St John's College Oxford

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• How many tickets can I get for my guests?
  You can request up to three tickets to enable your friends and relatives to attend the ceremony, except for certain dates when the limit is two (i.e. the College-specific degree day in May and July ceremony). Please advise your guests that they should arrive at the Sheldonian not less than 20 minutes before the ceremony is due to start. Please note that tickets are allocated by the University’s Degree Conferral Office, and College has no possibility on acquiring more tickets – so please do not ask us. The University has asked us to point out that as the ceremony is long and formal it is not suitable for children under the age of seven.
• What should I wear?
  You should wear the robes (gown, hood, and cap) of your current status with subfusc. For men this should be a dark suit and socks, black shoes, white shirt and collar and white bow tie. Women should wear a dark skirt or trousers (and dark coat if desired), white blouse, black tie, black tights or stockings and black shoes. Stiletto heels are not allowed, so as to protect the flooring in the Sheldonian. Please bear in mind that if you are not dressed as the regulations require you are likely to have to forego being presented for your degree in person. The Proctors have particularly asked Deans of Degrees to enforce the dress-requirement for ceremonies and they have instructed the Bedels not to grant admission to the ceremony any graduands who are not in the correct academic dress. After being admitted to their new degree, the new graduates re-enter the Sheldonian in the gowns and hoods of the degree they have just taken. The College does arrange for a member of College staff to attend outside the Sheldonian with the gowns and hoods for the degrees which the graduands are about to take; it would be proper to offer a gratuity for this service (£5 is thought to be reasonable).
• Where can I hire/purchase the academic dress?
  Robes can be hired/purchased from: Shepherd & Woodward, Ede & Ravenscroft and Walters of Oxford. Please see their links on the right of this page.
• When do I receive my degree certificate?
  If you confer your degree in person, you will be able to collect your degree certificate from the lodge on the day. If you confer in absence, the certificate will be sent to you by recorded delivery to an address which you confirm with the College Office. If you have changed your name since matriculation, please see the University's Degree Certificates page (the link is on the right-hand side of this page).
• Will there be any celebrations?
  The College offers lunch in the SCR to graduands before the Dean of Degrees and graduands set off to the Bodleian. For reasons of space the invite doesn’t extend to family and friends. However, you and up to three guests are cordially invited to a Tea Party at St. Giles House after the ceremony. If you do not want to lunch before the ceremony, please let College Office so that we can organise an alternative arrangement to sign the Register and meet up with the group before the ceremony.
• What happens on the day?
  This is the typical timetable of a (smaller) degree day: 12.20 pm – Meet the Dean of Degrees in the SCR and sign the Register 12.45 pm – Lunch (if requested) with fellow graduands (no family or friends, sorry !) 2.00 pm – Proceed to the Sheldonian 2.30 pm – Ceremony 4.00 pm – Tea Party with family and friends
• Can the College provide accommodation?
  The College has limited facilities for overnight stays – please get in touch with the Alumni Office to arrange a room (the link is on the right-hand side of this page).
• Is there any parking available in College?
  No, there are no parking facilities in College. You are best advised to use Park & Ride as public car parks in Oxford tend to be overcrowded on the weekend. Please see the Visiting St John's link (on the right-hand side of this page) for advice about getting to St John's.