Graduation

Information for guests

Getting here/parking 

If you're planning to travel to Dunedin on the day of graduation, please make sure you leave plenty of time as the roads into the city can be busy. 

The area around the Dunedin Town Hall can get very busy and there will be little to no car parking available here.

We would recommend that you park outside of the main centre of town (if possible). This Where you can park webpage on the Dunedin City Council website might be useful for planning. 

Another option is parking a distance away and getting a bus into the centre of town. You can find Dunedin bus info here. 

Attending guests

Due to the capacity of the Town Hall, we ask graduates to enter the total number of guests they want to bring when they register.

If we have a large ceremony, we will need to ensure we are following the Town Hall Health and Safety regulations and only filling the venue to its maximum capacity. 

We may need to issue guest tickets for a large ceremony. 

In this instance, we will send a communication out to graduates to advise of this situation. 

Graduates will then be able to collect their guest tickets when they collect their gown. 

All guests can sit in any unreserved seating in the Town Hall. Reserved seating will be marked with a sign so it'll be clear where guests can sit. 

Please let us know if any guests need assistance on graduation day. e.g. an elderly guest with limited mobility or anyone specifically requiring ground floor seating. Email graduation@op.ac.nz

Can't make it to the ceremony?

We provide a livestream of each ceremony on our website. You can find this on the main Graduation webpage. This usually begins about 15 minutes before the start of each ceremony. 

Ceremony details 

Ceremony One - 12.30pm 

Ceremony One has graduates from the College of Community Development and Personal Wellbeing, the College of Health and the Central Otago Campus. 

10.40am: Graduates gather outside the Faculty of Dentistry (Great King Street) for the OPSA Graduation Parade 
11.00am: Parade departs for the Dunedin Town Hall 
11.30am: Graduates check in at the Dunedin Town Hall Glenroy Auditorium 
11.30am: Dunedin Town Hall doors open to the public
12.00pm: Guests to be seated in Dunedin Town Hall 
12.30pm: Graduation Ceremony starts 
2.30pm*: Graduation Ceremony ends (*estimated time only)  

Ceremony Two - 3.30pm 

Ceremony Two has graduates from the College of Engineering, Construction and Living Sciences, the College of Creative Practice and Enterprise, Capable NZ, and the Auckland International Campus.

10.40am: Graduates gather outside the Faculty of Dentistry (Great King Street) for the OPSA Graduation Parade 
11.00am: Parade departs for the Dunedin Town Hall 
11.30am - 2.30pm: Free time - when the parade arrives at the Town Hall, please move away from the entrance so we can get everyone sorted for Ceremony One (thank you!)
2.30pm: Graduates check in at the Dunedin Town Hall Glenroy Auditorium 
3.00pm: Guests to be seated in Dunedin Town Hall 
3.30pm: Graduation Ceremony starts 
5.30pm*: Graduation Ceremony ends (*estimated time only)  

Professional ceremony photography

McRobie Studios take a photograph of everyone who crosses the stage at the Graduation Ceremony. Photographs will be taken as degrees are conferred and awards are presented.

These photographs, along with frames and mattes with the Otago Polytechnic and Te Pūkenga logos, are available to view and order online at McRobies. There are alternate ways to order, please enquire about this directly with McRobie Studios (details on their website).

View at mcrobie.co.nz

Event photography

Just a heads-up, during the Graduation Parade through Dunedin City, and during the Graduation Ceremonies at Dunedin Town Hall, our Marketing team will be taking photographs and recording video for the Otago Polytechnic promotional channels. 

Merchandise

Say congratulations with our official Otago Polytechnic merchandise.

Order through our online shop or buy in person from our Customer Services Desk (Dunedin Campus, Forth Street, Monday-Friday, 9.00am-5.00pm). Merchandise will also be available to buy at the Dunedin Town Hall on graduation day (Friday 13 March, 11.00am-5:30pm).

Shop online