Graduation Processing & Policy

The Office of the Registrar is responsible for the review, certification, and maintenance of academic records for all Lewis graduates.

Graduation—degree conferral—is the official process of degree certification that is noted on your transcript and diploma. The below information includes your graduation processing schedule and relevant University policy.

Your campus ceremonies will take place in May 2023. Our office will coordinate details and resources regarding upcoming events that include graduation, cap & gown, ceremony, and diploma.

Communications—use of your Lewis student email is required

• Electronic communications comply with our Office of Technology policy and are directed to your Lewis student email address. Messages continue through Summer 2023, so please check for emails from the Office of the Registrar.
  
  
• For graduates, the diploma will be mailed through the United States Postal Service (USPS) only to the address specified on your graduation application. We are unable to mail the diploma to an international address. If changes are made, you must update the address in your portal AND send an email to registrar@lewisu.edu notifying us.

Graduation Eligibility & Degree Works (DW)—check your DW; direct questions to your advisor or chair

• Maintaining graduation candidacy, and degree certification, directly relate to your DW audit found in your myLewis portal under Resources – Records and Registration – Degree Works. Every section and requirement must show as being fulfilled, and any deficiencies will prevent degree certification. Questions and concerns should be directed to your advisor or program/college administrator. If you will not meet degree requirements this term, you may withdraw your application through registrar@lewisu.edu.

Diploma Name
Lewis University will use the legal name on file for the diploma name and commencement booklet. If you need to make changes to your legal name, please email registrar@lewisu.edu with the Change of Name form and submit documentation to have your name updated. If you have a preferred first name, please email registrar@lewisu.edu regarding the preferred name process. All changes should be submitted prior to April 1, 2023 to ensure that are changed for commencement material and the diploma. Any request submitted after April 1, 2023 may not be reflected on commencement material or the diploma.

Important University Policy

• Graduation Status in Degree Works (DW)
  
  
  • ‘Applied—review with advisor’ shows the initial Graduation Status when you apply, and reminds you to meet with your advisor to confirm that degree requirements will be met this semester. All DW audit requirements should show as clear; any deficiencies must be resolved with your advisor or program administrator.
    
    
  • Prior to the degree conferral date, the Office of the Registrar will assess each record, and the graduation status will be updated. All candidates must have a DW graduation status of ‘Clear Except Final Grades’ or ‘Cleared for Graduation’ by April 5 to maintain candidacy, have ceremony eligibility and have your name printed in the commencement booklet.
    
    
    • Candidates with clear graduation status
      ALL requirements listed within your audit must be fulfilled by the end of the Spring 2023 semester. If you make any changes to your registration after your initial audit is conducted you should review with your advisor on how these changes could impact your eligibility for graduation.
      
      
    • Candidates without clearance
      Missing requirements identified in your Degree Works audit—such as prior incomplete grades, missing documents, Comprehensive Examination, etc.— need to be resolved by April 5 to maintain graduation candidacy.
      
      
    
• Final grades—Incomplete (I) grades are NOT allowed in Spring 2023 term
  
  
  • Incomplete (I) grades are NOT allowed in Spring 2023 (SP2023) semester. Degree certification will not occur with any incomplete ‘I’ grades. ALL requirements in your Degree Works audit must be fulfilled by the end of the Spring 2023 semester.
    
    
  • Previous semester Incomplete (I) grades not changed by April 5 will prevent eligibility for the ceremony, ticket eligibility and your name from appearing in the commencement booklet.
    
    
  • Final grades are due by May 9. In addition to final grades, ALL requirements in your Degree Works audit must be fulfilled by the end of Spring 2023.
    
    
• Bachelor degree candidates—128 minimum hours, University Honors policy
  
  
  • After final grades are posted, your transcript must show a completion of at least 128 credit hours. If you are repeating a course in the graduating semester for which you have received prior passing credit, such as a D, you cannot count the additional hours as only the most recent is counted—credit can only be given once for the course. The full policy on Repeated Courses may be found though~ Lewis University online Catalog 2022-2023 > General Information > Grading.
    
    
  • Graduation Honors. Bachelor degree recipients are eligible to graduate with honors if they have achieved cumulative grade point averages as follows: 3.500 - 3.749 with cum laude; 3.750 - 3.899 with magna cum laude; 3.900 - 4.000 with summa cum laude. Honors at graduation are indicated on both the student’s diploma and transcript. At the commencement ceremony, students are draped with an honor cord. Honors designations do not apply to graduate, associate, or certificate students. To qualify, a recipient must have earned a minimum of 56 hours at Lewis, not including credits earned by exam or prior learning assessment. (Lewis University online Catalog 2022-2023 > General Information > Graduation). An honor designation noted at the commencement ceremony may not be the same on the final and permanent record.
    
    
• Transcript—no changes are made to the transcript after graduation/degree certification
  The official graduation date is May 12, 2023, and a student’s record becomes permanent upon graduation. Nothing is added, deleted, or changed on the student’s transcript after degree certification.
  
  
• Financial policies—zero balance
  Lewis University policy requires that a student account must be clear before a diploma is issued or tickets are available for the ceremony. You may check your account balance through your myLewis portal – STUDENT ACCOUNT.

May 2023 Processing Calendar

February

Graduation processing and University policy information (this document) is sent to your Lewis student email. Information regarding ordering your retainable cap & gown and ceremony information is emailed in mid – February to the Lewis student email and available on Lewis’ Commencement webpage. Degree Works audits are conducted on applicants. Graduation candidates are encouraged to meet with their Advisor to review the academic requirements.

March

The deadline to order your cap and gown is by March 29.

Order Cap & Gown

April

Degree Works audits conclude on applicants, and those with a ‘Graduation Status’ clearance by April 5 will have ceremony eligibility and their name printed in the commencement booklet. Ticket information will be released on April 12.

May

Ceremonies: Please review the below information carefully for the commencement ceremony schedules. Candidates can view their college and level in their Degree Works. Please see example below on where candidates can find this information in their Degree Works. Graduation candidates can only attend the ceremony related to their level and college. Double majors will attend their priority major ceremony.

Final Transcript Review, Degree Certification, Diploma
A final transcript review for degree certification is conducted after Spring 2023 grades are recorded. This process should be completed by the end of May 2023. After certification, and for graduates with a zero balance, diplomas are USPS mailed to the address on the graduation application; typically, this is within 60 days after the conferral date of May 12, 2023. If your account clears later, you will need to contact the Office of the Registrar at registrar@lewisu.edu for your diploma.

Proof of Degree
The official record of graduation is a transcript released through the Office of the Registrar. If you are confident that your degree requirements will be met by Spring 2023 conclusion, you may order a transcript in advance and select ‘hold for degree’; if your account is clear, we will release It as soon as we certify your degree and after May 12, 2023. Transcript ordering details may be found via:

https://www.lewisu.edu/admissions/ordertranscripts.htm.

You have our very best wishes as you complete your degree!

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