Family, Friends & Guests

Guests must have a ticket with a unique scannable QR code to enter Trask Coliseum. Guests can either print the ticket or display the ticket via a smart device to be scanned at an entrance gate. Guests without tickets will NOT be admitted into Trask Coliseum.

We recommend sending guest tickets directly to each invited guest via their personal email. If you send more than one ticket to the same email address, they will arrive in separate emails.

Doors will open one hour before each ceremony start time. 

Each graduate is offered a limited number of guest tickets for their assigned commencement ceremony. Ceremony allotments are based on a multitude of factors, including the number of eligible graduates and the venue capacity. 

Graduates are notified of their allotment approximately 3 months in advance of the ceremony.

Graduates are guaranteed this number of tickets but they MUST be claimed through the RSVP process. Graduates who fail to complete their RSVP by the deadline forfeit their guest ticket allotment. Once the RSVP deadline has passed, tickets are no longer guaranteed for graduates.

Once the Graduate RSVP Deadline has passed (usually early October for Fall and early April for Spring), all remaining guest tickets will become available for graduates to claim. The additional claim window will open at a set time. This time will be shared with graduates via email with instructions on the additional claim process.

There is not a waitlist or request list for tickets. All tickets are managed through the Commencement Registration Account where graduates submit their RSVP. 

All attendees aged three and older must have a ticket, including current UNCW students who wish to attend the ceremony. Children under the age of three (3) who will sit on a guest's lap during the ceremony do not require a ticket. Graduates do not require a ticket. 

For detailed instructions on obtaining a visitor visa for family members who would like to attend Commencement, please contact the Office of International Students and Scholars. 

Contact the Office of International Students and Scholars

Flowers and Class T-shirts will be available for purchase outside of Trask Coliseum. Families and guests may pre-order flowers for pick-up outside of Trask Coliseum prior to each ceremony.

Pre-Order T-shirts & Flowers