Today is your day
University of Phoenix Commencement
Dallas | Fall 2024
Congrats! It’s time to celebrate your achievement surrounded by people who are so proud of everything you’ve accomplished. Welcome to a community of over 1 million alumni.
Congrats! It’s time to celebrate your achievement surrounded by people who are so proud of everything you’ve accomplished. Welcome to a community of over 1 million alumni.
Deadline to register has passed: To review eligibility requirements and register for a ceremony, please visit our commencement registration page. Be sure to check how your name is displayed as this is how it will be shown in the program and name card. The registration site is separate from the university site so any official name updates will need manually completed on your ceremony registration. Also, be sure to verify your ceremony registration has the correct degree listed for the ceremony.
Watch live stream, day of ceremony
Choose the ceremony based on your registration time.
- Morning ceremony - 10:00 am CDT
- Afternoon ceremony – 3:00 pm CDT
Live stream links will be available closer to the event and will remain available for viewing up to 30 days after ceremony.
Before commencement
Commencement checklist
Make travel plans as needed
When available, reserve graduate and guest tickets
(Look for an email with instructions in late September - early October.)
Bring Graduate Name Card (used to announce and display your name when cross the stage). You'll receive your name card a few weeks prior to the ceremony.
Get ready to celebrate
Day of commencement
Getting to the ceremony
Know before you go
Transportation
Check with the Department of Transportation for any road closures the weekend of commencement.
Get directions and parking: Curtis Culwell Center
Rideshare: The drop-off and pick-up location for guests utilizing rideshare options (Uber, Lyft, etc.) will be at the Academy Sports & Outdoors at 4920 North Garland Ave. This location is adjacent to the CCC and is a two-minute walk to the facility.
Airports
The closest airports to the Curtis Culwell Center are: Dallas Love Field airport and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
Parking information
There is surface level parking all around the facility. The cost is $15 on the day of the ceremony or $12 pre-paid online.
There is drop off available in front of the entrances. Accessible parking spots are available around the venue in the parking lot.
Prohibited items
- No purses, backpacks or diaper bags
- No video cameras or cameras with lenses greater than 6"
- No flags, signs or banners
- No outside food or beverages
- No noisemakers
- No umbrellas
- No balloons
- No weapons
- No animals (excluding certified service animals)
- No flowers
- No smoking/E-Cigs
- No wrapped gifts
All carried items and entrants are subject to search. Prohibited items must be returned to the owner’s car or discarded. Any unlawful items are subject to confiscation, and the person in possession of such item is subject to arrest. Items left at the door will be discarded.
Clear bag policy
The venue will enforce a strict clear bag policy to help ensure safety at the ceremony. All bags are subject to search.
Entrance
- Graduates will enter at Conference Center entrance.
- Guests will enter through the East or West main venue entrances.
- This is a CLEAR BAG venue. There is no secured storage, so please leave personal belongings with family or friends. (bold clear bag).
- Everyone will go through metal detectors before entering the buildings. Venue does NOT allow re-entry after entering the building.
Ticket information
Guests including minors are not allowed into the pre-ceremony graduate area or in the graduate seating and stage areas.
Tickets are required for both graduates and guests upon entry into the venue. You will be able to show tickets on your phone or print them out. The preference is to print them out for scanning.
We can provide up to 6 guest tickets and 1 graduate ticket for a total of 7 tickets at this time. This includes children of all ages. The graduate ticket will be the same as the guest ticket.
A separate email will be sent with instructions on how to reserve your tickets a few weeks prior to the ceremony. This email comes from a vendor called MarchingOrder and will be sent to the email address you used for registration. Be sure to check spam and all mail folders for this email. You will create an account on this site to reserve and access your tickets.
ADA accommodations
If any of your guests will require ADA accommodations at the commencement ceremony, there will be staff at the venue who can assist with seating. Wheelchairs will not be available for use during the ceremony. Please be sure to provide your own wheelchair, whether it is for a guest or graduate.
Strollers
The arena will have a designated spot to store strollers.
Due to Fire Marshal regulations, strollers are not permitted in the seating area. Please be advised that University of Phoenix is not responsible for any damage or loss to personal property.
We ask all graduates to stay until the end of the ceremony out of respect to the remaining graduates. You’re officially done at the conclusion of the ceremony and can celebrate by moving your tassel over as recognition of being a graduate. Guests will be released in an orderly fashion to ensure a safe exit for everyone. Afterward, you'll exit the ceremony and can meet your family and friends outside of the venue.
Graduate information
Preparing for the ceremony
There is no storage at the commencement venue for personal belongings. Please make arrangements for a guest to hold any personal items or carry them with you at all times. Please be advised that University of Phoenix is not responsible for any damage or loss to personal property.
Bring your cap and gown. Additionally, bachelor's degree students must bring their stoles; master's and doctoral degree students must bring their hoods. Use a cool iron, if necessary, to ensure a wrinkle-free appearance.
The deadline to order standard regalia is September 27, 2024 (by midnight) without additional shipping charges. The final deadline will be October 3, 2024, with expedited shipping charges.
You can order regalia through the NRP Regalia website.
For questions concerning NRP regalia items, please contact customer support or call 480-219-3247. Limited amount of regalia will be available on the day of the ceremony for purchase (credit only).
Military graduates: Remember to bring your cord to the ceremony. The military cord is available to order at no charge on the regalia web site. If this was not ordered, they will be available on the day of the ceremony.
