The University of Chicago is located in Hyde Park – one of Chicago’s most vibrant and iconic neighborhoods. Information on visiting campus, including interactive campus maps and transportation information can be found at Visiting the University.

Creating a safe campus environment for our students, faculty, staff, neighbors, and visitors is our top priority. The University’s Department of Safety and Security (773-702-8181) operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week on and off campus and provides many safety resources, including specific tips for navigating campus safely.

Due to several trade shows and conventions taking place during Convocation Weekend, hotel availability in the city of Chicago will be limited. With this in mind, we highly recommend that all hotel or alternative lodging arrangements be reserved as soon as possible.

Please visit the Hotel page for a list of recommended hotels both local to Hyde Park and in downtown Chicago. Contact hotels directly to learn more about rates and availability during Convocation weekend.

For guests who plan to drive to campus, complimentary parking is available in a variety of on-campus parking lots. Due to street closures and heightened traffic, please allow extra time for your travel. More information on parking restrictions and road closures will be released in 2025.

The 539th Convocation, during which degrees are officially conferred to all graduates, will be held on the Main Quadrangle on Saturday, June 7, 2025 at 9:15 a.m. CDT.

This is a University-wide ceremony involving degree candidates from all divisions and schools. It will include the presentation of honorary degrees and an address from the Convocation speaker. Convocation Addresses consistently focus on the pursuit of knowledge and the power of ideas. The University president, A. Paul Alivisatos, will verbally confer degrees on candidates by division and school. Each division and school will host a separate ceremony where degree candidates will be honored individually through the presentation of diplomas or hoods.

The University-wide Convocation ceremony will be broadcasted for those who are unable to join in person. A link will be available in late May 2025.

The 539th Convocation will take place on the Main Quadrangle at the University of Chicago campus. The main entrance is located at 5801 South Ellis Avenue.  

The Main Quadrangle will open for general seating at 7:00 a.m. Guests are asked to be in their seats by no later than 8:45 a.m. so that they can watch the procession. Seating is first-come, first-served.  

The College and Divisions and Schools will host additional events unqiue to their units. A full schedule of events will be released in early 2025.  

Tickets are not required for the University-wide Convocation ceremony or the College diploma ceremonies, although they may be required for the individual division and school ceremonies. For questions regarding ticketing at unit ceremonies, please reach out to the division or school directly to confirm details.

Following the University-wide Convocation ceremony, candidates of the College and their guests will break off to attend a lunch, diploma ceremony, and reception that is pre-assigned by their residence hall. These lunch distributions, ceremonies, and receptions all take place simultaneously in various locations throughout campus. A full schedule will be released in early 2025.

For more information on The College activities, please visit this page: The College (All Undergraduates). 

Each division and school will hold their own ceremony. A full schedule will be released in early 2025.

cAlert is the University’s emergency notification system. In a life-threatening situation that requires immediate action, cAlert sends every member of our community a short message.

Convocation attendees/vendors can enroll in cAlert by texting "UChicagoConvo2025" to 226787 to receive SMS text message emergency alerts from the University of Chicago Department of Safety and Security. Following Convocation, all who signed up to receive cAlerts can text "stop" to 226787 to be removed from the system.