Around the country, thousands of high school and college students are donning academic regalia and preparing to move the tassels on their graduation caps, ready to move on to the next chapter in their lives. Graduation is a special and exciting time for faculty, students, and their families. It also means that your school will host the entire senior class of graduating students and their families and friends. That means you need to know how to prepare for Commencement Day.
Between finding parking, attending different ceremonies, and finding a place to meet up and celebrate afterward, an interactive map is the perfect way to ensure your school is ready to help people on the big day and turn their graduation date into a giant graduation party. This guide can help your school make graduation day a little less stressful, while helping your grads and their guests easily navigate your campus.
9 Steps to Prepare Effectively for Commencement Day
Preparing for commencement day starts as early as the graduation application and graduation announcements sent to both your seniors and their family members. The start date for learning how to prepare for Commencement Day begins earlier than you might think. But putting the right plan together helps prepare your entire campus for winter and spring commencement—long before they put on their graduation attire.
1. Start With a Commencement Planning Checklist
A detailed checklist for graduation can ensure that long before your ceremony starts, the entire campus is well-prepared to reward your students’ hard work during their years in college. It helps teams and offices manage timelines, assign responsibilities, and reduce last-minute surprises. Examples of items that might be on your commencement planning checklist include:
- An outline of the ceremonies you’re planning. Many college graduates have more than one ceremony to attend, like a main graduation for the entire graduating class and smaller ceremonies for each department.
- Timelines for when to reserve different spaces on campus. These include those needed for pre-graduation gathering spaces, the graduation fair where seniors can apply for graduation or pick up their honor cords, and more.
- An outline for the grounds crew on campus that explains what needs to be done and when to make the campus look great for students and families.
- A thorough examination of wayfinding across campus, including temporary sandwich boards that guide parents and family members to parking, entrances and exits, restrooms, and more.
- Any printed materials needed. Items include the commencement program, invitations, tickets, temporary signage, and more.
- A plan for photography, videography, and potential live-streaming. Making this an item on your ‘how to prepare for Commencement Day’ checklist ensures all the best moments of commencement are captured in the moment and for later enjoyment.
Of course, these are just some of the pieces that could be on a comprehensive commencement checklist. Treat it as your central commencement planning document that helps your campus offices plan.
2. Streamline Event Communication With Graduates and Guests
From bachelor’s degree recipients to doctoral students, everyone participating in the graduation will need to know the details of your ceremony. Create a communication plan that helps you keep all relevant communications simple and streamlined. Use email, text, and digital platforms like your website and social media.
Most of this communication must be functional, focusing on schedules, instructions, and important updates. But there is also a marketing component here. Capture the excitement of students as they prepare to walk across the stage. A mix of both can be immensely effective in engaging and informing your students.
Campus event calendar software can be immensely powerful in deciding how to prepare for Commencement Day events. It can highlight and streamline all events planned around the big ceremony, keeping all of your audience well informed throughout the process.
3. Coordinate Vendors and On-Site Logistics
No matter how comprehensive your internal teams are, chances are that Commencement Day is the one day when you’ll need to count on at least some external help. But vendor management is among the biggest challenges higher ed institutions face, a problem that can easily grow during graduation if you don’t plan ahead.
Coordinate with vendors like your staging contractor, catering, and sound or live-streaming firms early. Schedule at least one dry run with each vendor, ensuring the setup runs smoothly and supports a high-quality event experience. Don’t forget to schedule at least one post-commencement debrief with each vendor to go through what worked, what didn’t, and what can be improved next time.
4. Use an Interactive Campus Map to Communicate Key Locations
Many out-of-town visitors come in for graduation ceremonies and will not know the campus and its surrounding area very well. An interactive map can go a long way in helping to make that navigation easier.
For example, parking during graduation can be absolute chaos. An interactive map can guide visitors to the best parking options, including notes on each lot. Also, note if there is a special place for drop-offs or for oversized vehicles to park. Interactive maps can also highlight accessible parking or routes and wheelchair-accessible paths around campus.
