Your graduation ceremony at ACU

Finishing your degree is a big achievement. Your graduation ceremony is a chance to celebrate all the hard work you’ve put in to complete your course.

Learn all you need to know about attending your ceremony, including dates for upcoming ceremonies, how to arrange guest tickets and what to do if your guests are travelling from overseas.

Graduation dates

Graduation ceremonies are held in Ballarat, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney in Autumn (Semester 1), and in Melbourne and Sydney in Spring (Semester 2).

If you’re finishing your course midyear and your campus does not have a Spring ceremony, your award will still be conferred at a Spring ceremony.

If you’d like to attend a graduation ceremony at your home campus the following Autumn, simply select the option to defer attendance when you register to graduate in Student Connect.

Upcoming ceremonies

All graduating students are required to arrive for registration, gowning and a briefing approximately three hours prior to the start of the ceremonies.

Location	Date	Start Time	Faculty	Venue
Ballarat	Friday 5 April	2.00pm	All	Mercure Ballarat Hotel & Convention Centre
Canberra	Friday 12 April	2.00pm	All	National Convention Centre, Canberra
Melbourne	Monday 29 April	12.30pm	Faculty of Health Sciences* Bachelor of Nursing, including Bachelor of Nursing specialisations and Bachelor of Nursing double degrees	Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre
	Monday 29 April	5.00pm	Faculty of Health Sciences* School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine – All courses *AND* Additional Bachelor of Nursing
	Tuesday 30 April	12.30pm	Faculty of Education and Arts Faculty of Theology and Philosophy All Primary (UG and PG) All Early Childhood (UG & PG) All Secondary (UG and PG) - excluding B Teach/B Arts All Indigenous programs All Educational Leadership
	Tuesday 30 April	5.00pm	Faculty of Education and Arts All School of Arts - including B Teach/B Arts All Postgraduate Education - excluding Primary, Secondary, Early Childhood and Educational Leadership
	Wednesday 1 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Law and Business Faculty of Health Sciences School of Allied Health - including Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Rehabilitation, Social Work and Speech Pathology
	Wednesday 1 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Health Sciences School of Behavioural and Health Sciences - including Psychology, Exercise Science, Public Health and Science
Brisbane	Thursday 9 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Health Sciences Bachelor of Nursing, including Bachelor of Nursing specialisations and Bachelor of Nursing double degrees	Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
	Thursday 9 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Education and Arts Faculty of Theology and Philosophy
	Friday 10 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Health Sciences School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine - excluding B Nursing, B Nursing specialisations and B Nursing double degrees *AND* School of Behavioural and Health Sciences - including Psychology, Exercise Science, Public Health and Science
	Friday 10 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Law and Business Faculty of Health Sciences School of Allied Health - including Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Rehabilitation, Social Work and Speech Pathology
Sydney	Tuesday 21 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Health Sciences* Bachelor of Nursing, including Bachelor of Nursing specialisations and Bachelor of Nursing double degrees	Rosehill Gardens, Sydney
	Tuesday 21 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Health Sciences* School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine – All courses *AND* additional Bachelor of Nursing *AND* School of Allied Health - including Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Rehabilitation, Social Work and Speech Pathology
	Wednesday 22 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Law and Business Faculty of Health Sciences School of Behavioural and Health Sciences - including Psychology, Exercise Science, Public Health and Science
	Wednesday 22 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Education and Arts Faculty of Theology and Philosophy All Postgraduate Education, including Educational Leadership All Religious Education, excluding double degrees All Inclusive Education and Disability Studies All School of Arts - excluding B Teach/B Arts
	Thursday 23 May	12.30pm	Faculty of Education and Arts All Secondary (UG and PG) - including B Teach/B Arts All Early Childhood (UG and PG)
	Thursday 23 May	5.00pm	Faculty of Education and Arts All Primary (UG and PG) All Indigenous programs

* NOTE: Bachelor of Nursing graduands will be split across multiple ceremonies in Sydney and Melbourne. Your ceremony allocation will be visible to you during graduation registration in March.

Graduation Mass

You and your family are invited to attend Graduation Mass before the ceremonies in Ballarat and Canberra.

Find out dates, times and details about the Mass

Ceremony fee and guest tickets

The fee to attend your graduation ceremony is $165 (incl. GST), which includes:

your attendance at the ceremony
the cost of your academic dress hire
three guest tickets (as a graduand, you do not require a ticket)
light refreshments after the ceremony.

To learn more about paying your ceremony fee, organising your guest tickets and arranging additional ones, visit the page below.

Find out more about ceremony fees and guest tickets

Graduands with special needs

If you’re attending a ceremony and have special requirements relating to mobility, sight, hearing impairment or cultural practices that may impact your ability to cross the stage and shake hands with the Presiding Officer, simply answer ‘yes’ to the special requirements question when you register to graduate in Student Connect. The graduations office will then contact you to discuss your needs in detail.

To ensure appropriate arrangements can be made, it is essential you let the graduations office know no later than four weeks before your ceremony.

Invitations for international guests

Would you like to invite an international guest who requires a formal invitation for immigration purposes? You’ll need to arrange an International Graduation Guest (IGG) invite.

Once you are officially approved as ‘course complete’, you will need to submit an online IGG request form. You will receive an email confirming when your IGG invite has been posted to you.

Submit an online IGG request form

Academic dress

Not sure how to organise your academic gown for the big day or what your faculty colour is? Our academic dress page explains it all to you.

Learn more about academic dress

What happens on the day

Not sure what to expect during your graduation ceremony? We’ve put together a guide that walks you through your graduation day.

It contains important information such as what time to arrive, what your guests should do, and when the official photographers will snap your big moment.

Read what to expect on your graduation day