DIPLOMA INFORMATION
Distribution (Pick-up/Mailing)
Problems
(i.e. diplomas not received/damaged)
CONTENT, DIMENSIONS AND MATERIAL
NAME PRINTED ON DIPLOMA: Your name will be printed on your diploma in exactly the same manner as it is currently listed in your SIS/Cougar Trail file. Students can view their unofficial transcript via Cougar Trail to see how their name is listed. Corrections to the name (e.g. adding the full middle name or a suffix) on the diploma must be requested prior to the diploma order (approx. 8 weeks before graduation) to avoid an additional charge*. Contact the Graduation Assistant for help. A Name or ID Update form and documentation (i.e. Social Security Card) with verification of your legal name may be required. The name on your diploma must match what is on your official record at the College of Charleston.
*If we have already ordered your diploma and you want to reorder it with a modification, you will need to request the name change and then order a replacement diploma and pay the current fee required.
SEAL/RIBBON: Included in the mailing tube with your diploma will be a satin ribbon and the gold foil seal of the College of Charleston . Also included is a document detailing how these items should be placed on the diploma. If any item is missing or damaged you may contact our office for a replacement.
MAJORS/HONORS: Your major(s) and Latin honors (if applicable) are listed on your diploma. AB (Latin) diplomas will not have the major listed. Minors and concentrations are not printed on the diploma but will be on your transcript. New information regarding earning more than one degree is available on our website or in the 2008/09 undergraduate catalog.
DIMENSIONS/MATERIAL: College of Charleston undergraduate diplomas are among the largest in the country at 20”h x 16”w. Our diplomas are made of archival quality parchment paper – not sheepskin.
SIGNATURES: The diplomas are signed* by the Chair of the Board of Trustees, the President and the Provost and also by the current school deans and department chairs.
*facsimile signatures printed on each diploma
DIPLOMA IMAGES:
DISTRIBUTION (PICK-UP AND MAILING)
Diplomas for spring and fall term graduates will be available for pick-up on designated days following commencement. These dates/times will be announced on the Senior Information website during the graduation term. Diplomas for Maymester/Summer term graduates, and those not picked up by fall/spring term graduates, will be mailed to the Graduation Address 4-8 weeks after the designated pick up dates. Diplomas will not be available to graduates who have an account balance at the College of Charleston.
To avoid delays in receiving your diploma, please make sure your account is current and that your Graduation Address is correct before you leave the college.
MAILING INFORMATION: When you applied to graduate, you were asked to list a Graduation Address. This address should be an address where you can receive mail up to 12 weeks after graduation. It is the address where your diploma will be mailed if you can not pick it up during the designated pick-up dates*. Diplomas not picked up are automatically mailed to the Graduation Address on file 4-8 weeks after the pick-up dates. You can change any address via Cougar Trail EXCEPT for your Graduation Address.
All diplomas are mailed in 18” x 2” cardboard tubes via first class US postal service, including those mailed outside the USA . Included in the tube you will find your diploma, a satin ribbon, the gold foil seal of the College of Charleston and a letter with instructions for ribbon/seal placement.
*Spring/Fall diplomas only—Maymester/Summer diplomas will be mailed
How to update your Graduation Address
• Graduation Update form (available online and in our office)
• Address Update form (available online and in our office)
• Email to Graduation@CofC.edu (For security reasons, address updates can only be made via email if you use your student Edisto email account.)
Students should check their Graduation address on Cougar Trail before leaving the college to ensure accuracy.
PROBLEMS
(i.e. diploma not received/damaged)
DIPLOMA NOT RECEIVED (Account Balance): Diplomas will not be released to graduates who have an account balance with the college. Graduates should direct questions about late fees, payment options and account balances to the Treasurer's Office. Direct diploma or graduation fee questions to the Graduation Assistant.
Diplomas will be released once the account is paid in full. Diplomas will be mailed to the Graduation Address on file once the balance is paid unless other arrangements are made in advance by the graduate. It is the graduate's responsibility to contact our office for the release of their diploma after payment is made and to make any needed updates to the Graduation Address. Contact the Graduation Assistant for information on the availability of diplomas being held for a past due balance.