From there, use your interactive map to highlight key locations around the ceremony. The location of the ceremony itself, a reception hosted by the alumni office, and spots to eat on and around campus can all be helpful. You can even consider highlighting nearby hotels to help visitors navigate the area and plan their weekend.
An interactive map like Concept3D can be especially beneficial as you decide how to prepare for Commencement Day. Through its multiple layers, you can build information specifically for this big event. Also, with event calendar integration, you can ensure that your commencement visitors always have the most relevant information at their fingertips.
5. Help Guests Navigate With Confidence
As they get to your campus, navigation becomes a key stressor and pain point for your guests. You need mobile-friendly directions to help them in the moment, aligned with physical signage and wayfinding tools to help your guests move between locations easily.
For example, parking in one location and shuttling to the event venue is common. Allow your guests to find the best route, even dropping a pin on where they parked to find their way back. For attendees choosing to take public transportation or ride share, designated pickup and drop-off locations for ride-sharing apps can help with congestion and traffic on campus. Finally, live-updated shuttle options labeled across campus can make the process easier.
Interactive campus maps are also a great way to show visitors what’s on and around campus. It can even help people orient themselves long before they arrive. That allows them to navigate confidently, making the most of their day.
6. Showcase the Full Experience With Custom Categories
When it comes to how to prepare for Commencement Day, it’s not just about the basic functionality. Through custom map layers and icons, you can also highlight plenty of pieces surrounding commencement that enhance the experience for your graduates and make the day more memorable. Examples of areas that you can highlight through these features include:
- Food trucks and refreshment areas
- Photo booths and professional photographer stations
- Locations for departmental celebrations
- Alumni engagement tables and events
- Your bookstore and any pop-up shops to buy graduation gifts, like diploma frames
You can even use your interactive map to encourage visitors to explore campus beyond the ceremony. Small self-guided tours might just be what visitors need during their exciting day.
7. Highlight ADA-Compliant Routes and Accessible Seating
Accessibility has become a hot topic in higher education, both in digital and physical environments. All of your graduating seniors, as well as their families and friends, should be able to enjoy Commencement Day equally. That means part of planning has to incorporate accessibility.
Start by clearly marking your accessible pathways to the ceremony, as well as accessible parking spots. Ensure adequate seating options. Make sure that any tools you use for digital wayfinding, like your interactive map, are fully accessible. That way, all of your guests, including those with disabilities, can feel welcome and supported.
8. Prioritize Safety and Emergency Preparedness
No one wants the unthinkable to happen. But part of how to prepare for Commencement Day is planning for potential emergencies and ensuring safety measures around your commencement ceremony. The more prepared you are, the more comfortable everyone in charge will be when the big day comes.
That starts with designating safety zones around the venue. Sufficient first responders on site are crucial, as are communication protocols that outline exactly who does what, and who communicates what, should they need to be activated. Finally, train your staff to know what to do at a moment’s notice in the event of an emergency.
9. Find Fun Ways to Celebrate the Moment and Engage Guests
Last, but certainly not least, graduation day is about more than just the commencement ceremony. The more engaging you can make the event, the more memorable it will become for all in attendance. Leave a positive impression of their alma mater as they enter the next stage in their lives.
For example, you can use social media and your website to highlight student achievements and tell community stories related to commencement. You can also create photo ops with a backdrop, some creative signage, and an appearance by your mascot. Memory walls allow your senior class to jot down their favorite memory. Finally, the alumni office can host a champagne toast and other opportunities to welcome new constituents.
Don’t underestimate the promotional power of commencement. The more you incorporate marketing into how to prepare for Commencement Day, the more you can get out of it for all your key audiences.
Host a Successful Commencement Ceremony With Concept3D
There are tons of possibilities for what can happen on Commencement Day. With the right interactive campus map tool, those possibilities can turn the day into an unforgettable experience for your graduating seniors, as well as their families and friends.
With the right checklist and planning process for how to prepare for Commencement Day in place, all offices can work together to make the day successful. Want to see what a great interactive campus map looks like in action? Request a demo to see how Concept3D can create a virtual experience that lives up to the importance of graduation day, or contact us today with any questions.