Before You Graduate
Graduation is a formal event and there are important things you need to do before the big day:
- Register to attend
- Request your guest tickets
- Notify us if you have any special requirements
- Order your regalia
Please read through the details below so you’re prepared and ready to enjoy graduation day.
Please read the Graduation Guide for full details about arrival times, guest tickets and regalia orders and collection.
Once you’ve successfully completed your programme, you'll receive an email from Ara advising you of this and inviting you to register for graduation. You'll then need to complete the online graduation form to register for your ceremony.
Once we receive your graduation registration form, we’ll send you further details regarding the ceremony, including how to order your regalia.
Registration for Autumn Graduation closes on 12 February 2024.
Registration for Timaru Graduation closes on 5 February 2024.
All graduates receive their qualification by post, regardless of attendance at a graduation ceremony. When you cross the stage at graduation, you’ll receive a ceremonial parchment scroll.
It’s very important that you register on time, before registrations close. If you have any trouble with logging in or accessing the graduation web portal, please get in touch with us straight away so we can help – you can email us at graduation@ara.ac.nz or call us on 0800 24 24 76.
Unfortunately, we cannot accept late registrations.
If you do miss the deadline, you can defer your graduation to our next ceremony (February 2025 for Timaru, September 2024 for Christchurch). Please email graduation@ara.ac.nz to let us know if you would like to defer.
You don’t need a ticket for yourself. All graduates are entitled to at least three tickets free of charge to the graduation for friends and whānau. You request these when you register for graduation, and your tickets will be available when you collect your regalia for Timaru, or from the venue on the day for Christchurch. Tickets are general admission only (not reserved seating).
If you would like to request extra tickets, you can also do this when you register for graduation. We try our best to accommodate these requests, but unfortunately this is not always possible as there is limited availability. Extra tickets will not be confirmed until after registration closes (this is so we can ensure all graduates receive their guaranteed tickets).
You can only cross the stage on Graduation Day if you’re wearing the official regalia.
You are responsible for ordering your own regalia which you need to do through GWC Regalia Hire who own and maintain the regalia for Ara ceremonies. An order link will be emailed to you approximately six weeks prior to the ceremony.
You will also need to collect your regalia from GWC the day before graduation. For more information, see all of our Regalia FAQ’s.
When you apply to graduate, please ensure you select the qualification you wish to graduate under. You will then be able to order the regalia associated with that qualification. Graduates receiving multiple awards will not cross the stage twice in one ceremony.
If you can’t attend your graduation ceremony, that’s ok. Attendance at graduation is optional. You will still receive your qualification in the mail. You can also choose to defer your attendance to another ceremony date. You may only defer to a future ceremony once. If you can’t make the following ceremony, we can’t hold your place for a future ceremony.