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Post Offers December Graduation

Post Offers December Graduation
Photo by CHRISTINA MORGERA

Gabriella Ianiro
Staff Writer

Long Island University offers a December graduation option for its students. Many students who enroll part-time or as transfer students do not progress through their programs in the same manner as a typical full-time student might. December graduation allows students to graduate before the typical May graduation date. This gives students time to figure out their next move, career wise or educationally.
Students begin their studies at all different points of the year such as in the fall, spring or summer semesters. Therefore their completion term varies depending on when they begin, how many transfer credits they came in with and how many credits they choose to take each term.

The majority of students goes into college and do not know what to expect, what major to choose or if they are even attending the school that is most suitable for them. For many, it takes a semester or two to fully figure out what path they want to take. This sometimes sets students back, requiring them to take more time in school to meet their program requirements.

Beth Carson, LIU Post’s registrar said, “So far, we have conferred 480 degrees (in December). We have not completed the process and anticipate another 50 or so to be conferred. About 60 percent of the December degrees conferred are graduate degrees.” There are over 90 majors represented in the December conferral group.

Carson said, “These students did not necessarily graduate early. Some might have accelerated their studies by taking summer courses and heavier loads. Others planned to graduate earlier but had outstanding incomplete grades to finish. And still others were right on schedule based on when they began and the amount of coursework they needed to complete.”

Long Island University does not follow a lock-step program; for students who start at different times, the university allows for completion at different times as well. There are three conferral dates each year – one in January, one in May and one in September. LIU Post student Rebecca Martelotti thinks that this is a great policy for the university to have. “I feel that this gives students more flexibility with their schedules and allows them to do better in school since there is less stress with graduation deadlines,” she said.

Compared to last year’s December graduation class, there are just about the same amount of graduates in this year’s class.

LIU Post only conducts one commencement ceremony each year in May. Students who graduate in December are invited to participate in the May ceremony and get to walk with all of the other students. The ceremony will take place on the LIU Post campus on Friday, May 10, 2013.

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