COE Celebration 2024

• University Graduate and Undergraduate Commencement ceremonies are the university-wide ceremonies at which the President confers degrees.
• Celebrations are recognitions of individual achievement where graduate names are called, and graduates cross the stage. Celebrations are hosted by the college or special interest group.

Once you submit your application to graduate via the Registrar, you will receive an email from commencement@northeastern.edu through Marching Order to register/ RSVP for your celebration.  Please allow 1 week after you submit your application to graduate to receive this email.

Submitting this registration form will confirm your attendance at the celebration and is where you will be able to claim your guest tickets ( up to 3 tickets per graduate.)

Graduates should arrive an hour and a half before their celebration start time for check-in and line-up at Matthews Arena. Please arrive on time to ensure you can pick up your graduate name card and take your place in the marching lines before the graduate procession into the arena begins. It is very important to be timely for check-in and line-up.

Graduates who arrive after the start of the celebration will not be permitted inside the venue.

Members of the graduating class, except military personnel in uniform, are required to wear academic regalia to the COE Celebration.

A link to order your cap and gown will be available after you complete the Marching Order registration. Cap and gown pickup will be coordinated by the University Commencement Office.

Please remember you need to keep your regalia to attend the University Commencement at Fenway Park on Sunday, May 5, 2024.

Refer to the university commencement website for more information about regalia and commencement activities.

You can claim up to three guest tickets in your Marching Order registration for the celebration. Please check your Northeastern email for all communications.

Ticket allocation is based on the number of graduating students and venue capacity.  If you would like to request additional guest tickets beyond 3, you may fill out this form. Please note that this is a request only and awarding of additional tickets cannot be guaranteed. Once celebration registration closes, we will assess capacity and determine if we can honor additional ticket requests after April 8th. Any additional tickets will be awarded on a first come first serve basis and will be found in your Marching Order account.

Please note that all celebrations will be livestreamed on our celebrations website for those who are unable to attend in person. Also viewing of the event will be streamed at locations on the Boston campus on the day of our celebrations!

Children over the age of two years old will need a guest ticket.

Closed captioning will be provided both during the live event and the livestream. Matthews Arena is handicap accessible and designated seating for guests with wheelchairs is available. Individuals with mobility issues may use the elevator located inside the main Matthews Arena entrance. Guests who use wheelchairs are to be accompanied by no more than one escort and will be directed to these areas by facility personnel.

When registering for your event via the Marching Order form, please do let us know on that form any other special accommodations (mobility, support, dietary, etc) for yourself or your guests we may need to be aware of.

View a list of hotels in the Northeastern area.

There is no formal dress code other than cap and gown (or military uniform) but business casual is recommended.

Matthews Arena has strict security guidelines for all major events. Please review the list of prohibited items closely and take notes that large bags, and backpacks will not be permitted inside the venue and no storage is available. Other items not permitted include strollers.

To respect all our graduates, we ask that all graduates and guests remain in their seats throughout the entire event. At the end of the celebration, graduates and the administration will exit first. Guests will exit after the recessional ends.

Guests can take photos from their seats but will not be permitted in the aisle areas or stage. A professional photographer will be near the stage to take photographs of all graduates.

Alcohol is not permitted. Ushers will be present to seize any alcohol and to prohibit any graduate who may have already consumed alcohol from participating in the event. Cell phones and pagers should be turned off or operated in silent mode during the event.

Grad Images is the official photographer for celebration. Proofs will be available to view online and can be ordered online, by phone, or by mail.

Graduates are only guaranteed to be able to attend the ceremony the year in which they graduate.  Exceptions may be made to allow you to attend on a space-available basis. To petition to participate, please complete this form.  Once registration for graduates concludes in early April, our team will review all requests and notify you by mid-April.  There is no guarantee that your request will be approved to attend.

Graduates are only guaranteed to be able to attend the ceremony the year in which they graduate.  Exceptions may be made to allow you to attend next year on a space-available basis. To petition to participate next year, you would need to email our office with your request next winter. At that time, you will be prompted to fill out a request form, and once registration for graduates concludes, our team will review all requests.  There is no guarantee that your request will be approved to attend.

Please reach out to your academic advisor to update your degree completion date.

Please refer to the Commencement website for more information.