Graduation and Convocation

Eligibility

Students must:

• successfully complete all courses and program requirements for graduation, and
• file an Application to Graduate (by the deadline date) during their graduating semester or year.

Students may file an Application to Graduate even when they have an account hold for unpaid fees or debts. If eligible, students will still be able to graduate and attend Convocation ceremonies. (Please see Grade and Transcript Withholds for more information.)

Final Cumulative Grade Point Average

On graduating, a student's program Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) is final. Students cannot upgrade their program CGPA after graduation.

Application

Students enrolled in their final course, year or semester of their program must apply to graduate by the correct deadlines. See Significant Dates section of this calendar.

Students apply to graduate online at: my.ryerson.ca (opens in new window)  (RAMSS). Detailed instructions are on the How to Apply to Graduate (opens in new window)  support page.

Students can confirm that Ryerson has received their application by checking "View my Graduation Status" in RAMSS. (See Tracking your Application to Graduate Status (opens in new window) .)

There is no fee to file an Application to Graduate by the deadline date. There is nonrefundable late fee of $50 to file an Application to Graduate during the late period. See Significant Dates section of this calendar.

RYERSON WILL NOT ACCEPT APPLICATIONS TO GRADUATE AFTER THE FINAL DEADLINE.

Cancellation of an Application to Graduate

Students may cancel their application to graduate before the deadline published in this calendar. Students must use the  (PDF file) Application To Graduate - Cancellation Form (pdf) (opens in new window) . If the student does not cancel their Application to Graduate before the deadline, the assessment and approval for graduation will proceed;  Ryerson will then award the degree or certificate.

Minors

To graduate with a Minor, students must complete the requirements for both their major and minor (or minors) concurrently. Students who wish to declare a Minor do so as part of their Application to Graduate. (See "How to Select a Minor (opens in new window) ".)  

Students who are eligible to graduate from a degree program but are ineligible for their chosen minor (or minors) will still graduate with the degree.

Ryerson does not print Minors on the graduation award document. Minors are recorded on the student’s official transcript.

Graduation Document Reissue

Graduates who wish to have their original graduation document reissued (opens in new window)  should complete a Graduation Document Reissue Application form, available online at https://www.torontomu.ca/forms. The fee for replacement of the graduation document is $70 (subject to change).

To be eligible for their program’s graduation award, as authorized by Senate, students must have met the following academic requirements:

1. Successful completion of all courses in the program’s curriculum with at least a minimum passing grade (or a non-graded course credit) in each course; AND
   
   
2. Achievement of a cumulative grade point average of 1.67 or higher in graded Ryerson courses; AND
   
   
3. Completion of the program’s curriculum within a time span from first enrolment to graduation that normally does not exceed the number of years calculated as follows:
   
   (a) for full-time programs, the maximum number of years is the number of years scheduled for full-time study after admission multiplied by 2 (typically 8 years);
   
   (b) for full-time co-op programs, the maximum number of years is the number of years scheduled for full-time study (including co-op semesters) after admission multiplied by 2 (typically 10 years);
   
   (c) for part-time degree programs, the maximum number of years is the number of single-term courses required (or equivalent) divided by 3;
   
   (d) for part-time certificate programs, the maximum number of years is 6.
   Under extenuating circumstances, students may be granted permission by the Dean of the relevant Faculty or School to extend these time limits. In order to graduate, a student will be required to meet the academic requirements in effect when the extension is granted or such alternative requirements as may be stipulated by the Program, School or Department in keeping with Ryerson’s academic policies.
   
   Students should be aware that even though they may not be attending Ryerson for one or more semesters, they continue to use up their time span calculated to complete their program of study; AND
   
   
4. Completion as a Ryerson student enrolled in the program, studies that normally include at least the final one half of the program’s curriculum;
   
   (a) All applicable degree-credit level continuing education courses may be used to meet Ryerson degree requirements;
   
   (b) Students enrolled in (or who have graduated from) Ryerson degree or diploma programs, may qualify for Continuing Education certificates only through the completion of additional (beyond the requirements of their degree or diploma). Continuing Education courses representing at least one-half of the requirements of the certificate in question;
   
   Students should be aware that some certificates are restricted to students enrolled in, or graduated from, certain degree programs; AND
   
   
5. Must have been formally admitted to, and enrolled in the program for which the award is sought.

Students should be aware that some certificates are restricted to students enrolled in, or graduated from, certain degree programs.

Students pursuing a Continuing Education Certificate must complete 50 percent of the required number of courses as a registered Continuing Education student enrolled in the certificate program. At least 50 per cent of the courses must be taken over and above the student’s degree/diploma studies.

Besides fulfilling the university-wide graduation requirements listed above, students in the following programs must fulfill added requirements to be eligible to graduate:

• Child and Youth Care
• Midwifery
• Nursing - Collaborative and Post-Diploma Programs
• Nutrition and Food
• Social Work

For details about these Graduation Requirement Variations, students should refer to the associated program sections of this calendar.

Students graduating from an undergraduate degree or diploma program with an overall cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or higher will graduate "With Distinction" and will have this academic distinction recorded on their transcript and graduation award.

Given changes to Ryerson program curriculum from year to year, out-of-phase students who are still within their allotted time span, may not be subject to the curriculum requirements presented in the CURRENT Calendar.

Students must complete the curriculum for the years they attended from first approval, unless stated otherwise.

For example, full-time students first approved to 1st Year in Fall 2013, will follow a pattern like this:

Students must ensure that they meet all other graduation requirements.

Ryerson may consider for re-admission, into the CURRENT curriculum, students who have exceeded their time span. The university will base the decision to re-admit on determinants including, but not limited to:

• Major curricular change within a program
• Degree designation change (ex, from a Bachelor of Arts to a Bachelor of Commerce)
• Number and availability of courses that remain to be completed from the original program

The Graduation Ceremony, known as Convocation, takes place twice a year in the Spring (typically early to mid-June) and in the Fall (typically late October).

Complete details including ceremony dates, tickets, receptions and guest information are available on the Convocation Office website (opens in new window) .

Graduation award documents will be presented to students who attend their convocation ceremony. Student who do not attend the ceremony may pick-up their document on campus or arrange to have it couriered. Complete details can be found on the  (opens in new window) Curriculum Advising website (opens in new window) .

Please note that all outstanding fees owed to the University must be cleared in order to receive the award document (this applies whether students attend Convocation or they are graduating in absentia). See Grade and Transcript Withholds in Tuition, Fees and Policies.

A graduation award document is an official university-issued document. Only one original award document may exist and it must reflect the student's correct personal legal/official name.

All reissued award documents will be produced using current Ryerson University graphics, printing standards and signatures. Graduates from Ryerson Polytechnic University, Ryerson Polytechnical Institute or Ryerson Institute of Technology will also have their graduation award document reissued under the name of Ryerson University.

The application form for Graduation Award Document Reissue is available on-line in the  (opens in new window) Office of the Registrar's Forms for Students page.