UC Berkeley Mathematics will be holding its
2025 Commencement Ceremony on
Friday, May 23, 2025 at 2pm in Zellerbach Auditorium
Speaker: Shafi Goldwasser, Research Director for Resilience Research Pod, Simons Institute and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at UC Berkeley
Musical Performance: Math Orchestra of Berkeley
UC Berkeley Mathematics is pleased to announce that we will be hosting an in-person commencement ceremony to celebrate our 2025 graduates on Friday, May 23, 2025. All Department of Mathematics undergraduate and graduate students graduating in Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Summer 2025, and Fall 2025 are cordially invited to participate. We hope you will join us to recognize our students' wonderful achievements!
How to Register for Commencement
Undergraduate Participants:
Undergraduates who wish to participate in the 2025 Mathematics Commencement ceremony are required to first complete the Mathematics Undergraduate Exit Survey, which will then provide the link to the 2025 Mathematics Commencement Registration form; advance registration is required to participate. Both the Exit Survey and Registration form must be completed by Sunday, April 27th. Students who register by the April 27th deadline may receive up to two free guest tickets.
Registration Summary:
Step 1: Complete the Mathematics Undergraduate Exit Survey, which will provide you with a link to the 2025 Mathematics Commencement Registration Form
Step 2: Complete and Submit the 2025 Mathematics Commencement Registration Form. You will receive an email confirmation and copy of your registration form after you’ve submitted the form.
Graduate Participants:
Graduate students must complete the Graduate Student Commencement Registration Form to participate. The deadline to register is Sunday, April 27th. Students who register by the April 27th deadline may receive up to two free guest tickets.
Ticket Information
Registered undergraduate and graduate participants are eligible to receive up to two free guest tickets. Graduates will not need a ticket for themselves to enter Zellerbach Auditorium. Pick-up dates and times for complimentary tickets will be sent to graduates directly.
Additional guest tickets wil go on sale at 12 Noon (PT) Friday, April 18th. They will be $8 each and can be purchased through Cal Performances at tickets.berkeley.edu; the direct link to the Mathematics Commencement ticket page is linked here. We do not impose a limit on the number of tickets that can be purchased per graduating student. All guests, including infants/children, will need a ticket to enter the venue; for children 5 and under please select a "Child" ticket, which is offered at no charge. All tickets are General Admission; seating is acquired on a first-come-first serve basis.
Guests can also purchase tickets by phone (510) 642-9988 and in person at Zellerbach Hall during regular business hours. The Box Office's regular business hours are Tuesday-Friday, 12:00pm-5:30pm, Saturday-Sunday, 1:00pm-5:00pm; the Box Office will also be open the day of the ceremony so guests can also buy tickets upon their arrival, but we recommend purchasing your tickets in advance as ticket availability may be limited the day of the ceremony. We encourage you to order your tickets online as phone lines and the ticket window have been quite busy due to Cal Performances' 2025-26 season announcement and sales. Tickets purchased online will be delivered by email only. Mail and will call delivery methods are not available.
Students should email tickets@calperformances.org(link sends e-mail) if they have not received their E-tickets or if they have any general questions.
Venue Information
The Mathematics Commencement Ceremony will be held in Zellerbach Auditorium. For information on visiting the venue, please see their website: https://calperformances.org/visit/venues/zellerbach-hall/.
On The Day of The Ceremony
All graduates participating in the ceremony must arrive at Zellerbach no later than 12:30 pm, but no earlier than 12:00 noon. There will be a mandatory meeting of the graduation procession scheduled to begin promptly at 1:00 pm in Cross Sproul Path.
We expect doors to open for guest seating at 1:00 pm (to be confirmed).
The ceremony is expected to last approximately 1 hour, 45 minutes. An outdoor reception will immediately follow the ceremony in front of Zellerbach Auditorium.
Ceremony Live Stream & Recording
For guests who cannot attend in-person, the Department of Mathematics plans to provide a live stream and recording of our commencement ceremony. The link to the livestream will be posted on this website.
Graduation Regalia
The ceremony begins with a formal procession of faculty and students. Therefore, all students are required to wear regalia (cap and gown). If you have questions or concerns about this requirement, or if graduation regalia presents a barrier to your participation in the ceremony, please contact Vicky Lee at vickyalee@berkeley.edu.
Undergraduate Regalia
To rent graduation regalia, and to purchase stoles, diploma frames etc., please visit the Graduation Department of the Cal Student Store (located on Sproul Plaza).
For Departmental Honors
The day of the ceremony, the Mathematics Department will gift honors cords to students who have met or who are projected to meet the three requirements for Departmental Honors: 1) An overall grade point average of at least 3.3, 2) An upper-division major GPA of at least 3.5, and 3) completion of Math 196 or completion of two graduate courses with grades of at least A- in each. Departmental honors will also be noted in the commencement program. If you have questions about your eligibility for Departmental honors, please contact one of our Undergraduate Advisors, Thomas Brown (brown@math.berkeley.edu), Marsha Snow (snow@math.berkeley.edu), or Hanh Tran (hanhmtran@berkeley.edu). Students expecting departmental honors should indicate such in the commencement registration form.
Graduate Regalia
The Mathematics Department will gift graduate student participants with a PhD or MA hood. Students must either purchase or rent their gown and tam/cap. The gown and tam can be purchased in-person from the Cal Student Store (located on Sproul Plaza); make sure to buy the items separately rather than in the set (since a fine quality hood will be provided). If you want to purchase a "fine quality" gown and tam, you can check out, Phinished Gown, or CapGown, which are online retailers.
Phi Beta Kappa
Membership in the Phi Beta Kappa (PBK) honorary society will be noted in the commencement program. Students who have joined PBK should indicate such in the commencement sign-up survey. Criteria for PBK membership can be found here.
Your Diploma
Diplomas will be mailed to your CalCentral “Diploma Mailing Address” approximately 4 months after the end of your graduation term. See here for instructions on updating your diploma mailing address. Once your diploma has been prepared, you will receive it in the mail free of charge.
Undergraduates needing proof of graduation prior to receiving their diploma can find information on options for degree verification on the Office of the Registrar's website.
Graduate students needing a certificate of completion will receive one automatically after completing the dissertation filing process. The Graduate Office can also provide a degree verification letter on department letterhead. If you encounter issues with receiving a degree certificate or would like a verification letter from the department, please contact Clay Calder at jccalder@berkeley.edu.
Photographer
GradImages professional photographers will be taking pictures of graduates at our commencement this year. Pictures should be available to view, share, and order online within a week following the ceremony.
Flowers
Guests wishing to buy flowers for their graduates will be able to do so in front of Zellerbach Auditorium.
Parking
Information on commencement day parking is available here.
Special Seating and Other Accommodations for Guests
To request special guest accommodations, please fill out our Accommodation Request Form by Sunday, April 27th. We will be in touch with more details and will do our best to accommodate your needs.
If you would like more information about campus accessibility and physical access features, please go to dac.berkeley.edu.
More questions?
If you have any additional commencement questions, please contact Vicky Lee at vickyalee@berkeley.edu.
The Berkeley Mathematics Faculty and Staff can't wait to celebrate this special occasion with you all!