Paying for graduation

[jellybe]

Just want a little moan about having to pay for my graduation. After paying my uni 10s of thousands of pounds in tuition fees over the last 3 years I have paid to day for my graduation ceremony. Almost 200 pounds for tickets and robe. Is this normal or is my uni particularly cheeky? AIBU to be annoyed about this?

My uni was the same, and I felt the same about it!

Glad it's not just me!

The fee for the robe does not generally go to the university- they are usually hired from an external company. Not all universities have a graduation fee, the one I recently retired from doesn’t and graduates and their families are invited to a reception with Prosecco and canapés. I would be pretty annoyed to pay to graduate.

Yeah the robes I don't mind so much but having to pay for tickets for my family to be able to come and celebrate with me stings a bit.
Wish my uni was like the one you worked at.

Went to my son's last year and he didn't pay. NTU.

Some universities are on a financial knife edge, so the cost of graduation, particularly if they don’t use their own graduation hall, is probably significant, to be fair.

I think you normally pay for the robes and photos but never paid for anything else. Did the University have to hire anything for the ceremony?

I didn't go to either of my graduations for this reason. But the first offered a separate photo session for non-attendees so could still get the photos (which is the only bit you really want at a graduation ceremony anyway)

At my uni it's a fee for the paperwork etc. The tickets are free. You could graduate in absentia and it would cost the same.

Same, it's so annoying. My uni also downgraded graduation from Royal Albert Hall, then festival Hall at southland to a small theatre in a Surrey border Borough, still expensive for students though and such a cheek! We also had to pay a studio levy annually to use the studio (arts degree).

Southbank*

The University I work at has to hire an external space and security for our graduations. The costs of this are eye watering. We do not charge students for themselves and two family members to attend. All children are free. We do charge for additional guest tickets on a first come, first served basis. Gowns and photos are offered by a separate company. We offer free packages for gowns and photos to students who are care experienced or from the poorest families (as identified by SLC). We get a small commission from sales. Nonetheless running graduations still costs us approx £500k p.a after this is taken into account.

I didn't go to mine, got my certificate for free.

When you factor in travel and accommodation if you've moved back home or elsewhere it gets very pricey.

South Bank Polytechnic used to hold their ceremony at Southwark Cathedral which was rather lovely.

Hiring spaces is expensive

The uni where I did my MSc does not charge any postgrads or undergrads to attend graduation. You do have to wear academic dress - and as most of us don't have gowns and hoods, that means renting them. I think I paid £50 to hire a gown and hood, was posted to me a week before and I sent it back afterwards. No charge for guest tickets, we were allocated two each.

Uni put on a small reception after the ceremony with wine, soft drinks and little cakes.

Paying for robe hire has always been a thing, tickets for the ceremony is a bit cheeky though. But universities are struggling these days

I seem to remember that we could buy different levels of stuff. Basic was ticket for ceremony and gown/hat hire.
Photos were extra. Could buy champagne reception, a meal, or just hors d’oeuvres etc.

I didn’t pay for either of mine (2000 and 2023) but can understand why some universities do. Guess it’s going to become the norm which is a shame when you think of how everything else about the experience from start to finish you have to pay for. But the graduation tickets being free always felt like a bonus (I know that they’re not technically free and the uni’s have factored the cost with the tuition fees).

Graduation ceremonies are optional. You are still just as much of a graduate if you don't go.
Universities do not make any profit. Absolutely zero, by definition.
The day costs the university an enormous amount of money to put on. The cost of tickets is unlikely to cover all the costs. The cost of hiring a gown is set by the private company hiring them out.
Universities are having to deliver education at a ridiculously low price. If the original ceiling set in 2012 had kept pace with inflation fees would be £13,320 per year now. Everything is already cut to the bone, do you really want the actual education experience cut to the tune of a further £200ish so that the fripperies of graduation can be included in the main price rather than an optional extra? That doesn't seem like graduate-level logic to me.

Some unis are obviously more grabby than others. I've just done a MA and I didn't have to pay anything for the graduation bar the hire cost of the gown.

Luckily I went to a uni local to me so I didn't have to up root the kids or factor in living away during the week/ when out on placement. Though this is going to be something a lot of my cohort will have to take into account as we qualified back in January and are having our graduation in September.
I think if the uni was having to hire a specific venue etc. it wouldn't be as annoying. But they aren't.

Totally get unis are cut to the bone now days and it is different from when I got my first degree in the early 2000 it just rankles. 🤷‍♀️

I graduated over 10+ yrs ago from a uni in London and had to pay. I thought everyone does.

I’ve never had to pay for tickets for a graduation! The robes are all hired from a private company though so that’s always cost.

It is usual to pay for the gown, photos and additional tickets.

Some charge for all tickets and some have free ones.