Graduation FAQs

If you have a query you can’t find the answer to online then don’t hesitate to contact us by email at academicawards@dmu.ac.uk, or by phone on +44 (0)116 257 7307 (Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm).

The lead up to the ceremonies is a busy time for the team and we will do our best to respond to you as quickly as possible.

Each ceremony lasts around an hour and a half.

No, just the level and title of award.

Full names are also read out as they appear on the student record system, we do not announce nicknames or abbreviations.

Certificates are issued at the ceremony. Students who are not attending the ceremony will have their certificate posted to the permanent address registered on their student record at the university. If you believe this is incorrect, email us as soon as possible at academicawards@dmu.ac.uk with the title ‘Change of Address’. We will need your P number and course title too.

All academic tuition fee debts to the university must be cleared in full or you will not be able to graduate. Please clear any other debts such as accommodation, library or AV equipment charges.

Payment plan arrangements for tuition fees agreed with the university will not permit attendance at the graduation ceremony until academic tuition fee debts are cleared in full.

Student enquiries about paying debts can be directed to income@dmu.ac.uk.

You can still book your place at the ceremony but you must clear the tuition fee debt before the ceremony in order to be permitted to graduate.

Library books can be returned on the day of your ceremony at the Kimberlin Library or taking them along to Curve Theatre where you can drop them off at the registration desk.

All graduands must wear the university’s full academic dress, hired in advance of the ceremony. The university's appointed graduation robe partner is William Northam Ltd who supply the hire of the university's official DMU branded graduation robes.

Your Graduation ceremony is a formal event, and we ask for all graduating students and guests to dress smartly. As a general guide, the dress code is similar to attending a formal wedding. Graduation gowns are black with an open front and a short sleeve length and the hood colour will vary depending on the subject and level of study, however the dominant hood colour is amber-gold, gold. Read more information and see photographs of academic dress at DMU on our web pages. Guests are also expected to dress smartly for the occasion. We highly recommend you wear comfortable shoes as there will be a lot of walking around the Curve building but also the journey from the train or car may be some distance.

We kindly request that students and guests do not wear jeans, shorts, flip flops or other very casual clothing items which are not appropriate for graduation. We reserve the right to refuse entry to graduands who are dressed inappropriately.

Collecting your robe from Rehearsal Rooms 4 and 5 on the second floor is the first thing to do on arrival at Curve Theatre. To manage crowd congestion, we ask that guests do not accompany students when they collect their robe. You will be able to meet up with them afterwards in Rehearsal Room 1 for photographs (if needed) or in the Café and Bar areas on the ground floor.

The photography studio is located along with robing at Curve Theatre on level 2; it can be very busy, with some queueing to be expected at peak times throughout the day. Most students will have time to collect their robe and have their photos taken; however, if you are running short on time, just collect your robe and make your way to Student Registration on the ground floor of Curve Theatre. You can always return to photography to have your photo taken after the ceremony.

Please note that photographers will also be capturing informal pre- and post-ceremony photos of students and guests. These will appear on the university’s Facebook page.

We recommend you arrive at least an hour and a half before your ceremony begins.

Robing, photography and registration timings

Ceremony start	Robe collection and photography	Student Registration	Ceremony finishes (approx.)
10am	From 8am	From 8.30am	11.30am
2pm	From 10.30am	From 11.30am	3.30pm
5pm	From 2.30pm	From 3.30pm	6.30pm

• Photography will close at 5pm for ceremonies that commence at 2pm and 7 pm for ceremonies that commence at 5pm each day except Tuesday and Friday when it closes at 5pm
• Student Robe returns will close at 7.15pm each day except Tuesday and Friday when it closes at 5.15pm
• Curve Theatre closes at 8pm each day

Robes are returned on the same day to the Student Returns area on the Mezzanine floor of Curve Theatre unless the hire period has been extended by agreement with William Northam.

Yes - it’s a busy day, but one we hope you really enjoy! The main points to remember for your itinerary are:

• Arrive at Curve Theatre a minimum of an hour and a half before the ceremony starts – bearing in mind how long it might take you to park (if driving) and make your way to the Curve building
• Go straight to the second floor robe collection area (Rehearsal Room 4 and 5) and, if required, have photos taken on the second floor
• Make your way to the ground floor of Curve and head for Student Registration – this is where you collect your student ticket. Registration is just to the left of the Curve Box Office
• Be in your seat 30 minutes before the start of the ceremony

Depending on how late you arrive, we will do all we can to place you in the ceremony. This is likely to mean that you will graduate out of the original order of names, but your name will still be announced.

All graduands are guaranteed two guest tickets available to them if they book their place before the online booking system closes on 16 December at 5pm.

Spare ticket capacity will then be calculated and we will release additional tickets for sale from the DMU Online Store on 20 December, staggered by ceremony, from 9am.

We stress to all students that additional tickets are not guaranteed and that students shouldn’t rely on extra ticket availability. We cannot guarantee that extra tickets – or the amount of extra tickets needed – will be available for your ceremony.

We do not issue reminder communications directly to students about additional ticket availability, this is updated on the university graduation pages on the website.

