Council fast-tracks award conferral

Some Charles Darwin University graduands will receive their awards earlier than usual following the CDU Council’s decision to streamline the degree and award conferral process.

The August meeting of Council agreed to confer degrees and grant diplomas, certificates and other awards of the university at its meetings that occur in the run-up to graduation ceremonies for those students who had advised that they would not be attending those ceremonies.  

This initiative would mean that these students would receive their testamur immediately after the Council meeting rather than waiting for some time for the ceremony to occur. Those students who attended the ceremonies would still have their awards conferred at that event, and would receive their testamur from the Chancellor.

The Director of the Office of Student Administration and Equity Services (SAES), Ms Edwina Grose, welcomed the move, saying the early conferral would benefit both graduands and SAES.

“Under the old system, students who did not attend graduation faced a delay in receiving their testamurs,” she said.

“The change is in line with others the university is making to complete students in a more timely manner through a streamlined approval of the completion process.

“Testamurs for students who do not attend the ceremonies now will be ready to be sent to them immediately after each Council meeting, or the graduation ceremonies themselves, depending on when a student completes.”

Administration around despatching testamurs previously had centred on graduation time. This SAES work could now be undertaken throughout the year, Ms Grose said.