Pro tip: Steam your gown, stole, hood and hang it up prior to commencement to avoid wrinkles
Regalia protocols and attire:
Out of respect and courtesy to the University and graduates, we ask that candidates and faculty do not alter their caps and gowns; however, if graduates do alter their caps, we ask that they respect their fellow graduates by wearing their regalia (cap/gown) in a manner that prohibits the use of any offensive or obscene pictures, words, or reference. If students violate any of these prohibited items, they may be asked to remove or alter these items.
- Business casual attire should be worn under the gown.
- Military Dress Uniforms may be worn in place of regalia. Uniforms and regalia should not be worn together.
- Cultural robes, beauty pageant stoles, etc. are inappropriate for commencement ceremonies and should not be worn, unless they are worn completely underneath the official regalia robes.
- Cultural and tribal stoles are approved to be worn on the top of the approved official UOPX regalia at commencement ceremonies. Cultural robes, if worn, must be worn underneath the official regalia robe.
- Please wear comfortable shoes that can be worn long distances, on concrete and/or unstable flooring.
You are allowed to wear honors regalia awarded by an approved Honor Society with your standard regalia attire. UOPX honor cords can be worn with your external honor society cord/stole (layered on top of each other, preference is UOPX honor cord on top).
We ask that if you decorate your caps to do so tastefully. Stoles, hoods and gowns should not be altered or decorated.
Upon arrival, graduates will be directed to the "grad central" area located in the Conference Center lobby and ballroom. We will have the following tables available:
- NRP to purchase regalia. Credit card accepted, no cash
- Grad Supplies with bobby pins and safety pins
- Military and honor cords available for eligible graduates
- Graduate Card Assistance - Name cards will be mailed to each graduate a few weeks before the ceremony. Be sure to bring it to the ceremony. This name card is what is used to announce and display your name as you cross the stage. If your name card does not arrive by the ceremony date, we will have back up name cards available on the day of the ceremony.
Sample graduate card
University staff will be available to assist with any questions regarding ceremony logistics.
- First, ensure you have your name card.
- Verify you have all your regalia (cap, gown, etc.)
- No rehearsal, staff will be available to guide the graduates.
- Graduates will be lined up by degree level, not alphabetically (associates, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
- Graduates will proceed double file into the hall and to seating. Comfortable and stable shoes are recommended. Seating will be by degree level in front sections on the floor.
- You will be called to the stage by degree level, not alphabetical, with dual lines as you go across the stage. Your name and degree will be displayed and your name announced as you cross the stage. Photos will be taken as you go to the stage as well as when you cross the stage and are handed a UOPX branded congrats envelope.
- Doctoral graduates will be hooded on stage.
- We ask everyone to remain until the end of the ceremony for the celebratory tassel change and acknowledgment of being graduated. For recessional, you will exit the arena and go outside to meet your family and friends.
- We expect that the ceremony will last approximately two hours.
The University identifies graduates registered for the commencement who are eligible for the honor cord. If you are eligible to receive an honor cord, one will be provided to you at no cost on the day of commencement. This cord is not part of the President or Dean lists.
Current University of Phoenix Honors Policy:
Graduates eligible to participate in a ceremony and meet the honors criteria can receive a cord.
The cord provided will be based on the current GPA.
Associate and bachelor's degree students with a program completion date of 01/01/2022 or later:
- "Cum Laude" - Bronze Cord
Program GPA of 3.70-3.84 - "Magna Cum Laude" - Silver Cord
Program GPA of 3.85-3.94 - "Summa Cum Laude" - Gold Cord
Program GPA of 3.95-4.0
Master's degree students with a program completion date of 01/01/2022 or later:
- "With Distinction" - Red & Platinum Cord
Program GPA of 3.90 or higher
Prior University of Phoenix Honors Policy:
Bachelor's degree students with program completion date of 12/31/2021 or before:
- "With Honors" - Platinum Cord
Program GPA of 3.85 or higher
The University has coordinated with GradImages Photography to photograph graduates at the ceremony. There will be two photo opportunities during the ceremony: one when going up to the stage and another when crossing the stage.
GradImages will send an email to graduates following the ceremony with a proof and information on how to purchase.
GradImages Photography
service@gradimages.com
800-261-2576
The digital program version will be viewable three days prior to the ceremony date and up to 30 days following the conclusion of the ceremony.
- Visit the official University of Phoenix Commencement Program site.
- Select “Dallas” from the “What is your Ceremony Location?” drop-down menu.
Plan your trip
Hotels with discounted rates
Dallas Ceremony Hotel Options with Discounted Rates (first come, first serve, limited amount of rooms available with each block, rate does not include tax and any other fees).
5101 N. President George Bush Hwy, Garland, TX 75040
Rate: starts at 2 Queen $102.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
401 Wynhurst Drive, Plano, TX 75074
Rate: starts at for 2 Queen: $126.00 King: $119.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 19, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
2813 E. President George Bush Hwy, Plano, TX 75074
Rate: starts at for King: $105.00 Queen: $115.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 19, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
1805 E. President George Bush Hwy, Plano, TX 75074
Rate: starts at $119.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
1705 E. President George Bush Hwy, Plano, TX 75074
Rate: starts at $109.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
3251 E. President George Bush Turnpike, Richardson, TX 75082
Rate: starts at $112.00 to $119.00 per night
Deadline for Reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
2205 N. Glenville Dr. Richardson, TX. 75082
Rate: starts at $135.00 to $139.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
900 E. Lookout Dr. Richardson, TX. 75082
Rate: starts at $169.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 26, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
3605 Shire Blvd., Richardson TX. 75082
Rate: starts at $99.00 per night
Deadline for reservations: September 23, 2024 (or sooner if room block is filled)
Share your journey!
We would love for you to share any ceremony photos and stories about your educational journey on Facebook.