Graduation Audit Information

After a student has applied for graduation and paid the graduation audit fee, a graduation audit will occur. The graduation audit ensures that a student has met all the requirements necessary for graduation. A graduation auditor will review all transcripts that a student has submitted. Each transcript is reviewed to verify that the transcript belongs to the student and that each course has been entered correctly into the student’s record. This includes looking at the course number, the course name, term the course was taken, and the credits awarded. The graduation auditor also reviews the academic evaluation to make sure that all degree requirements have been met and that courses/exams are being used accurately to meet the correct requirements within the academic evaluation. Finally, the auditor will verify that the student is in compliance with all academic and nonacademic policies associated with their degree program Undergraduate Policies that Affect Degree Progress and in the University Catalog.

Applications are reviewed in the order they were received over 6-8 weeks once graduation audits begin.

The graduation application period for each graduation cycle is listed in the chart above. Students who applied early in the graduation application period will be reviewed before those students that applied at the end of the graduation application period.

Priority is given to students whose academic evaluations show that they have completed the academic requirements of their intended degree.

All students who apply for graduation and pay the graduation audit fee during the application period will be reviewed.

You cannot receive a certification letter for your degree until your official graduation audit is completed and successful. Look at the question above for an idea of when your audit will be completed.

If you need proof of your degree requirement status, please give your official academic evaluation to the person needing proof. Once you have been certified for graduation, you will receive information about how to request a certification letter.

If you have not done so, please fill out the Request for Supplemental Information so that information can be included with your graduation audit.

Check your Academic Evaluation in Online Student Services to ensure it shows that you have completed all your degree requirements.

Complete the Second Area of Study/Degree request form if you need to be audited for an additional degree or area of study in this graduation cycle.

If you have to meet any required credit hour residency for your enrollment and are opting to pay the credit hour residency waiver fee, contact the Office of Student Financial Accounts at (609) 984-4099 to coordinate your payment as soon as possible so that your audit is not delayed. Information about your residency requirement is located at the bottom of your Academic Evaluation on Online Student Services.

If you have any outstanding balance to the University, contact the Office of Student Financial Accounts at (609) 984-4099 to pay it immediately as your transcript and diploma will not be released as long as you have a balance due.

All materials pertaining to graduation, such as external transcripts and fees should have been submitted to the Office of the Registrar by the date indicated above for each graduation cycle. Official transcripts should be sent to transcripts@tesu.edu. Do not send transcripts to a Graduation Auditor’s email address as they will not be accepted. We will review your file in the order it was received so send in all documents as soon as you can. If your documents arrive after the date indicated, it may be too late to include your request in the next graduation cycle. It is important that you indicate these remaining credits on your Request for Supplemental Information form so we know what your plans are.

We will email you a notice regarding the outcome of your audit, regardless of the status, once it is completed. Please check your email regularly for emails from your graduation auditor with updates on your graduation status.

If your audit is successful and you have been certified for graduation, you will receive an emailed confirmation of certification. This correspondence, as well as a requested letter of completion, is often sufficient for employers and other institutions that your degree has been certified and is awaiting conferral. If you need a mailed letter of certification, please send an email to registrar@tesu.edu to request it. A member of the Registrar staff will also call to inform you and answer any questions you may have about your graduation, typically within 1-2 weeks after you have been certified for graduation.

If your audit shows academic or financial requirements remaining to be completed, we will let you know what they are and suggest you work with Academic Advising to develop a plan for completion.

If you have not satisfied the requirements of the degree, you will be considered for the next available graduation. Additional information will be provided by the graduation auditors by email when this occurs.

If it has been determined that you have met all of the requirements of the degree, your name will be submitted to the Board of Trustees at its next scheduled meeting for approval of degree conferral. The date of the Board of Trustees meeting is the official date of graduation and degree conferral.

Your Thomas Edison State University transcript will not show that a degree has been earned until the actual date of graduation. Once your degree has been approved by the Board of Trustees, a final student copy of your transcript listing the awarded degree will be mailed to you along with your Thomas Edison State University diploma, unless you currently have an outstanding balance and/or a financial hold on your account. Your transcript and diploma will not be released until your balance is resolved. Please contact the Office of Student Financial Accounts at (609) 984-4099 or studentaccts@tesu.edu for all balance related concerns and inquiries.

It is important to note that your diploma does not say your area of study. The diploma package will be mailed within two weeks after the graduation date to graduates without a financial balance.

You can request a transcript to be sent out after the degree has been conferred automatically by using the transcript request process.