Spring 2020 Commencement

Virtual Commencement Ceremony

Join us live on Saturday, May 9, 2020, at 2:00 EDT, as we celebrate the accomplishments of the Class of 2020 at the Spring 2020 Penn State Commencement Ceremony.

In celebration of the completion of the academic experience of more than 14,000 Penn State undergraduate and graduate students during this global pandemic, this virtual ceremony is the first step in recognizing the Class of 2020. The University has also committed to having students and their families return for in-person celebrations when public health guidelines allow. Potential dates, logistics, and activities for in-person recognition are currently being explored.

We look forward to celebrating with our students, their families and friends, and the Penn State community!

From the Dean

Congratulations to our 2020 graduates! All of us in the Penn State College of Engineering are proud of you. Wherever you are in the world, please take the time to celebrate the magnitude of this moment, the journey that brought you here, and the people who helped you along the way.

Of course, this is not the celebration any of us imagined when the semester began in January. Instead of a virtual ceremony — a necessity at this time to maintain the health and safety of everyone — we sincerely wish we could be together with you today on campus, cheered on by family, friends, faculty, and staff. I can assure you that we are committed to inviting you back to campus for in-person celebrations in the future, when public health guidelines permit.

For now, we are together remotely, as we have been for the past few months. The format does not change the underlying truths: You are the most diverse group of engineers to ever graduate from Penn State. You have more experience and more interest in combining engineering skills and expertise with perspectives from other disciplines to solve monumental problems. Equipped with a Penn State degree, you are now a member of the largest alumni network in the world. And you will always be a part of this engineering community.

Through hard work and dedication, passion and compassion, intelligence and resilience, and so much more, you have arrived at what is both a destination and the starting point for what comes next. We cannot wait to follow along as the next stages of your journey unfold in the years and decades ahead. Now more than ever, the world needs you and the solutions you can help to provide. I am confident you have what it takes to make a powerful difference.

For the Glory,
Justin Schwartz