Graduation Policies

Graduation is the conferral of the degree to your record, and is administered by the Registrar's Office. The commencement ceremony is administered by the Dean of Student's Office.

1. The graduation application is valid only upon submission of the non-refundable application fee. The application and fee are required whether or not the student plans to participate in the commencement ceremony. The application and fee must be submitted by the semester's application deadline for the student to be eligible to graduate in that semester.
2. Students with unmet academic requirements, including missing or "I" [Incomplete] grades on their records -- even for courses which do not fulfill the student's degree requirements -- are not eligible to graduate.
3. The application remains valid for three consecutive semesters (summer included), beginning with the one listed on the application. Students who fail to fulfill the academic requirements within those three semesters must repply to graduate and resubmit the application fee.
4. CIIS has three degree conferral dates per year: the final day of each semester. A conferral date will not be earlier even if the students has met all academic requirements.
5. Even if the degree is conferred, CIIS does not release the diploma or official transcript or verify the degree to third parties until the student has:
   • Met all outstanding financial obligations; and
   • Returned all library materials; and
   • Completed the CIIS Graduation Survey; and
   • Financial Aid Recipients-Conducted an exit interview with the Financial Aid Office; and
   • PsyD and MCP Students-Submitted all case notes, termination forms, termination case summaries, monthly reports, outstanding debt letters to clients, and practicum site keys to the practicum site manager; and
   • PsyD Students-Completed the department's exit survey.
6. The diploma and one free official transcript are issued approximately three and-a-half months after the final semester. The degree is recorded on the transcript approximately two months after the fianl semester. Students wanting a copy of their transcript before receiving their free one must submit a Transcript Request Form and pay the transcript request fee.
7. The Registrar's Office mails the diploma and trancript only to the address indicated on the graduation application unless the student submits a written request for them to be sent to a different address. This applies even if the student submits an address change after submitting the application.