2024 Graduation Events

Various University- or department-sponsored (non-Batten) Finals activities take place on Friday, including Valedictory Exercises; Joint Commissioning Exercises for Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force Candidates; the Donning of the Kente Ceremony, and the Fourth Year Class Party. The Batten School is not involved in the hosting of these optional events; click here for more information.

It’s a big day! For the first time, both of Batten’s graduation-related ceremonies will be taking place on the same day!

UVA Final Exercises – The Lawn

7 a.m. – Guest entrances to the Lawn open; 7:45 a.m. Batten student line-up at the Rotunda’s Southwest Terrace; 9 a.m. procession begins

This is a ticketed event for guests; graduates do not need tickets

Batten School Diploma Ceremony – Highland

4:30 p.m. Guest and graduate arrival begins; 4:45 p.m. graduate line-up and assembly; procession begins promptly at 5:30 p.m.

Please plan to arrive on the Highland property (approximately 20 minutes from Grounds) no later than 4:45 p.m. to allow yourself time to park and walk from the parking field to the procession site; staff and signage will direct you once you arrive. Guests with limited mobility will be directed to pre-reserved parking spots and limited “golf cart” shuttle service will be provided on an as-needed basis. Graduates do not need tickets for the event; guests should bring the tickets graduates secured through our internal distribution process.

This is Batten’s primary graduation event, at which you will have your name read, walk across the stage, and have your photo taken when receiving your honorary diplomas. Graduates should come to the event dressed in regalia.

7:15-9 p.m.

Graduation Celebration and Dinner

Join us under the Highland pavilion and tents for a delicious dinner buffet, ticketed cash bar (plus lemonade, water, and tea), class photos, and beautiful vistas! Drink tickets may be purchased in advance; pre-purchasing is encouraged to reduce lines at our event!

Saturday Lawn Ceremony: As you can imagine, parking is tricky during Finals Weekend. This website will show you the various options available around Grounds. Guests with mobility issues should click here.

Saturday Highland Ceremony: Highland is located about 20-25 minutes from Charlottesville. Free parking is available in an adjacent field. While it is a well-manicured field located only about 5 minutes from the site of the ceremony, plan your footwear choice accordingly and we will have a golf cart available for our guests who need assistance. Please use this link to indicate any special needs, including dietary restrictions, you or your guests might have.

Attire for the entire weekend for graduates and their guests is business casual—or whatever will allow you to stay cool and comfortable, particularly while wearing black graduation gowns. Jackets and ties are welcome but not required. Given the amount of walking on grass or historic brick, spiky heels are not advisable!

Because students will be asked to unzip their gowns before entering the Lawn for the UVA ceremony, graduates should make certain they are fully clothed! Graduates should wear their regalia to both the Lawn and Batten Highland ceremonies.

While there are three different UVA-wide weather contingencies, know that if something dramatic happens, we will email you with timely updates and make updates to our website. You also can check UVA’s homepage or call the weather hotline at 924-SNOW. In short, unless the weather is quite extreme, events will take place on the Lawn and at Highland as scheduled.

In the highly unlikely event severe weather necessitates moving our Batten ceremony indoors, it will be moved to Old Cabell Hall on Saturday, May 18, at 6 p.m.; given this smaller venue, graduates would then be limited to 3 additional guests. The severe weather location for the Lawn ceremony is John Paul Jones Arena; the University would make this announcement by 5:30 a.m. on May 18.

Stay tuned to your email for last-minute changes—changes to our Batten events will NOT be posted on the greater UVA website or hotline, but will be sent to students via email and posted at batten.virginia.edu.

Please use this link to indicate any special needs, including dietary restrictions, you or your guests might have if they are attending Batten's Regalia Ceremony.

Click here for all other related information about the University-wide Lawn ceremony and resources. For those wishing to view the Lawn ceremony remotely, either at indoor locations across Grounds or via Live Stream, click here.  

Graduates who did not meet with Dean Rockwell during Batten’s Graduation Fair should complete this form to share their names as they (1) would like them printed in the Batten Diploma Ceremony program and (2) pronounced during the ceremony. Please help us get your names perfect!

For your actual diplomas, the deadline to correct or update your name as it will appear on your diploma is May 1, 2024. Complete the “SIS Primary Name Update” form on UREG's website. 

Batten has hired a professional photographer to capture Batten’s Saturday evening events, including all-class/cohort photos, which will be taken immediately after our Academic Regalia ceremony. These photos will be available for download and/or purchase; we will send you a link when the proofs are available online for your review. Your guests are, of course, welcome to take photos of the events as well.

There will be security checks/metal detectors at the Lawn ceremony for EVERYONE participating in graduation–-from guests to the graduates themselves—with the “clear bag policy” in effect. The greater UVA administration has asked us to let students know that any unauthorized items—including alcohol—will be confiscated. Given related safety concerns, security officials are instructed to remove visibly intoxicated students from all graduation processionals. For more information on UVA’s graduation-related security policies, including specifically prohibited and permitted items, click here.

Per University guidelines, access to Garrett—inside and out—will be controlled before and during the Lawn ceremony and monitored by RMC security, in part because of the building’s official, designated use as a restroom facility for persons with disabilities and because of restricted access to the Lawn via the path in from of our building.

Lawn Tickets: For the first time ever, Lawn tickets (6/graduate if outdoors or 3/graduate if severe weather moves the ceremony indoors) will be distributed electronically. There will be a lottery for an additional 1 ticket taking place during the month of April. Batten is not involved with the Lawn ticketing process, all of which is explained in more detail here.

Batten Ceremony Tickets: Graduates have received their first wave of tickets during the Graduation Fair; a lottery will be held to distribute additional tickets in waves. Please watch your emails from Shawn Anderson for additional information and pick-up times, which will take place in Garrett Hall.

Regalia: BA and MPP graduates with a valid photo ID can pick up their complimentary regalia and guest Lawn tickets from the UVA Bookstore during the following times:

• Wednesday, May 15 - Friday, May 17: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Saturday, May 18: 7 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Be sure to specify whether you are an undergraduate or MPP candidate, as the undergraduate and master's robes are distinct.

​IMPORTANT: Graduates should come to Saturday’s Lawn and Batten ceremonies wearing their caps, tassels, gowns, stoles (BA) and hoods (MPP). Hoods have already been distributed at the Graduation Fair, and stoles will be distributed upon arrival. Your stoles and hoods are graduation gifts from our school! Watch for updates from Shawn Anderson about the time and location of stole and additional hood distribution, which will take place before Finals Weekend.

Congratulations to our winners! Link to presentation

Coming soon!

Coming soon!