On Saturday, May 18, more than 4,900 Fresno State students eligible for degrees will celebrate at the university’s 102nd Commencement ceremony, and the last for retiring President John D. Welty. The processional will begin at 9:30 a.m., at the Save Mart Center. Doors open at 8 a.m.

Commencement activities begin Friday, May 17, with 19 college and school convocations in addition to department and program celebrations throughout the day at multiple locations. View the complete commencement schedule here.

During the ceremony, the Provost’s Award recipient for Excellence in Teaching will speak briefly and a video of student messages will be shown.

The Graduate’s Medalist and the President’s Medalist – the university’s top graduate and undergraduate Dean’s Medalists representing each college/school and the Student Affairs Division – will be announced Saturday during Commencement. The announcement will be posted on the university’s commencement web page.

 Live streaming – with captioning – will be available online Saturday for the morning University Commencement and for the 1 p.m. International Graduation Celebration in the Music Building Concert Hall where graduating international students will be recognized. The broadcasts will be available on the Fresno State You Tube page the week after Commencement.

Commencement events are held at various locations on campus. Some of the smaller venues require tickets due to limited seating. The Commencement schedule contains ticketing and contact information for each event.

In addition to the University Commencement, there are seven other events and celebrations on Saturday, concluding with the Latino Commencement Celebration at 6 p.m. at the Save Mart Center.

The Class of 2013 includes 4,070 students who completed their baccalaureate studies, 794 students who have earned master’s degrees, 10 students earning education specialist degrees and 38 doctorate degrees. One hundred and sixty-six students earned Summa Cum Laude (with highest praise) distinction for a GPA of 3.9-4.0; 33 students achieved perfect 4.0 GPAs. Forty-nine Smittcamp Family Honors College President’s Scholars are graduating with university honors.

Clyde Ford, the president of the Fresno State Alumni Association, will welcome the Class of 2013 grads as official alumni after the degree conferral.

Parking will be free in the Save Mart Center lots for all commencement events on campus. Guests are encouraged to arrive early. For the University Commencement, students begin lining up at 8 a.m. at the loading dock on the east side of the arena. The procession starts at 9:30 a.m.

Events are organized by the University Commencement Planning Committee, coordinated by the Division of Student Affairs under the guidance of Commencement coordinator Gary Nelson in the Office of Student Activities and Leadership Development. For more information, call 559.278.2741 or see updates online. 

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