Delayed UCSD Master's Graduation Ceremony
This content was automatically generated by gpt-4o-mini (No human review). The original post is in Chinese.
Last weekend, I attended the 2022 UCSD Master’s graduation ceremony and would like to share my experience.
Online Registration
I was originally supposed to graduate in September 2021, but I didn’t attend the graduation ceremony last December (I heard there was one, but I didn’t know). In May of this year, a senior who graduated with a PhD asked me if I wanted to participate in this summer’s graduation ceremony. She contacted me on the last day of online registration. At that time, I was overwhelmed with work and said I would check it out that evening, but I ended up forgetting. Two days later, I remembered this matter and found that I had missed the registration deadline. I dug through my school email for related messages, clicked on the website, and followed the process, and surprisingly, I successfully registered without having to pay a late fee.
The registration process was quite complicated. I had to fill out some personal information, including uploading a headshot, writing the phonetic pronunciation of my name, and indicating whether I would bring a guest. After completing the form, I found that my information in the system was incorrect; it showed that I was receiving a PhD and was set to attend the PhD graduation ceremony. I quickly emailed them to clarify the situation, stating that I had withdrawn from the PhD program and was receiving a Master’s degree. After several days, they replied to my email, saying they had updated my information. Thus, I received the correct confirmation email for the graduation ceremony.
Graduate Division Masters ceremony
Ceremony Date: Saturday, June 11
Check-in Time: 11:30 a.m. PDT
Check-in Location: Ridgewalk
Ceremony Time: 12:30 p.m. PDT
Ceremony Location: Rimac Arena
For Commencement, your name will be showcased as: Jingning ZhangYou have also selected the following for the All Campus Commencement on Saturday, June 11 at 9 a.m. PDT (arrival time - 7 a.m. PDT):
You will receive an email on Friday, June 3 with instructions to print your ticket.
Overall, the online registration was quite convenient and straightforward.
The Troubles of Graduation Regalia
Too Late for Online Shopping
After registering, I continued to be very busy with job hunting, undergoing vision correction surgery, and other matters, so I didn’t have time to understand the graduation ceremony process, clothing requirements, and so on. But I knew that I needed to get a set of graduation regalia to participate (unlike during my undergraduate years when USTC provided regalia for free). By that time, I had already missed the online shopping window for graduation regalia and could only purchase it at the UCSD Bookstore or buy it from second-hand groups. Due to the impact of the pandemic, renting regalia from the school, which was possible in previous years, was no longer allowed; I could only buy it. However, since I delayed for too long and many people were participating in the graduation ceremony this year, I couldn’t find any offers to rent, buy, or borrow in the second-hand groups.
Inconvenience of In-Person Shopping
Going to the UCSD Bookstore is actually not very convenient. For example, many people no longer live in San Diego, making it difficult to go to the store a few days in advance. Even though I work in SD, making a special trip is quite tiring, especially when it comes to finding parking. One time, I got off work a bit early and decided to stop by UCSD to see if they still had graduation regalia for sale, how much it cost, and how it compared to what was available on Amazon. I parked in the lot where I used to park frequently when visiting the campus hospital; previously, that lot had a lot of Visitor Parking, with the first hour/30 minutes free. But this time, I found that all the Visitor Parking spots had disappeared!! They had all turned into Reserved spots, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. I looked at the Bookstore so close yet had no idea where to park (the troubles of graduates—after leaving school, I was unaware of so much information and had no one to ask), so I didn’t get out of the car and just drove home.
Can’t Find Any Useful Information Online
The price of graduation regalia at UCSD is quite expensive. The regalia for undergraduates, master’s, and doctoral students are different, and the prices vary as well. A master’s set costs $151, while a doctoral set costs $210, and there are also some color differences depending on the major. Personally, I feel it’s not worth it to spend $150-200 just to participate in this ceremony, especially since the outfit will only be worn once. This sense of ceremony is just too costly. Therefore, I wanted to see if I could buy a budget alternative on Amazon for $30 and check the differences between the regalia on Amazon and the official UCSD version. However, I couldn’t find any useful information about the regalia on the school’s website, which I found very inconvenient. This is also the main reason I wanted to write this blog.
