Commencement activities include both ticketed and unticketed events. This helps ensure that all graduates are able to include loved ones in celebrating their accomplishments. Events requiring tickets:
Wednesday, May 22 (Class Day):
- GSD Awards Ceremony and Class Day Address
- Each graduate receives up to three guest tickets
- Each graduate will receive a special credential for ceremony access and will not need a guest ticket of their own
Thursday, May 23 (Commencement Day):
- Morning Exercises in Harvard Yard
- Each graduate receives up to two guest tickets
- Each graduate will receive a special credential for ceremony access and will not need a guest ticket of their own
- GSD Diploma Ceremony
- Each graduate receives up to three guest tickets
- Each graduate will receive a special credential for ceremony access and will not need a guest ticket of their own
- GSD Luncheon
- Advance registration is required
We maintain wait lists for Class Day and Commencement Day ceremonies, but cannot guarantee additional tickets becoming available. Ceremonies are live webcast and viewable from Piper Auditorium in Gund Hall.
Additionally, “standing room only” access is available for the GSD Diploma Ceremony and for the GSD Awards Ceremony and Class Day Address. “Standing room only” guests wait in a separate line until ticketed guests have entered. These guests are not guaranteed a seat, but are welcome to sit if chairs are still available.
For both GSD ceremonies, a ticket guarantees a seat. Please note that for the Harvard Yard ceremony on Thursday morning, a ticket guarantees entry to the Yard but does not guarantee a seat.
Graduates receive information on registering for tickets over the graduating students email list, generally in late March or early April.
Key events, including the GSD’s Diploma Ceremony, the GSD’s Awards Ceremony and Class Day Address, and the Harvard Yard university-wide ceremony, will also be available by live public webcast for anyone unable to attend in person.
The GSD’s webcasts will include live English captions. Simultaneous automated translated captions will be available on separate links in multiple languages. These can be viewed on cell phones by those attending in person, as well as being available for remote viewers of the livestreams. Languages will include Chinese – Traditional, Chinese – Simplified, Greek, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, and Spanish; additional languages may be added with advance request.
Guest access to the Harvard wireless internet network can be accessed at the guest wifi information page.
The GSD’s Class Day and Commencement ceremonies will be held in the Gund Hall back yard (Gund Garden).
- The ceremonies will take place outdoors, primarily on grassy terrain, under the cover of a tent.
- Guest seating is general admission, aside from seats in the section reserved for those with accessibility needs and their companions.
- Ceremony speakers will use microphones and speak from a podium.
- Live webcasts with captioning, including translations, will be available to view on personal devices.
- Restrooms are available inside Gund Hall prior to tent entry, and within the ticketed tent area in the form of portable bathrooms, including a wheelchair accessible unit.
Graduates will have the opportunity to request modified arrangements for guests who are elderly, disabled, attending with babies, or have other specific access needs to fully participate in the events. Guests who need modified arrangements should discuss their needs with their graduate. The GSD’s Commencement team also coordinates any accessibility arrangements needed for our graduates or their guests at the Harvard Yard ceremony on the morning of May 23.
Some of the accessibility arrangements for GSD events that are available on advance request can include:
- Reserved accessible seating for graduates or guests
- Accessible parking
- American Sign Language interpreters
- Assisted Listening Devices (ALDs)
- Modified format programs (such as large print or pdf)
- Sighted guide or escort to reserved accessible seating
Hotels and bed-and-breakfasts in the Cambridge area will become fully booked well in advance of Commencement. Because there are many other colleges and universities in the Greater Boston area with their own graduation festivities at the same time of year, it can become challenging to locate places to stay as the date gets closer. We recommend making reservations for guest lodging as soon as possible. If possible, we advise making reservations that can be cancelled later on, when booking early.
Check not only hotels right in Harvard Square (which may already be booked or have high prices due to the high demand) but also surrounding locations. Guests may want to consider hotels that are located on the MBTA public transit system, which opens up areas of Boston and other nearby communities, such as Somerville, Medford, Arlington, and Watertown. Harvard is easily accessible on the MBTA red line subway and by several major bus routes. Public transportation options also include various taxicab and ride-share services.
The University Commencement office has created a list of some nearby hotels, which may be helpful in your planning.
