Graduation Resources

If your Degree Progress report indicates all requirements for your degree will be completed by the end of the semester, you are eligible for graduation and the system will apply for you.

If you are finishing, and your records still do not indicate a graduation applied status by mid-term, please contact Advising Services to evaluate your situation.

Graduation Steps

1. Log into your myMadisonCollege student account
2. Check Degree Progress report to be sure all requirements have been met for your program
3. Mid-term, check to see if you have an applied graduation status under Academic Record in your student center
4. Check your name for accuracy - if it should appear differently on your diploma, complete a Name Change Form
5. Verify your address in your myMadisonCollege student account to ensure receipt of your diploma
6. Once grades are posted at the end of the term, your course and program requirement completion will be verified by the college. If all requirements are fulfilled, your degree will be marked complete and your graduation status will be assigned to your record. 

If you are completing your degree in summer, you are automatically included in the following semester's midyear ceremony (held in December).

1. Pay your Graduation Fee through the Madison College Bookstore website. You can also pay in-person at the Truax Campus Bookstore.
2. Once you’ve paid your $20 fee, you will complete the Graduate Packet survey. This survey will let us know if you plan to attend the ceremony and how you plan to receive your graduation items. Please complete this survey regardless of your plans to attend the in-person ceremony.  
3. Pick-up your regalia from the Truax, Goodman South, or regional campus of your choice. If you are picking up your items from a regional campus, you will be contacted via phone or email when your items are ready for pick-up. If you are picking up from Truax or Goodman South campuses, you can simply stop by anytime during our open hours from 4/11/22 – 5/12/22 to pick-up your items. You will not receive an email/call if you are picking up from Truax or Goodman South.
4. When you pick-up your items you will be prompted to complete the Grad Card survey to reserve your seat at the ceremony. You must complete this survey to have a seat at the ceremony. Please Note: If you are picking up your graduation items from a regional campus you will fill out a paper copy of this survey.

You can pick up your regalia at the following locations:

• Truax Student Life Office (B1260) | April 11th - May 12th 
• Goodman South Student Life Office (109) | April 11th - May 12th
• Regional Campus Main Office | April 11th - May 12th *deadline to order is May 06th*

Graduates should check their Madison College e-mail regularly to ensure they are receiving all updates about registration and regalia pick-up. If you are picking up graduation items from a regional campus you will receive a call or an email to let you know your graduation items are ready for pickup. For Truax and Goodman South campuses, you will not receive an email, simply drop-in during our open office hours. 

If you are participating in the ceremony, you will be given the following as part of your Graduation Packet:

• Cap
• Gown
• Tassel
• Announcements
• Printed sheet of instructions
• NOTE: Any recognition cords you receive will be handed out at the ceremony

If you are not attending the ceremony, your graduation packet will include the following:

• Madison College diploma cover
• Tassel

If you have questions about obtaining the graduation packet, contact Student Life at studentlife@madisoncollege.edu or call (608) 246-6224.

General Information

• Graduates should report to the lower concourse of the Veterans Memorial Coliseum at the Alliant Energy Center for lineup activities by 4:30 p.m. Doors will open at 4:00 p.m. The graduation processional will begin promptly at 5:30 p.m.
• Tickets are not required for guests and there is no limit to how many guests you can invite.
• Guests will be directed to the general seating area in the coliseum.
• The ceremony will last approximately two (2) hours.
• Diplomas will be mailed to you in late June.
• If you have questions, please call the Student Life Office at (608) 246-6224.

Getting to the Ceremony/Parking:

• The main entrance to the Alliant Energy Center lot is on Rimrock Road. There is no charge for parking.
• Enter the Coliseum building through the East and West entrances.
• Wheelchair access to lower level (elevator) is through the West entrance!

Other

If you are not completing your degree this term, but would like to participate in the ceremony (walk only), please contact an Academic Advisor. If you are walking in the ceremony but completing your degree in a future term, you must notify an advisor no later than April 15, 2022, to have your name printed in the program.

Graduates who will be 100 percent finished at the end of the term and have an "Applied Status" for the current term in their Student Center will have their names printed in the program regardless of whether they will be attending the ceremony.

If the ceremony needs to be canceled for any reason, a WolfPack Alert will be sent. Make sure to sign up for these alerts prior to the ceremony. You can check the Madison College website for information.

The 2022 Spring Commencement ceremony will be held on Friday, May 13, 2022, at 5:30 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Coliseum at the Alliant Energy Center. Staff, faculty and administrators who wish to nominate a graduate to speak at the commencement can do so by going to Madison Matters or nominate a graduate here. Student graduates who wish to speak at the ceremony should speak to one of their instructors or mentors at the college and ask them to consider nominating them.

Staff, faculty and administrators should be sure to have the graduate’s permission to nominate him or her before doing so and verify that they WILL be a graduate for the spring term. The deadline for nominations is by end of day Monday, April 18.
 

After the deadline, all nominees will be contacted to present a speech idea to the Communication Arts faculty. The faculty will then interview the nominees with the strongest speech topic and make their decision. The graduation speaker will then be coached by the Communication Arts faculty to assist in their presentation

Academic regalia (cap and gown) are required to participate in the commencement ceremony. 

