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Adelphi, Md. (April 10, 2025)—���Ĵ�ý (���Ĵ�ý) has announced its schedule of worldwide graduation ceremonies and projects that it will confer some 19,000 degrees and certificates for the 2024-25 year, breaking the previous record of 16,108 set last year. 

“I am thrilled to honor our newest graduates, and our largest graduating class ever,” ���Ĵ�ý President Gregory Fowler said. “A college degree can transform the lives of working people, accelerating their career advancement and [yielding] higher earning potential. For our military-affiliated students, a degree opens new doors of opportunity both within the military and in civilian positions.” 

Military servicemembers and their dependents make up more than half of ���Ĵ�ý’s enrollment. 

 An estimated 950 students from the ���Ĵ�ý Class of 2025 will take part in traditional spring graduation ceremonies in and , where the university offers in-person and virtual courses for servicemembers, veterans and their families. At the university’s stateside Grad Walk—an in-person, walk-through celebration that centers around graduates and their guests—as many as 2,000 graduates are expected to attend. 

The new graduates join a worldwide network of more than 307,000 alumni. Fowler said it is gratifying to see how far-reaching ���Ĵ�ý’s impact is felt. �į

“Our university has a truly global footprint, and it is inspiring to think of the way we are preparing people who will leave their mark on our world,” said Fowler. 

The cascade of spring 2025 commencement activities begins in Asia, where nearly 500 students are expected to take part in graduation ceremonies. are scheduled in Tokyo on April 12, followed by a ceremony on Okinawa on April 19. On April 26, U.S. Army Garrison Yongsan will host a graduation ceremony in Korea while May 10 is slated for the conferral of diplomas for students in Guam. �į

Some 260 other students based in Europe or at active military sites will receive diplomas in a . The university coordinates with military education centers to host local graduation ceremonies in additional locations that include England, Italy, Spain and Bahrain.   

���Ĵ�ý’s final—and largest—in-person Commencement event, Grad Walk, unfolds over four days when about 2,000 graduates are expected to receive diplomas in-person at the College Park Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Adelphi, Maryland. 

Many of ���Ĵ�ý’s students pursue degrees while working full time, raising children and managing other responsibilities. They persevere despite births and deaths, job relocations and illness, and natural disasters such as hurricanes and fires. Some study while serving in active military zones. They choose ���Ĵ�ý for the scheduling flexibility offered by its online programs, its intensely student-focused support services, the ease in transferring credits from other institutions and its commitment to keeping its academic programs affordable. �į

“Our students are committed to their aspirations. Many are returning to school after years away from a classroom and we see that, in addition to acquiring degrees, the student experience expands their own personal growth and development,” said Blakely Pomietto. “Celebrating with our students at commencement is one of the most rewarding parts of my job. Not only are they changing their own lives, they are re-setting the futures of their families and, by example, showing those around them that it’s never too late to learn.” 

���Ĵ�ý graduation ceremonies are joyous events that, in the past, have included graduates receiving their diplomas with babies in their arms or family members—husbands and wives, parents and children, siblings or cousins—graduating together. 

���Ĵ�ý prides itself on innovation, and Grad Walk, a non-traditional commencement ceremony, was adopted as a temporary measure at ���Ĵ�ý’s summer 2022 graduation, its first in-person commencement ceremony following the global COVID-19 pandemic. The event allows students, one at a time, to cross a stage as their degrees are announced and their family and friends cheer them on from directly in front of the stage. 

“Grad Walk helps personalize the educational experience. We have set up the ceremony to allow families to be close to the stage, to take pictures, to cheer on their graduates,” Fowler said. 

���Ĵ�ý also hosts a virtual commencement ceremony on a special website that celebrates all graduates around the world and includes a pre-recorded charge to graduates from the president and remarks from a student speaker, as well as greetings from a member of the University System of Maryland Board of Regents. �į  

About ���Ĵ�ý 

���Ĵ�ý was founded more than 75 years ago specifically to serve the higher education needs of adults in the workforce and the U.S. military. Today, ���Ĵ�ý is the largest provider of postsecondary education in Maryland, and it continues its global tradition with online and hybrid courses at more than 175 classroom and service locations worldwide. ���Ĵ�ý offers more than 135 degrees and certificates backed by the reputation of a state university and the University System of Maryland. For more information, visit umgc.edu. �į