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IU to award record number of degrees at commencement ceremonies

For Immediate Release Apr 27, 2017

UPDATE, MAY 5, 2017:  Due to the changing weather forecast, IU Bloomington’s undergraduate commencement ceremony will be moving indoors to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, which will result in two commencement ceremonies – one at 10 a.m. and the other at 3 p.m. Saturday, May 6. For additional information, including which ceremony to attend, visit commencement.iu.edu.

President Michael McRobbie presiding over IU Bloomington's 2016 undergraduate commencement ceremony
President Michael A. McRobbie will preside over IU’s commencement ceremonies.Photo by James Brosher, IU Communications

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – More than 20,000 degrees, a record number, will be awarded at seven Indiana University campuses during commencement ceremonies May 5 to 14.

IU President Michael A. McRobbie will preside over the ceremonies, at which a total of 20,531 degrees will be awarded. Among the seven campuses, IU Bloomington, IU East, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and IU Kokomo achieved commencement records.

Graduates come from all 92 counties in Indiana, all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and 133 countries. Other statistics: 70.1 percent are Indiana residents,  56.2 percent are women and 25.9 percent are first-generation college students. 

The graduate and undergraduate commencement ceremonies at IU Bloomington will each have a featured speaker.

Pauline Yu, one of the foremost scholars in the field of Chinese and comparative literature, will address students at the graduate commencement ceremony at IU Bloomington on May 5.

Anne-Marie Slaughter, president and CEO of New America – a think tank and civic enterprise committed to renewing American politics, prosperity and purpose in the digital age – will speak at the undergraduate commencement ceremony at IU Bloomington on May 6.

Tamika Catchings, a superstar on the basketball court and an inspiration in the community, will be the featured speaker at the campuswide Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis commencement ceremony May 14.

Commencement information by campus:

IU Bloomington graduate commencement ceremony: 3 p.m. Friday, May 5, in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, 1001 E. 17th St., Bloomington. The campus will award 2,498 graduate degrees.

IU Bloomington undergraduate commencement ceremony: 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday, May 6, in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, 1001 E. 17th St., Bloomington. The campus will award 6,913 undergraduate degrees, for a total of 9,411 degrees.

IUPUI, 1 p.m. Sunday, May 14, at Lucas Oil Stadium, 500 S. Capitol Ave., Indianapolis. The campus will award 6,919 degrees, including 1,594 Purdue University degrees. The degree total include 253 degrees awarded to graduates of Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, who may attend the Indianapolis ceremony as well as a separate celebration Saturday, May 13, at Columbus East High School, 230 S. Marr Road, Columbus.

IU Southeast, 6:45 p.m. Monday, May 8, in Freedom Hall at the Kentucky Exposition Center, 937 Phillips Lane, Louisville, Kentucky. The campus will award 1,019 degrees: 906 bachelor’s degrees, 99 master’s degrees and 14 associate degrees.

IU Kokomo, 1 p.m. Tuesday, May 9, at the Kokomo Event and Conference Center, 1500 N. Reed Road, Kokomo. The campus will award 643 degrees: 579 bachelor’s degrees, 52 master’s degrees and 12 associate degrees.

IU South Bend, 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 9, in the Joyce Center at the University of Notre Dame. The campus will award 1,020 degrees: 835 bachelor’s degrees, 172 master’s degrees and 13 associate degrees.

IU Northwest, 4 p.m. Thursday, May 11, at the Genesis Convention Center, 1 Genesis Center Plaza, Gary. The campus will award 643 degrees: 532 bachelor’s degrees, 47 master’s degrees and 64 associate degrees. 

IU East, 6 p.m. Friday, May 12, at the Tiernan Center, 380 Hub Etchison Parkway, Richmond. The campus will award 876 degrees: 811 bachelor’s degrees and 65 master’s degrees.

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