Only academic-related additions to the regalia will be allowed as follows:

• White cord: A cumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher within program of study
• Gold cord: Exceptional Service to the college and community nominated by Madison College faculty or staff
• Red, white and blue cord: Students who have served in the armed services
• Blue and white cord: TOPS College Success Program
• Pins awarded to Nursing 
• Medallions awarded to Honors Program students
• The gold stole of Phi Theta Kappa as well as the silver stole for Sigma Alpha Pi Society of Leadership and Success
• Other items signifying Phi Theta Kappa Membership, including ceremonial tassel, cord, or medallion
• Stoles distributed by TRIO and by Center for International Education for International Students representing their country of origin
• Stoles and cords distributed as part of the Scholars of Promise program 
• Yellow and blue tassel: Delta Alpha Pi International Honor Society
• Other college distributed adornments approved by Madison College

• Tasteful adornments to the cap limited to the representation of the degree being granted

Madison College reserves the right to deny, change, modify, add or withdraw the above dress policy.

Academic Honor Awards

• Candidates for Academic High Honor Awards must attain an overall program grade point average of 3.75.
• Graduating students become eligible in two-year programs by achieving a 3.75 GPA after completing 75 percent of the total program credit requirements.
• Graduating students in one-year programs become eligible by achieving a 3.75 GPA after completing 50 percent of the total program requirements.

Candidates are designated on the graduation program and wear a white cord at the graduation ceremony. Final determination for awarding of Graduation Academic Honors is made at the time of program completion and includes the graduates maintaining a 3.75 GPA in the program. Students who achieve this program GPA will have a special designation included on their diploma.

Special Service Awards

Students demonstrating extraordinary service to fellow students and the college are nominated for the Special Service Award. These nominees will have demonstrated leadership in student government, clubs and/or participated voluntarily in college-sponsored educational or recreational activities. Selected students will be designated on the graduation program and will wear a gold cord at the graduation ceremony.

Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society

Graduating students who are members of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society for two-year colleges wear gold stoles and tassels at the graduation ceremony. Membership is by invitation only and students must maintain a cumulative 3.5 grade point average.

Military Veterans Service Awards

Madison College honors its graduating military veterans by presenting them with special red, white and blue cords to wear during the commencement ceremony. Please join us in thanking them for their dedicated service to our country.

Commencement Ceremony Live Broadcast

Anyone who is unable to attend the commencement ceremony can watch the live broadcast (link available Friday, May 13 at 5:30 p.m.). If you have a slow internet connection or have problems viewing the primary link, please use the backup video broadcast link (available Friday, May 13 at 5:30 p.m.). After choosing the link, you will be presented with either the video page or a page recommending you download software. Note that this will only be live on a computer and not on any mobile device or in the Chrome browser.

If you are not able to watch the commencement ceremony live, an on-demand video will be posted approximately one hour after the end of the ceremony.

PAST COMMENCEMENT VIDEOS

2019 Spring Commencement Video

2018 Midyear Commencement Video

2018 Spring Commencement Video

2017 Midyear Commencement Video

2017 Spring Commencement Video

2016 Spring Commencement video

2016 Midyear Commencement video

Associate degrees or diplomas are issued when you:

• Complete the required curriculum both in hours of attendance and in terms of achievement
• Have obtained satisfactory achievement (C or 2.0 grade point average) in their major field subjects
• Have maintained an overall C or 2.0 grade point average in the program and;
• Are recommended by the department instructors and the dean/chairperson of the division

Twenty-five percent requirement: At least 25 percent of the credit requirements necessary for obtaining a diploma/degree in any program must be taken at Madison College. In some situations, a higher percentage of core courses are required to be taken in residence. Check with the division office for information.

Verify Your Status

You should run your Degree Progress report (previously called an advisement report), to verify you have completed, are in progress with, or are registered for all course requirements. You can view your Degree Progress report by logging into your myMadisonCollege student center, navigate to Academic Progress and select Degree Progress Report. You can view the report as a summary or download a PDF. If all courses are satisfied or in progress, you will automatically qualify for graduation.

Degrees/Diplomas

Associate degrees/diplomas are mailed six to eight weeks after the semester or summer session ends and graduation is confirmed by your school office. If you receive any grades of incomplete or have other deficiencies on your records, your associate degree, diploma or certificate will be sent at the end of the semester during which all obligations have been satisfied. If you had terminated your attendance for a semester or more, you may be required to meet the current graduation requirements of the program in which you re-enrolled.

Additional Degree/Diploma

Only one diploma/degree may be awarded at a semester commencement. To obtain an additional diploma/degree, you must:

• Meet all of the requirements of the second diploma/degree
• Meet Madison College graduation requirements
• Acquire a minimum of 25 percent of the second degree/diploma credit requirements of new, additional credits in residence (for example, if the second program has 64 credits, a minimum of 16 credits must be taken in residency while meeting the requirements above.

Any exceptions to these policies shall be approved in writing by the dean of the school in which the program or second degree/diploma is offered (refer to the Credit for Prior Learning page).

Certificates

Certificates are not included in the commencement ceremony, with some exceptions. The certificate credential is not a degree, therefore, you complete a certificate, not graduate from it. 

You must apply and be admitted to a certificate in order to be awarded a certificate. At least 50 percent of the credit requirements necessary for obtaining a certificate must be taken at Madison College. Certificates are mailed six to eight weeks after the semester or summer session ends (either after the course work has been completed, or the term admitted if courses were completed prior to application/admission to the certificate).

If you have terminated your attendance and have been discontinued, you will be required to re-apply to the certificate, and must meet the current requirements of the certificate.