate graduates.

1. Wear the correct regalia for your highest academic award (degree or certificate).
2. At MVC, we honor your individuality and support decorated graduation caps. However, we ask that if you choose to do so, the cap must be decorated in good taste, and no foul language or explicit images are allowed. 
3. No changes to any part of your regalia, aside from cap decoration, is permitted. Your honor society ropes and your programmatic sashes have already been pre-approved.

Associate Degree Recipients

AA/AS Degree graduates must purchase the cap, gown, tassel, and hood. All caps and gowns must be teal in color. The associate degree regalia package includes cap, gown, hood, and tassel. Students may purchase an XL cap if needed. Eligible students may also be able to purchase an honor cord or gold tassel (see Distinction and Great Distinction).

Certificate Recipients

Certificate graduates must purchase the cap, gown and tassel. All caps and gowns must be teal in color. Students may purchase an XL cap if needed. Certificate graduates are not eligible to purchase a hood (for degree recipients only).

Distinction and Great Distinction

If you are graduating with distinction (3.30-3.69 GPA) or great distinction (3.70-4.0 GPA), you will have slight variations in your graduation regalia color. Students graduating with distinction will purchase a gold tassel instead of teal. Students graduating with great distinction will purchase a gold tassel and gold honor cord. Both items are available in the Bookstore, which has the list of students receiving GPA honors on file.

Select students wear cords representing the following:

• Black and White: CalWORKs
• Gold: Distinction (3.30+ GPA)
• Red, White and Blue: Veterans
• White and Teal: Transferring to a four-year university

Some programs receive medallions and/or stoles (flat, scarf-like cloths that rest around the shoulders) which represent cultural organizations, categorical, and academic programs. Verify with your program information on additional program specific regalia and other critical dates. At MVC, this includes the following colors and programs:

• Black: Academic Counseling and Educational Support Program (ACES)
• Black and Teal: Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS/CARE)
• Gold: EOPS Summer Bridge
• Kente Cloth: Umoja Program
• Lavender: LGBTQ+
• Multi-Colored: Puente Program
• Purple: Dental Hygiene
• White: Guardian Scholars Program
• White and Teal: Middle College High School