Each guest must provide a copy of their e-ticket in order to gain admission to the ceremony. It is highly suggested that the graduating student, sends their tickets through email to their guests to print out prior to coming to campus. Printed tickets will gain faster entrance into the ceremony.

Each ticket has a unique barcode, therefore duplicate tickets will not be permissible. Any excess tickets that were refunded by the Commencement team, will be denied entry. Each student is only permitted to bring two guests, one per guest ticket.

To locate your tickets, search your email for noreply@order.eventbrite.com or log into the Eventbrite app with the email associated with your tickets. If you’re having trouble locating your tickets, email seniorweek@fairfield.edu for assistance.

Students and faculty marshals will meet in the parking lot behind Canisius Hall. Please plan to arrive no later than one hour prior to the start of your celebration.

Upon arrival, please find your assigned faculty marshal, who will then confirm your name and put you in line accordingly.

Bring your gown, hood, cap, tassel, and mask. Those who missed the online ordering deadline can pick up regalia at the Stag Spirit Shop during regular business hours starting on May 14. The Stag Spirit Shop will also be open starting at 7:30 a.m. each Academic Celebration day.

Along with a mask, each guest must provide a copy of their e-ticket in order to gain admission to the celebration. It is highly suggested that graduating students forward tickets through email to their guests to print out prior to coming to campus. Printed tickets will speed entry into the celebration.

On Saturday, May 22 Fairfield will hold Academic Ceremonies on Bellarmine Lawn in which deans, faculty, and students within the Class of 2020 can celebrate academic achievements in-person by school and/or college:

• 9:30 a.m. - College of Arts & Sciences and Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies
• 2 p.m. - Charles F. Dolan School of Business and School of Engineering

All students participating in their in-person Academic Celebration are required to wear regalia (cap, tassel & gown).

The University will purchase caps and gowns for you to wear at the in-person academic ceremony on Saturday, May 22.

Graduates planning to attend must reserve their caps and gowns by May 1, 2021 at Herff Jones. Your cap and gown will be shipped to the address you provide when completing your order with Herff Jones. The cost of shipping will also be covered by the University until April 23. After this time, graduates will need to pay a rush shipping fee of $14.95 for all orders placed between April 24 and May 1.

Graduates who miss the online ordering deadline of May 1, 2021 will have an opportunity to pick up regalia at the Stag Spirit Shop during regular business hours starting on May 14, 2021. The Stag Spirit Shop will also be open starting at 7:30am each academic celebration day.

In order to ensure social distancing guidelines, each student may invite a maximum of two (2) guests to their respective Academic Ceremony to share with two guests of their choosing. Class of 2020 students do not need to reserve a ticket for themselves. Please check your Fairfield University student email for the private link to claim your tickets on this Eventbrite site.

After check-out, students will receive their tickets through email as a PDF for distribution to their guests. Each ticket has a unique barcode, therefore duplicate tickets will not be permissible. Tickets can always be located again through the Eventbrite app or through your confirmation email.

Tickets for each Academic Ceremony need to be reserved by Tuesday, May 4th at 11:59 PM.

The in-person Academic Ceremonies have been designed specifically for the students in their designated programs. Each student’s name will be called out so it is important that all students attend their assigned ceremony. Any students who claims tickets for a ceremony other than the one designated to them will have those tickets voided by a Commencement administrator. You will receive a refund email if this situation applies to you.

Yes, the Academic Ceremonies will be live-streamed and archived on the University website.

Yes, a photographer from GradImages™ will be at your ceremony to take a candid photograph of you at your special moment of recognition. You will receive a free passport-sized digital proof of this photo on an order card within 5 to 7 days following the ceremony. After commencement, graduates can locate their graduation photos online by visiting http://www.gradimages.com.

The following pieces of information are required to access their account:

• Last Name of the graduate
• School name
• Graduation Year

Since photographs will be available, family members and guests are encouraged to remain in their seats, relax and enjoy the ceremony.

Graduates can pre-register their name and email address at www.gradimages.com. By doing so, they will receive a discount of 20% off an order of $50 or more. To pre-register, visit www.gradimages.com and click on registration.

Each ceremony is estimated to last about 90 minutes.

Guests are welcome to use both the 1073 North Benson and Barlow Gate entrances.

Guests will be required to wear a face mask and have their commencement tickets on hand when entering campus. Students should wear a face mask, have their academic regalia and a photo ID.

Lawn seating will open an hour before each ceremony.

Our graduating class will be seated together in the Bellarmine garden, while guests will be seated in pairs on Bellarmine Lawn.

Class of 2020 students and guests are not required to be tested prior to coming to campus, but are asked to monitor their health and not come to campus if any of the following statements are true:

• If they are experiencing a fever (100.4 F) or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting or diarrhea.
• If they were in close contact with an infectious individual diagnosed with COVID-19 or were advised to quarantine by a Public Health Official in the past 14 days.
• If they have returned from international travel within the past 14 days.
• Masks must be worn at all times while on campus.

While we were not able to host our traditional Baccalaureate Mass this year, we are excited to host a 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Mass on Sunday, May 16 as well as an 11 a.m. Mass on Sunday, May 23 in celebration of all Class of 2020 and Class of 2021 graduates.

All Masses can be joined virtually here.

No, fees will not be refunded. Graduation fees are always collected from all graduates regardless of their participation in Commencement ceremonies. The fee covers the cost of a number of elements of a student’s graduation including the processing and mailing of diplomas and more.

Due to our Covid restrictions, we are unable to provide on-campus housing and visitors are not permitted to enter any of our on-campus residences. A list of area hotels can be found here.

The Class of 2020 Yearbook will be mailed home in mid-November 2021.

Yearbooks were included in the cost of your Senior portraits. To purchase a 2020 yearbook if you did NOT have your Yearbook portrait taken, please mail a check for $107.00 payable to Fairfield University to:

Fairfield University Manor Yearbook, Box A
1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield CT
06824-5195.

Included in the envelope should be a note with your first and last name along with the address of where you would like the Yearbook mailed in mid-November 2021.

In addition to these Academic Ceremonies, the University will hold a special celebratory event for members of the Class of 2020 during the University’s Fall Alumni & Family Weekend. Check your email over the summer for more information.

If you have any Commencement-related questions that were not addressed on this FAQ page, please email commencement@fairfield.edu.