Our ceremonies often sell out, but there can sometimes be some spare available on the day. If that’s the case, they can be bought from Curve Box Office when you arrive, subject to availability. We cannot make guarantees about tickets on the day, so please bear in mind the possibility that no spare tickets will be available.

We understand that some students may be unable to meet the cost of robe hire and tickets for their guests. The University Graduation Support Fund aims to help students who face financial difficulty in meeting the costs of attending their graduation.

You may be eligible to apply for this fund, which will require submitting an application form and supporting documentary evidence to our graduation support fund

The Graduation Support Fund will open 12 noon on 18 November and closes on 16 December at 5pm. Applications received after this time will not be accepted

Graduation is a time of celebration of your achievements for you, family and friends; children are welcome to attend the ceremonies.

However, ceremonies are formal events lasting up to 1.5 hours, with moments of darkness, music, theatrical lighting and loud applause. It is not a recommended event for young children who, experience shows become restless during ceremonies.

If you wish to bring children as guests, they will need a ticket to enter the graduation auditorium, this includes toddlers on laps. Children’s tickets are £19 per child, including toddlers on laps.

Babies 12 months and under do need a ticket, please contact academicawards@dmu.ac.uk, or by phone on +44 (0)116257 7307 (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm).

Children cannot be left unattended and must be accompanied by a responsible adult at all times. The safety and well-being of children is the responsibility of accompanying adults and children cannot be cared for by DMU or Curve members of staff. Graduating students will not be able to bring children into the hall with them

Please note prams and buggies aren’t permitted in the graduation auditorium and there is a buggy park at Curve for student and guest use. Property left at the buggy park is left at the owner's risk.

Don’t make any travel or accommodation arrangements for you or your guests until all tickets are officially confirmed via email.

There is an opportunity to register any specific access requirements when confirming your ceremony place on the booking system, which will close on 16 December at 5pm. You can also email us at academicawards@dmu.ac.uk. We may not be able to accommodate special access requirements where we are only notified on the day of the ceremony.

Guests with tickets bought before 6 January 2025 will be allocated seats together

Guest tickets bought from Curve after 21 January 2025 are not allocated seats together so consider for guests that need accompanying. If you require your guests to sit apart from each other, email before 09 January 2025 academicawards@dmu.ac.ukwith the reason for this. While we will consider your request, we cannot guarantee guests are separated.

Yes, they can be viewed on YouTube and the DMU graduations homepage. There’s also a screening room in Rehearsal Room 2 on the Mezzanine Floor.

Yes. We publish the full names of all graduands, whether they attend the ceremony or not. This is listed in the Graduation Brochure. Degree classifications are not published.

Graduation is a formal event, and student names are read out in full as they appear on the degree certificate. We are not able to abbreviate names or announce nicknames at the ceremony.

Drinks and snacks can be bought from the Green Room Café at Curve, which is open from 8.30am.

Pre- and post-ceremony drinks can be bought from the Stage Door Bar inside Curve.

There are two main entrances into the building, found on Halford Street and Rutland Street – there is level access from both entrances.

There are toilets on all levels of the building. There is also a Changing Places Toilet with adult changing table and assistive hoist.

A buggy park is available for prams and pushchairs, left at your own risk. Please note that space is not available to store large bags or luggage.

A Prayer Room is available in the Mackintosh Dressing Room on the Mezzanine Floor.

In the immediate area of Curve Theatre the following places might be of interest:

• Exchange Bar
• Chutney Ivy
• Sixes Social Cricket

For more information about places to eat, drink and where to stay, see Visit Leicester.

Yes but you do have to notify us please as we don’t automatically invite students to the next schedule if they do not attend. If you wish to attend a future ceremony then reply on the booking system by 16 December at 5pm and we will defer the invitation to the next ceremonies.

Sorry we can’t accommodate these requests, as students are allocated to the ceremony linked to their course and completion date and it’s not possible for us to relocate students based on friendship groups.

Please see our dedicated guidance web page.

Leicester is a busy city and the centre can be quite congested so please allow time for this and plan your journey accordingly. The car parks nearest to Curve are:

• Rutland Centre Car Park Multi Storey (use satnav LE1 1TQ) Operated by NCP and located next to Curve, visitors can park in the NCP Rutland Centre car park for a reduced fee, covering parking from 9am to midnight on the day of your visit. There are 7 disabled bays. Present your parking ticket at Curve Box Office, Green Room Café or the Stage Door Bar during your visit and it will be validated. Please note there are likely to be queues to enter the NCP Rutland Centre during busy periods and spaces may be limited at peak times. The discounted rate doesn’t apply in the short stay NCP Rutland Centre Car Park just behind the multi storey.
• Newarke Street (LE1 5SN) Operated by Leicester City Council and around 20 minutes walking distance from Curve
• St Nicholas Circle (LE1 4LF) Operated by NCP, there are 5 disabled bays and around 20 minutes walking distance from Curve
• Welford Road (LE1 6RT) Operated by NCP there are 5 disabled bays and around 25 minutes walking distance form Curve
• Highcross John Lewis Car Park (LE1 4QJ) Operated by Highcross Leicester there are 70 disabled bays and around 30 minutes walking distance form Curve