What if I can't attend my scheduled ceremony – can I defer to a later date?

Graduands who can't attend their scheduled ceremony can request to defer their graduation to a future congregation, by selecting the deferral option on the form by the registration deadline for their congregation.

We cannot guarantee deferral requests that are made after the registration deadline.

Deferral arrangements can only be made when registration opens for your congregation and invitations have been sent out.

Our deferral policy

You can only choose to defer your graduation ceremony once.

Deferral cannot be offered after your graduation ceremony has taken place.

Deferral is not offered to summer congregations.  Students who defer will be invited to register for the winter congregation following their original scheduled ceremony.

When will I receive my certificate if I defer?

If you defer you will receive your certificate at the time of your deferred ceremony, according to the procedures that are in place for that congregation.  You can request a verification of award letter if you need evidence of your degree before your certificate is available.  See our Certificates and transcripts webage for further information.

When will my deferred ceremony take place?

Deferrals from the July 2025 and January 2025 congregations will be to the February 2026 congregation.

When you register to defer you are not automatically registered for the deferred congregation.  You will need to register again when your receive your new invitation email for your deferred ceremony. 

The invitation email will be sent to your home email address as registered in Student Info, so please make sure it is kept up to date.  See our Invitations page for information about updating your email address.

Details about the February 2026 congregation will be posted on the Graduation website as and when available.