In the end, two days before the graduation ceremony, I went to UCSD for the second time. This time, I did my homework in advance and parked in the Visitor Parking at the Gilman Parking Structure. Then I walked to the Bookstore to investigate. The regalia was not displayed in the Bookstore; instead, I had to queue to buy or inquire at the front desk, which made me feel that their service was very poor and the information was extremely opaque. Many people in line would feel embarrassed not to buy something. Here is the information I gathered.
Introduction to Different Components of the Master’s Regalia
At first, I couldn’t figure out what components the regalia had and what they were called. Below is a price list (before tax) for the different components of the UCSD master’s regalia, specifically for master’s degrees.
| Parts | Prices | Must | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master Gown | $42 | Yes | Black gown, the same for the entire school |
| Hood Master Assorted | $43 | Yes | The hood that hangs on the back, different colors for different majors |
| Grad Sash Element/Stole | $40 | No | A long strip that says UCSD class of 2022, a decorative item |
| Cap | $6 | Yes | The hat worn on the head, the same as the one sold on Amazon, the cheapest |
| Tassel | $10 | Yes | The tassel that hangs from the cap, with UCSD on it |
- It’s quite a money trap; the cap and tassel are sold separately.
- The price for a complete set is $150, which should include all the components listed above, making it indeed cheaper than buying separately.
- The Gown sold at Amazon Graduate Mall is different from the Master Gown sold by the school, but it looks very similar to the undergraduate gown sold by the school.
- Although there are several colors for the hood, which may vary by department, you can still enter even if you wear the wrong color; most departments use orange.
- The Stole sells out first because it has the Class of xxxx printed on it, which changes every year.
- Other components, except for the Stole, are always in stock offline, and it is said that you can even buy them on the day of the graduation ceremony.
My Graduation Gown Solution
For my graduation gown solution, I bought a second-hand gown and hood for $20 from a friend of a friend (even though the color was wrong). She also lent me a Class of 2021 stole, which perfectly matched my graduation year of 2021. I then went to the bookstore and spent $17 on a cap and tassel, so I ended up spending around $40 in total. However, I actually spent a lot of time trying to get my graduation attire. I not only asked in group chats but also went to the bookstore twice, and I had to pick up and return the second-hand items. Before I found the second-hand gown, I had already spent $30 on Amazon for a gown and cap, which I ended up not using. Looking at it this way, the time cost was not worth it; I might as well have just bought a $150 set online or in a store from the start. But first, I really didn’t want to spend that much money; I felt it was a money trap. Second, the information was very unclear; I didn’t even know if the UCSD bookstore was selling them or when they opened, etc.
Graduation Gown Advice
If you plan to attend the graduation ceremony in the future and don’t want to spend $150 on a set, you can start keeping an eye out early. For example, after graduation season, there should be quite a few people selling second-hand gowns, or you can ask graduates you know if they can sell you their gowns. Buying second-hand in advance should be the most cost-effective option. Additionally, if you don’t mind, you can definitely buy a cheaper alternative on Amazon, wearing a gown and cap (you might need to buy a hood separately). After all, on graduation day, you are the main character, and the staff won’t prevent you from entering.
Graduation Day
The graduation ceremony is divided into several sessions: for the whole school, for master’s, and for doctoral students. I only attended the master’s graduation ceremony, so the following experiences are all about that.
Parking and Transportation
Before the graduation ceremony, I received tickets, which I printed out. They contained some useful information for entry. At first, I was worried about parking because the school’s Visitor Parking is limited, and there surely wouldn’t be enough spaces for all the graduates and their families. Later, I found out from the email/ticket that parking on campus is free on graduation day, but you need to park according to the guidance of the staff on the road. We discovered that there were actually many shuttles on graduation day specifically transporting graduates to the ceremony site. The official graduation parking lot is likely quite far from the actual ceremony location, possibly requiring a 25-30 minute walk. In fact, it might be better to park at Graduate Housing and take the shuttle over.