DIPLOMA NOT RECEIVED (Wrong Address): If a diploma is returned to sender, we will remail it once we have an updated Graduation Address on file. If there is a forwarding address on the return, we will mail it there. Otherwise, updates to the Graduation Address can be made by Email* or by submitting either the Change of Address or Graduation Update Form. These forms are available on our website and in our office.
If a diploma is returned with no forwarding address the Graduation Assistant will make every effort to get the diploma to the graduate but ultimately it is the responsibility of the graduate to contact our office to give us the needed information for remailing or to come by and pick it up.
* For security reasons, when emailing our office, please use your student Edisto email account.
If the diploma is NOT returned to sender, the graduate did not receive it and the graduate did not make an effort to update the address or have his/her mail properly forwarded with the post office, he/she may order a Replacement Diploma. The current fee for one diploma is $25.00** and the form is available on our website.
If the address on file was correct but you have not received your diploma within six weeks of mailing, first try contacting your local post office to see if they have it. If that is not successful, you may contact* the Graduation Assistant for assistance.
DIPLOMA DAMAGED OR MISPRINTED: If your diploma is damaged in the mail or printed incorrectly and the error was ours, (i.e. it was correct on Cougar Trail/SIS but was misprinted), you may return the diploma to us and we will order a replacement at no charge. The graduate should contact our office to request a replacement diploma.
If the diploma was damaged by you or your framer, or it was printed incorrectly and the error was yours, (i.e. you did not check or change the name prior to graduation) you may submit a Diploma Replacement Form. You will need to pay the $25.00** replacement fee (you do not need to return the original diploma). Please allow 6-8 weeks for processing.
* For security reasons, when emailing our office, please use your student Edisto email account.
** Fee must be submitted with the form--Contact the Treasurer's Office for available payment options. Fees subject to change without notice.
Alumni may order another copy of their diploma by completing and submitting the Diploma Replacement form, which is found on our website. The current fee for replacement of one diploma is $25.00*. Diplomas are printed on current stock and may differ from the original. We do not offer reduced size copies of the diploma. Please allow 6-8 weeks for processing.
*Fee must be submitted with the form--Contact the Treasurer's Office for available payment options. Fees subject to change without notice.
Employers, consulates or other entities can order a Degree Verification from the National Student Clearinghouse. The information for ordering one is available on our website. If problems are encountered, or if diploma authentication is needed, please contact our office for help.
Diplomas are ordered by degree: Bachelor of Arts-BA, Bachelor of Science-BS, Artium Baccalaureatus-AB. Students will get one diploma* per degree per term of graduation. If a student completes two (or more) majors on the same degree in the same term, all majors will be included on the one diploma. There are no exceptions to this rule. Degrees earned for each major are listed in the undergraduate catalog. Minors, concentrations, cognates, etc. are included on the transcript but are not listed on the diploma.
If a student completes 2 degrees* (or 2 majors in differing terms), 2 diplomas will be ordered*. Students who receive 2 diplomas will be charged an additional $8.00 (total graduation fee will be $33.00).
Beginning with the 2008/09 catalog, additional diplomas will not be ordered for students completing a 2nd major in a different term as the first; the 2nd major will be noted on the transcript but a second diploma will not be ordered. Students under the 2008/09 catalog who choose to complete requirements for 2 degrees but have less than 152 earned hours, will receive one diploma. Contact our office to discuss any unusual circumstances regarding diplomas for multiple majors or degrees.
*2007/08 catalog and earlier; New information regarding earning more than one degree is available on our website or in the 2008/09 undergraduate catalog.
Email: GRADUATION@COFC.EDU
(For security reasons please use your student Edisto email account for student specific inquiries)
Voice: (843)953-5231 or (843)953-5668
FAX: (843)953-6560
Mailing Address: Registrar's Office – Graduation Area, 66 George Street, Charleston, SC 29424
Physical Address: Registrar's Office, 160 Calhoun Street, Suite 281, Charleston, SC 29401
Last updated 08/26/08