Frequently Asked Questions

Application Process

The Office of the Registrar does not give out diplomas on the day of the ceremony. Diploma orders will be placed in mid-January and mailed to your address on record in Bulldog Connection. Diploma orders will only be placed for students that have fulfilled all academic and financial obligations.
If you request a name change more than 7 days after the graduation application deadline, you will be required to complete a Replacement Diploma Form and pay a fee. You also will be required to submit to the Office of the Registrar official documentation to support the change of name.
Yes. All students, whether planning to participate in the ceremony or not, have to apply and pay all fees to be academically reviewed and cleared by the Office of the Registrar.
Yes. You can be cleared for graduation and participate in commencement, but you will not be able to have your diploma mailed to the address on file.
No. You must reapply for graduation, but you will not be required to pay an additional graduation fee.
Notification of graduation review status will be posted to your Bulldog Connection account.
- After logging into your Bulldog Connection account, click on Self-Service > Degree Progress/Graduation. Statuses will show as Approved, Pending, Review, or Denied based on review.
- Pending meaning you are on-track to graduating and finishing up remaining requirements/waiting on final grades
- Approved meaning you are officially cleared for graduation: all grades are posted and all academic requirements are completed.
- In Review meaning our office is waiting on more information from you your department – communication will be sent to you if there is information that we need from you
- Denied meaning degree requirements have not been met. Communication outlining next steps will be sent to you if you have a denied status.
- Statuses will not show as Approved until final grades are posted.
- Students will not receive their diplomas until all Academic and Financial obligations have been met.
- Information regarding diploma distribution and final transcripts will be sent out in the weeks following commencement. For summer graduates, this information will be sent out shortly after the summer term ends.
- Summer graduates who have not previously participated in commencement will be invited to participate in the fall ceremony. In the fall, email communication will be sent to the personal email addresses that we have on-record.
For guaranteed approval to participate in commencement, you must have a Pending or Approved graduation status.

If your status is Denied, you can request permission through Academic Affairs to participate in commencement if you meet the following criteria:
- You have successfully applied for graduation in the term that ceremony participation is being requested
- No more than two outstanding courses are needed (typically 6 credits) for degree completion
- Outstanding courses must be completed within one academic year following the graduation ceremony
For more information, refer to the Office of the Registrar's Applying for Graduation webpage. For additional questions, please contact registrar@bowiestate.edu.

Cap & Gown

Please visit the online Herff Jones store.
Check your Bulldog Connection account to view your graduation status. For more information, refer to the Office of the Registrar's Applying for Graduation webpage.

Regalia will be shipped to your home if you choose to order it. Regalia is not required to participate in the virtual ceremony.
Regalia will be shipped to your home if you choose to order it. Regalia is not required to participate in the virtual ceremony.
You need 60 or more Bowie State credits to be considered for Latin Honors. However, a transfer student who has earned 30-59 semester hours at Bowie State University and has a GPA of 3.5 or above will graduate with Academic Recognition.

Please note that because final grades are processed after commencement and the commencement program is published prior to the ceremony, Latin Honors and Academic Recognition listed in the program are tentative, pending the submission of the final grades of that term.

Students that do not have Latin Honors at the time that the commencement program is published may end up meeting the criteria after. It will be recorded on the transcript and diploma. Students that do have Latin Honors or Academic Recognition at the time of the commencement program being published may change to a higher or lower level afterwards, depending on the student’s final GPA.
Honor cords will be distributed on the morning of graduation at check-in with your name cards.

Tickets

The building maintains state and federal capacity and fire code guidelines to ensure the safety of all guests. Tickets are required for everyone (including infants and children) to ensure compliance with safety protocols. Children 2 years and older require a ticket.
Each graduate will receive:
- Five (5) tickets for guests attending the ceremony at the main ceremony location (see Venue, below)
- Two (2) tickets for guests attending the ceremony at the satellite locations
Digital tickets only are available.
Digital tickets will be delivered via email.
Commencement tickets are not for sale. Tickets should not be sold by any BSU student or official. Students are encouraged to contact other graduates who may not use their full allotment of tickets. BSU is not responsible for facilitating this exchange.
For safety reasons and fire code regulations that require an accurate count of everyone in the building, children 2 years and older require a ticket.

Parking

Each graduate will receive three on-campus parking passes for commencement day. Two parking passes for guests and one parking pass for the graduate. For all other guests, parking will be available at our convenient satellite lots, with a shuttle service to transport them to campus. Parking passes grant the ability to park on campus on a first-come, first-served basis. A campus map can be found here.

Once campus reaches its parking capacity, guests will be directed to park at one of three Satellite Parking Locations listed below.
- Marc Train Station
- Jericho Park – 9510 Laurel-Bowie Rd., Bowie, MD 20720
- Horsepen Park – 8609 Race Track Rd., Bowie, MD 20715
- Saddlebrook East Community Park – 8311 Race Track Rd., Bowie, MD 20715
A shuttle service will be provided for guests from the Satellite Parking Locations to Bowie’s campus, running every 15 minutes, from 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

No parking will be allowed on 197 (Laurel-Bowie Rd.) and Jericho Rd.

Venue/Ceremony

Commencement ceremonies are held on the campus of Bowie State University.
- The main location for spring commencement ceremonies is the Bulldog Stadium. [#10 on the map]
- The main location for winter commencement ceremonies take place in the Leonidas S. James Physical Education Complex. [#7 on the map]
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Center [#29 on the map]
- Student Center Theatre [#20 on the map]
The ceremony will last approximately two hours.
We do not have a secure area for your personal belongings. We encourage you to leave all personal items with family members or friends attending the ceremony. The university is not responsible for lost or stolen items. See our policy regarding what bags are permitted in the venue.
You will be able to request transcripts online beginning Monday, Jan. 12, 2026.