How Early to Arrive
The ticket stated to arrive more than an hour early, but in reality, that’s not necessary. This is considering that you might be directed to a very distant parking lot, which would require a 30-minute walk. My ceremony started at 12:30, and I arrived around 11:40, only to find that we had to wait in line. We ended up queuing until 12:30 before we walked into the stadium and found our seats. This means that if you arrive an hour early, you would just waste that hour waiting in line.
About Guests
You and your guest are basically separated from the time you check in until the graduation ceremony ends, so you won’t be together for about three hours. Students sit in the hall of the stadium, while guests remain in the audience seats.
Master’s Graduation Ceremony Process
After officially entering, the ceremony began with the host speaking, congratulating everyone on their graduation and continuously offering congratulations. Then there were two guest speeches, each lasting about 20 minutes. This year’s speeches were both about community, and personally, I found the content uninteresting and didn’t really like it (it reminded me of the undergraduate graduation speech at USTC, which also made me drowsy). After that, they started calling out the names of graduates by department, and everyone lined up to walk to the stage in the order of their seats. Those who reached the front of the stage handed their tickets to the person at the podium, who was responsible for reading all the graduates’ names. After their name was called, the graduate walked onto the stage (at this point, their family and friends usually cheered, and there would be a few seconds of them on the big screen), and shook hands with two professors from their department. When leaving the stage, they received a yellow flower, and a photographer took a picture of them (which they would have to pay for later), after which they could return to their seats. Since there were so many graduates, it really took too much time to read each name and have everyone walk up one by one. We sat waiting for nearly two hours during this part, which was really a huge waste of time.
After the graduation ceremony ended, the exit was also extremely crowded; there were too many people, and it took a long time to get out. Moreover, the mobile signal was very poor, making it impossible to contact family members. At this point, I was really hungry because I didn’t finish my lunch before coming, not knowing how long the ceremony would take, and by the time it ended, it was already 3 PM. It was truly exhausting. Therefore, I recommend eating well before attending or bringing some snacks.
Graduation Ceremony Videos from Previous Years
You can check out videos from past graduation ceremonies to get a feel for the atmosphere of the day; this is the All Campus Commencement for the entire school.
UC San Diego All Campus Commencement 2019
Taking Photos
This should be the only efficient and meaningful part of the day. After the graduation ceremony, we went to various landmarks on campus, dressed in our gowns or in formal attire with our stoles, and had our family take photos for us, which turned out quite well. Although there were many graduates, we didn’t have to wait much to take photos, and there weren’t too many people in the background.
Is It Worth Attending?
After a whole day of activities, I came home exhausted. Overall, I felt it wasn’t worth attending for me, mainly because it was a huge waste of time, and the speeches were quite boring. I think not attending is also fine; you can borrow someone else’s gown (if it’s not on the day of the ceremony, it’s easier to borrow) and take photos in front of the school’s iconic buildings. The UCSD graduation ceremony is not like those at domestic universities where everyone attends; in fact, many people do not participate. For example, the graduation ceremony might be in June, but there are graduates in September and December, and those graduates often aren’t in San Diego the following June, so they may not come back to attend.
Since I withdrew from the PhD program and left with a master’s degree, I felt more like a dropout than a graduate (especially since this graduation ceremony was delayed by nearly a year, and I have already been working for seven months). However, since I had never attended a graduation ceremony in the U.S., I was quite curious about what it would be like, and since I was in San Diego, I went to the ceremony out of curiosity (and to promote the PI Review).
At the graduation ceremony, people continuously congratulated us on our graduation, telling us that earning this degree was something to be happy about and very meaningful. But I actually felt quite dissatisfied; I think UCSD’s graduate education is terrible, with poor support for graduate students and questionable course quality. For example, the current prices for Graduate Housing are very high, and the stipends for PhD students are very low, making it difficult to live on one’s own scholarship. Additionally, the department does not provide enough support for graduate students who want to change advisors. I have taken several mandatory graduate courses that were incredibly subpar, where the instructors didn’t spend time preparing, which was a pure waste of time. So overall, I am dissatisfied with my academic experience at UCSD, and therefore I didn’t feel much joy at the graduation ceremony.
I am not someone who values rituals much; I am quite pragmatic. The graduation ceremony took up a whole day for me, and it didn’t feel worth it. It would have been better to just find a time to take some photos when I graduated.
