YOUR GRADUATION
Graduation is a significant milestone for every student and is an opportunity for the University to formally recognise your accomplishments. We are excited for you to join us at this special time with family and friends, who can watch from near and far to celebrate your achievements. Below, you will find further information about preparing for graduation, booking tickets, ordering academic robes and watching the ceremony live online.
GRADUATION FAQS
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
UCEM graduation ceremonies are held in the Concert Hall within Reading Town Hall, Blagrave Street, Reading, RG1 1QH.
General parking is not available at the Town Hall. However, there is on-street disabled parking adjacent to the main entrance and several large car parks within walking distance.
30 January 2025 and 31 January 2025
Your invitation will be sent to your home email address on 2 October 2024. This invitation will also include a direct booking link for the ceremonies. It is therefore essential that you keep your home email address up to date on the VLE.
In order to be eligible to attend the winter ceremony, your award needs to be confirmed between 11 April 2024 and 1 October 2024. Students who requested to defer from July 2024 are also eligible.
If you are unsure when your award will be confirmed, please visit the My Assessment page on the VLE.
You must register via the Ede and Ravenscroft portal following receipt of your invitation on 2 October 2024. You will be able to do this until 12:00 on 4 November 2024 when booking closes.
Please check that your email address is up to date on the VLE. If it is correct, please contact graduation@ucem.ac.uk for further guidance.
You will be unable to confirm your attendance or buy guest tickets if you have outstanding fees. To avoid any delays, please make sure your account has been paid by 20 September 2024.
It will take 24 hours after payment before you will be able to confirm your attendance.
Following attainment of your award, you will be invited to attend the next graduation ceremony. The winter ceremonies are for awards confirmed between 11 April 2024 and 1 October 2024. Students who requested to defer from July 2024 are also eligible.
We do not produce invitation letters for visa purposes. Please contact records@ucem.ac.uk in order to request a visa support letter. Please note, we are only able to provide visa support letters for the graduate. We are unable to provide any documentation for family members or friends who may be attending as guests.
Please email us as soon as possible if you are unable to attend. Some of our ceremonies may be oversubscribed, so we will allocate your place to someone else.
Attendance at graduation ceremonies is not compulsory. The conferment of your award is made at the University College of Estate Management Awards Board and not by attending a graduation ceremony.
As a graduate you need to confirm your attendance but do not need to purchase a ticket to attend your ceremony. Once you confirm that you are attending, you will be allocated a seat at the ceremony, and a drink at the post-ceremony reception. Your name will be checked against a list of confirmed attendees on the day.
Guest tickets are priced at £20 per adult and £10 per child (under 16). Guest tickets are used for entry to the ceremony and post-ceremony reception, where you will receive a complimentary drink.
Between 16 April and 26 April 2024, you can purchase up to three tickets per graduate.
Guest tickets will be available from 2 October 2024 and 4 November 2024 via the Ede and Ravenscroft portal. If you do not purchase guest tickets between these dates, we will assume that you don’t wish to bring any guests.
If there are any additional tickets available, they will be allocated via a random ballot. You will have the opportunity to opt into this ballot when registering for graduation. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that additional tickets will be available for every ceremony. Any extra tickets will be available on a first come, first served basis, priced at £20 per adult and £10 per child (under 16). If additional tickets are available, further communications will be sent.
Please note that we are unable to keep a waiting list for guest tickets or consider any exceptional circumstances (due to venue capacity). Transfer of any guest tickets between students is not permitted.
This is a ticketless event. Your guests will be registered on the day. Please note guest tickets are not transferable between graduates.
Graduands will be seated separately from their guests and will be in the order in which their names are called to cross the stage. Each row will be directed to the stage at the correct time by UCEM staff.
Guest tickets do not have allocated seat numbers and your guests will be directed to the best available seats on the day. If your guests arrive late or separately, it may not be possible to seat them together.
If you, or any of your guests have special seating requirements, please indicate these when purchasing tickets.
To avoid disrupting proceedings, guests are asked to remain in their seats for the duration of the ceremony.
Children are welcome at ceremonies, however, from previous experience, UCEM advises that the Graduation Ceremonies are not wholly suitable for babies or young children as they are long, formal occasions. Children/babies in arms under the age of two may enter free of charge and are required to sit on the lap of an accompanying adult guest. It is not possible for children, no matter their age, to be seated with graduates so please ensure they have a chaperone with them at all times.
The University reserves the right to ask any child or adult to leave the venue during the ceremony if they are making unnecessary noise which is disruptive to proceedings or other guests. If you require a refund on any (or all) guest tickets, please contact Ede and Ravenscroft.
If you require a refund on any (or all) guest tickets, please contact Ede and Ravenscroft before 15 November 2024. No refunds will be made after this date other than for students who do not achieve their award in time for the ceremony.
Certificates will be collected once you have crossed the stage. If you choose to defer your graduation, your certificate will be sent to your home address.
We do not announce classification at our graduation ceremonies. The Deputy Vice Chancellor will announce what level of award you will receive – for example, for the award of Bachelor of Science with Honours.
The name read out at the ceremony will be your full, official name which also appears on your award certificate and ceremony programme.
However, if your name is long or difficult to pronounce, please ensure you have provided phonetic spelling via the Ede and Ravenscroft portal to assist the reader. Alternatively, you can ask for a shortened version of your name to be read out as you cross the stage.
As this is a formal event celebrating your academic success at University College of Estate Management, it is mandatory to wear academic robes. You can hire a robe and hood via the Ede and Ravenscroft portal.
