Graduation week is the highlight of the University calendar. The occasion is an opportunity for your family, friends, and those who've helped you along the way to join you in celebrating your success.
Watch Solent graduation 2024
Essential information
The 2025 graduation schedule will be published in the spring of 2025.
Where do the ceremonies take place?
All graduation ceremonies will be held at the O2 Southampton Guildhall, located centrally within the city. The postcode for the Guildhall is SO14 7LP. For further information please visit the Guildhall’s website.
How long does the ceremony last?
Each graduation ceremony lasts for approximately an hour and a half.
Will I be seated with my family?
No. Students are seated in a designated 'students only' area. This is because students are required to walk across the Guildhall stage as part of the ceremony.
What happens on the day of the ceremony?
First you'll collect your graduation gown, and then make your way over to the Guildhall to register. Registration will open one and a half hours before your ceremony, and will close 30 minutes before the start of each ceremony. You and your guests must be seated 30 minutes before your ceremony starts.
Your ceremony will begin with a welcome speech and the processional party will make their way to the stage before the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor or their representative addresses the auditorium. Graduands will be announced as they walk across the stage, where they'll shake the Chancellor or Vice-Chancellor's hand. Once all graduands have been announced, the processional party will leave the stage.
Where will I park?
Unfortunately car parking isn't available on campus. Details of parking in the city can be found on the Southampton City Council website. For further information about travelling to Southampton, including maps and alternative car parking information, see our find us pages.
Where can I go for refreshments?
Following your ceremony, you are invited to join your fellow graduates at the post-graduation reception in the marquee in Guildhall Square. This is an excellent opportunity to meet up and celebrate with everyone involved in your studies.
Contact us
If you have any queries about the graduation ceremonies, please contact us:
Email: graduations@solent.ac.uk
Assessments and Ceremonies Team: 023 8201 3500
Stay connected, stay Solent for life
Once you graduate, you'll become a fully-fledged member of the Solent alumni community. This is a network of over 75,000 talented individuals around the world, all with a special connection to our University. If you undertook your course at Warsash Maritime School, head over to your Warsash alumni community here.
As part of this global community, you can take advantage of a range of exclusive benefits, including:
- Discounted gym membership with Solent Sport.
- Continued access to the library
- 20% off postgraduate tuition fees if you return to study with us.
- Careers advice for life
- Free alumni ID card
In the meantime, join your online alumni community
Follow us on social media and #SolentForLife to get updates on the latest events and opportunities:
Don't forget, 15 months after you finish your course, we will be contacting you to find out what you have been up to since leaving Solent. Keep an eye out for the Graduate Outcomes Survey. So, whether you're freelancing, running your own business, undertaking postgraduate study or in your first job, make sure you shout about your success.
Finally, if you'd like to take home a memento of the time you spent at Solent, head to our stand during graduation week, where we'll have a range of alumni merchandise on offer. You can also buy this online.
Careers help for graduates
Solent Careers has a commitment to continue to support students when they finish their studies and after graduation. The services offered by the team include one-to-one advice and guidance, continued access to Solent Careers Online, and access to a large employer network through our jobs board.
If you would like advice on your career options and opportunities, or just need some help with CV writing or interview techniques, there are a number of tools that you may find useful, including Solent’s CV and application guide.
You may have used Solent Careers Online when you were a student. Solent Careers Online is the careers and jobs website designed specifically for Solent's students and graduates. Why not use Solent Careers Online to:
- Sign up for job alerts and apply for graduate positions
- Take self-assessments for career development
- Use Score My CVÂ to help improve your CV
- Use Interview 360 to prepare for interviews
Final year students need to change to graduate access before you leave university to get continued access to Solent Careers Online - you can do this any time during your final year.
Start-up business support – we offer impartial advice and practical help on freelance work and setting up a business. Find out more.
You can contact the team by emailing careers@solent.ac.uk
Master your future with a postgraduate course
Did you know that here at Solent we offer a variety of postgraduate courses so you can carry on studying the subject you love, or diversify your knowledge and learn something new that can complement your undergraduate studies. Our courses include architecture, business, computing, creative arts, film, health and sport, maritime, marketing and communications, project management, and more. Besides improving their academic qualifications, our alumni have said that their postgraduate studies:
- Improved their confidence in presenting and decision making.
- Enabled them to make better use of the networks available to them through the course and University.
- Taught them more self-discipline.
- Reshaped their thinking by acquiring a professional mindset.
- Fine-tuned the skills they learnt at undergraduate level.
As an alumni you can benefit from our alumni discount with 20% off your course. Student Finance England also offer a postgraduate loan which you can use towards your fees or living costs.
If you want to find out more, check out our postgraduate pages or book on a postgraduate open day.
