Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Education, Master of Philosophy and Taught Master Degree programmes

You must settle all outstanding fees/charges/library liabilities before collecting your award certificate. Otherwise, the University will withhold the issuance of all types of academic documents to you (including Statement of Results, Award Certificates and Transcripts).

The following table illustrates the Certificate Collection Period for graduates with the respective graduation dates:

Students graduating by the end of	Date/Period of Approval by Academic Board (AB)	Graduation Date^Note1	Certificate Collection Period^Note3
Semester 1	By 31 March	31 March	Late April to Early May^Note4
Semester 2	By 31 July	31 July^Note5	Mid of August
Semester 2	By 31 August	31 August^Note5	Mid of October
Summer Semester^Note2	By 31 October	31 October^Note5	Mid of November ~ Early December (to be confirmed)

Notes:

The “Graduation Date” would be adopted formally as the issuance date and printed on the graduates’ award certificates. The Graduation Date, as approved by AB, is irreversible and irrevocable.
Applicable to all programmes, including those with a lengthened Semester 2 extending to the summer (e.g. some individual students who have outstanding courses for completion in the Summer Semester to graduate.
Details of the arrangement of certificate collection will be released nearer the time by the Registry.
Details of the arrangement of certificate collection for graduates of 31 March will usually be announced by the respective Faculty/Department/School within 4-6 weeks after the graduation date (i.e. 31 March).
For students of Taught Master programmes graduating by the end of Semester 2 with programme end date ended on or before 30 June, you are allowed to declare your Graduation Date preference (either ‘31 July’ or ‘31 October’ only), or for those with programme end date ended within July, you are allowed to declare your Graduation Date preference (either ‘31 August’ or ‘31 October’ only), according to your study/ career/ employment reasons:
- Your programme office will announce the declaration arrangement during a stipulated period (normally in March).
- Once your preference for the Graduation Date is accepted and recorded, or when the declaration period (normally between mid-April to mid-May) is ended, the approved Graduation Date is irreversible and irrevocable and will be printed on your award certificate accordingly.*
  *Example: A graduate who has declared 31 July/31 August as his/her Graduation Date is not allowed to change it to 31 March or 31 October. Similarly, a graduate who has declared 31 October as his/her Graduation Date is not allowed to change it to 31 March, 31 July or 31 August.
- For students who do not express their preference during the declaration period, the Graduation Date will be set according to their graduation semester, i.e. "31 July" or "31 August" (depending on the respective programme end date) for Semester II and "31 October" for Summer Semester.
- Statement of Results (SoR) will be released within 14 days after the AB meeting date. For students who had chosen 31 October as their Graduation Date, the release day of their SoR will be scheduled between September and October, depending on their Faculty/Programme Office’s submission of graduation list to AB for approval.
- For any questions on the graduation schedule or programme/ academic advising needs, please approach your programme office/ department for assistance. Any late reply on the declaration of Graduation Date after the stipulated period will not be entertained.
The dates listed above are based on the dates/periods by which the AB would approve the recommended graduation list for respective programmes submitted by the Faculty Board/Board of Graduate Studies according to the Grade Release Schedule announced on the Registry website.
If students would like to apply for their Transcript of Studies, they should note that their Graduation Date will only be shown on the transcript after AB’s approval of their award is sought.
Students who have Graduation Date as of 31 July should be reminded that their student status will simultaneously expire on 31 July regardless of the expiry date printed on their EdU card. Upon the expiry of the student status, you will not be able to access the University’s Portal (including iWork) and all facilities, including the library, the Learning Commons, the Amenities and Sports Complex, the university shuttle service, and hostels, etc.

Last Update: Feb 2024