DIPLOMA INFORMATION  

DIPLOMA DISTRIBUTION (PICK UP AND MAILING) 
Spring || Maymester/Summer || Fall || All Terms

DIPLOMA NOT RECEIVED 
Account Balance || Wrong Address

DIPLOMA REPLACEMENT || DEGREE VERIFICATION || MULTI-MAJORS
CONTENT, DIMENSIONS AND MATERIAL || CONTACT 

SPRING (term 1):  Spring graduates can pick up their diploma at the Registrar's Office (Lightsey Conference Center, 2nd Floor) the week following commencement in May. Exact dates and times will be available on the Senior Information website. A photo-ID is required for diploma pick up and only you, the graduate, can pick up your diploma. Spring term diplomas not picked up are mailed to the Graduation address in June.

MAYMESTER/SUMMER (terms 2-6):  Diplomas for students who graduate in one of the MM/SS terms will be mailed to the Graduation address as follows:

Maymester (Term 2) diplomas are usually mailed in mid-July

May Evening/Summer I Day (Terms 3-4) diplomas are usually mailed in early September

Summer Evening/Summer II Day (Terms 5-6) diplomas are usually mailed in mid-October

MM/SS graduates may contact the Graduation Assistant* to arrange for diploma pick up if desired.

FALL (term 7):   Fall graduates can pick up their diploma at the Registrar's Office (Lightsey Conference Center, 2nd Floor) in early January after the holiday break. Exact dates and times will be available on the Senior Information website. A photo-ID is required for diploma pick up and only you, the graduate, can pick up your diploma. Fall term diplomas not picked up are mailed to the graduation address in January.

ALL TERMS:   Students should check their Graduation address on Cougar Trail before leaving the college. 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.

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 blue satin ribbon, a gold foil seal and a letter with instructions for ribbon/seal placement.

*Send email to: Graduation@CofC.edu . For security reasons, please use your student Edisto email account to contact our office.

DIPLOMA NOT RECEIVED (Account Balance)  

Diplomas will not be released to students who have an account balance with the college. Students should direct questions about late fees and account balances to the Treasurer's Office but all diploma or graduation fee issues can be directed to the Graduation Assistant.

Diplomas will be kept in our office for at least one year after graduation and can be released once the account is paid in full. It is the student's responsibility to contact our office for the release of their diploma after payment is made. 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 student but ultimately it is the responsibility of the student to contact our office to give us the needed information for remailing or to come by and pick it up. Diplomas returned to sender will be kept in our office for at least one year.

If the diploma is NOT returned to sender, the student did not receive it and the student 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 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, please contact the Graduation Assistant for assistance*.

*Email to: Graduation@CofC.edu --For security reasons, when emailing our office, please use your student Edisto email account to contact our office

DIPLOMA REPLACEMENT 

If your diploma is damaged in the mail or printed incorrectly and the error was ours, (i.e. it was correct on CougarTrail/SIS but was misprinted), you may return the diploma to us and we will reorder it at no charge.

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 complete and submit a Diploma Replacement Form . You will need to pay the $25.00 replacement fee and may keep both diplomas. Contact the Treasurer's Office for available payment options. Please allow 8-10 weeks for processing.

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 a replacement diploma is $25.00. Diplomas are printed on current stock and may differ from the original. Please allow 8-10 weeks for processing.

DEGREE VERIFICATION  

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, please contact the Graduation Assistant for help. We do not notarize diplomas nor do we have them reduced in size.

MULTI-MAJORS 

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. 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 is $33.00).

CONTENT, DIMENSIONS AND MATERIAL 

Included in the tube with your diploma will be a blue satin ribbon and a gold foil seal. 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.

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 – not sheepskin.

Your major(s) will be listed on your diploma if your degree is BA or BS. AB (Latin) diplomas will not have the major listed. Minors and concentrations are NOT printed on the diploma but will be on your transcript.

Your name will be printed on your diploma exactly the same way 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. Changes to the name on the diploma must be requested prior to graduation to avoid an additional charge. Contact the Graduation Assistant for help. A Student Name Change form and documentation with verification of the name may be required.

This is an example of what the CofC Undergraduate Diploma looks like:

TO CONTACT THE GRADUATION ASSISTANT—SEND AN EMAIL (preferably from your Edisto email account) to: GRADUATION@COFC.EDU OR CALL (843)953-5231