If you have not confirmed your attendance and purchased guest tickets by 1 November, we will assume you are not attending and therefore will graduate in absentia. Your certificate will be posted to your home address via DHL, in the weeks following the graduation ceremony.
Terms and Conditions
Graduation policies for University College of Estate Management
The following terms and conditions relate to UCEM Graduations in Winter 2025.
By submitting a booking online, via the Ede and Ravenscroft portal, you, the graduand, agree to the following:
Conditions for attending a ceremony:
- To confirm your attendance and book guest tickets within the advertised deadlines schedule. Graduands who have not adhered to the deadline dates will not be admitted on the day. If you have not confirmed your attendance by 12pm (UK time) on 4 November, we assume you are not attending and will graduate in absentia.
- Your final award must be ratified by the Academic Board and must have been conferred at a University College of Estate Management Awards Board.
- To pay any outstanding fees in full by 20 September 2024.
- You and your guests to be seated in the auditorium at least 30 minutes prior to the start time of the ceremony. You are advised to allow 2 hours and 30 minutes to register, collect wristbands for guests, collect your gown and have photograph taken. However, if you/and or your guests do arrive after this time, staff will endeavour to accommodate you, but please be aware that this may not always be possible. Late arrivals will only be admitted at certain times and into certain areas to minimise disruption to other graduands and guests.
- The University cannot be held liable for the cost incurred of any travel arrangements made by graduates or guests.
- The University cannot be held responsible for any guest arriving at a ceremony without having purchased a guest ticket.
- As this is a formal event celebrating your academic success, it is mandatory to wear academic robes.
- Guest tickets are issued to the attending graduands and are non-transferable.
Failure to comply with any of the above terms and conditions may result in your entry to the ceremony being denied.
Additional requirements
We ask at the time of booking, any requirements for guests and graduands with additional needs, e.g., wheelchair access, sight or sound facilities, are requested on the online portal. We will make every effort to meet your requirements, however, it may not always be possible for us to accommodate particular needs, especially without advance notice.
Please note that in providing details of an individual special requirements, you consent to these details being passed to the venue to enable any appropriate adjustments to be made. Personal data will be handled in compliance with privacy law.
Cancelling your attendance/guest tickets
If you change your mind or are unable to attend please let us know by emailing graduation@ucem.ac.uk as soon as possible. Please include your student number in all communications. Please note, guest tickets are non-transferable between students.
Refund policy
If you require a refund on any (or all) of your guest tickets, please ensure you contact us before 15 November 2024.
No refunds will be made after this date other than for students who do not achieve their award in time for the ceremony.
Admittance of children into the ceremony
Children over the age of two must have their own seat and will be required to pay £10 per ticket. All children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult guest and are your responsibility. It is not possible for children, no matter their age, to be seated with graduates, so please ensure they have a chaperone with them at all times.
Children/babies in arms under the age of two may enter free of charge and are required to sit on the lap of an accompanying adult guest.
The University reserves the right to ask any child or adult to leave the venue during the ceremony if they are making unnecessary noise which is disruptive to proceedings or other guests.
Data protection, ceremony recording, online streaming and image capture statement
Please note that the graduation ceremonies of University College of Estate Management are regarded as public events.
This means that the names of graduands and subjects are published in the graduation programme and audio-visual images of the ceremony are publicly available, e.g., online streaming and ceremony recordings. Your degree classification will be included, but it will not be announced at the ceremony.
The names and awards printed in the programme and supplied to external companies are correct at the time of going to print.
We are unable to discuss details of a student’s graduation ceremony with anyone else, unless we receive written permission from the student concerned.
During the day professional photographers will be taking photographs and these may be used in the University’s future promotional literature.
We would like to inform you that the University College of Estate Management graduation ceremonies will be photographed, videoed, streamed live online and/or otherwise captured in image form. These images and video content may then be used by UCEM for publicity and promotional purposes such as film, prospectuses, advertising campaigns, websites, exhibition stands, posters, leaflets, national or local press articles, etc. It is important to note that if any images are published on the internet, they will be accessible to users from all over the world.
Due to the scale of these events, we are unable to obtain written consent from each individual attending or working at the events. Therefore, we will assume that whilst participating in these events all persons agree to their image(s) being captured for the purposes stated above.
If you object to the publication of any of your personal data or your images being used as described above, you must inform graduation@ucem.ac.uk of your objection, in writing, by 4 November 2024. Measures to manage objections are likely to prevent your full participation in the event.
Disclaimer
If the graduation ceremonies cannot take place or are delayed due to circumstances beyond the University’s control, including (without limitation:) fire; explosion; terrorist act (or threat of terrorist act); act of God; pandemic; industrial action, national mourning (any member of the Royal Family) or dispute involving the University or the venue/s at which the ceremonies and other graduation services are due to be held, the University will not be liable for any losses direct or otherwise incurred by graduates or their guests by the said cancellations, rescheduling or postponement. The University will, where at all possible, make alternative arrangements for any graduands affected, but graduands and their guests should ensure that they have sufficient insurance protection to cover any losses they might suffer as a result of ceremonies being cancelled or delayed.
Accessibility
All venues where the ceremonies will be taking place comply with current legal requirements. A first aider will also be on duty. Should a student or guest require medical assistance, please speak to a member of staff from the venue or a UCEM member of staff.
Graduate celebration week
Built for celebrating success
Graduate celebration week is an opportunity to highlight the incredible success of our graduates and congratulate you all on your hard work.
USEFUL CONTACTS
Alumni Association