It has been confirmed in an email sent to all graduating students that the annual graduation and conferral ceremonies will this year be conducted online, and all degrees will be conferred in absentia.
The email, sent by the conferring unit manager, states that the reason for this is “the current restrictions around indoor gatherings from the Government” as well as general public health advice. The online events that will replace the annual physical ceremonies in O’Reilly hall are set to be a number of virtual conferring ceremonies which will be broadcast live at the times the physical ceremonies would have taken place.
The email also states that physical degree parchments will be mailed out to the recipients once the conferral unit staff return to their office, as well as confirming that all students will be sent a follow-up email in which they must consent to their involvement in the digital ceremony, and reminding students that in order to graduate they must be fully fee compliant by the 21st of August.
As no students can be physically present, the online ceremony will utilise the student record picture of each student as they are digitally conferred.