Arranging graduation
You're about to graduate. That means there’s a lot to be arranged. The university expects you to take certain steps, as does your faculty and/or institute. Your faculty has various regulations and procedures in place that you need to follow carefully when arranging your graduation.
Steps towards graduation
Graduation means there’s a lot to be arranged. Below you will find a general overview of the steps to be taken. Make sure to first read the information provided by your faculty and department, as regulations and procedures can vary.
- You receive the final grade needed to fulfil your examination requirements.
- You request graduation: look under the faculty/study programme tab to find out exactly what steps your programme requires you to take to arrange graduation. You may receive a message from uSis entitled ‘You can graduate’. This message will explain the options available if you wish to delay graduation.
- Your student registration will not automatically be cancelled when you graduate. You have to cancel your registration yourself via Studielink. However de-registration is not compulsory if you have a reason for not wishing to do so. Make sure to carefully read the information on de-registering or re-registering.
Requesting postponement of graduation
If you receive a message from uSis entitled ‘You can graduate’, but you don’t yet want to graduate because you are taking additional courses or an internship that you want to be mentioned on your final transcript, you can request postponement of graduation. Look under your faculty or study programme tab for more information.
Conditions of postponement
The maximum duration of postponement you can request is until you have been registered on your study programme for the official programme duration plus one additional year. For Bachelor’s programmes this is 3+1 years, for most Master’s programmes this is 1+1 year. If you are more than a year behind in your studies your request will not be granted.
Official regulations on postponing graduation
The regulations and agreements concerning the postponement of graduation have been laid down by Leiden University Executive Board in the Leiden University Regulations on Postponing Graduation.
Check the Study programme tab for specific procedures. The text below is general and can differ from your study programme.
During the year, if you want to graduate, you have to inform the Science Student Administration at least 6 weeks before you get your last grade (last examination or graduation interview).
In the Summer Period the processing time is longer, because of the amounts of graduation requests. Therefore, if you want to graduate in Summer the deadline for handing in your graduation form is the 1st of May.
At that time, not all grades are expected to be registered in uSis. But you can already check whether all the grades that are in your course history are also visible in your academic requirements.
Ensure that your academic requirements are properly processed as quickly as possible. You can read how to do this under 'Academic requirements in uSis'. You can also consult uSis-Help, where necessary.
Don’t forget to de-register via Studielink if you have fully completed your studies and will no longer be studying.
If you decide to take a Master’s degree after your Bachelor’s, you also have to register via Studielink for this Master’s degree programme.
Some Study Programmes have specific information. If so, you see a studyprogramme TAB. Check the information there.
The following is general information.
If you want to start your master study at the 1st of September, you have to finish your bachelor study by the end of august. You must then follow the graduation process mentioned below:
The deadline for handing in your graduation form is 1st of May.
At that time not all grades have to be known in uSis, but ensure that your academic requirements in uSis are properly processed as soon as possible and certainly by 15th July at the latest.
Make sure that your final grade, after finishing the course has been handed in to the Science Student Administration as soon as possible. It is you own responsibility to check this! Don’t assume that your lecturer will hand in your grade!
For some degree programmes there are chances to take a last-minute re-sit. If you still have to obtain your very last grade in the last week, the Science Student Administration staff will take this into account. Let them know your plans and schedule when you register for graduation.
If you do not want to graduate yet, you can request postponement of graduation at the exam board of your institute. To do this, you can use the webform.
The Board of Examiners shall accommodate the request if the student has been enrolled in the programme for which the request has been submitted for no longer than the duration of studies plus one year. If you have already passed this duration your request will most likely not be approved.
If you want to graduate in the summer, the following process applies. This helps to spread the work load for the student administration department.
The deadline for registration is 1st of May.
When you register at the Science Student Administration, please hand in a graduation programme, that is signed for agreement by the Exam Committee. At that time not all grades have to be known in uSis, but ensure that your academic requirements in uSis are properly processed as soon as possible and certainly by 15th July at the latest.
Make sure that your final grade, after finishing the course has been handed in to the Science Student Administration as soon as possible. It is you own responsibility to check this! Don’t assume that your lecturer will hand in your grade! For some degree programmes there are chances to take a last-minute re-sit. If you still have to obtain your very last grade in the last week, the Science Student Administration staff will take this into account. Let them know your plans and schedule when you register for graduation.
The “Academic Requirements” section in uSis describes which programme you need to follow in order to pass in accordance with the OER (Course and Examination Regulations). Only when your course history appears under “academic requirements” can a diploma and the respective Diploma Supplement be prepared.
Under “academic requirements” you will see the compulsory subjects on your curriculum and also a number of the most popular elective subjects.
However, as there are so many elective subjects available, not all of the subjects that you can take have been named. To obtain permission for one of these elective subjects you have to submit a petition request to the Board of Examiners. For students nearing graduation, you could consider the following two scenarios:
- In the past you have already obtained permission for a subject. In this case, hand in proof of this permission to the Science Student Administration. The Science Student Administration staff will make sure that this permission is processed in uSis;
- You don’t yet have permission from the Board of Examiners to take a subject. In this case you should submit a petition request as shown under Electives.
When your grade for the approved elective subject is determined in uSis, it will appear under your academic requirements and you will be a step closer to graduation. Do you still have questions about any of the above? Then send an e-mail to your study advisor (if it is about the contents of the subjects or your programme) or to usis-fwn@science.leidenuniv.nl (if it is a question about uSis).
The official rules concerning graduation can be found on the university website.
Graduation Request
At least 6 weeks before you receive your final grade, you need to initiate your graduation procedure. You do this by filling in the Graduation Request Form. Request graduation no later than 1 May if you wish to graduate in the summer period (July until September).
The graduation process is as follows:
- Check in uSis if your personal information is correct (name, birth place etc.). Also check if all your courses and results are listed under both your results as in your requirements. If not please contact the Science Student Adminstration (SSA).
- Fill in the Graduation Request Form. The form will be automatically send to the SSA. (please note; we will only contact you if we have any questions regarding your request.)
- The SSA will check if the form is complete and filled in correctly and will send it to the Board of Examiners.
- The Board of Examiners will check if the mentioned program meets (or will meet) all the requirements to graduate and with which judicium.
Graduation Date:
Your graduation date will be de date of the last work day of the month in which you receive your last grade. In most cases this is the grade of your Master Research Project, but this can also be a grade of an exam. Please keep in mind that the date of your last grade is determined by the submission date plus 15 working days for review. Your graduation date will be mentioned on your diploma and diploma supplement. The graduation date is not the same date as the date of the Graduation Ceremony (the date you receive your diploma).
Handing in your Masters Research Project:
- Read the terms and conditions in the MSc Research Project Booklet carefully (see BrightSpace > Opleiding Biologie > MSc research projects)
- Upload your Research Report on both BrightSpace (for plagiarism check) and on ProjectMap (for assessment).
- Fill in the evaluation of the supervision in ProjectMAP.
- Make sure your second examiner (for the assessment of your report) is connected to your project in ProjectMAP via the Internship Coordinator
- Examiners have 3 weeks to assess your Research Report via the online forms in ProjectMAP.
- Please note: registration of your grade in Usis by the SSA can only be done after the assessment in ProjectMAP has been completed.
For more information and questions regarding your Research Project please check BrightSpace > Opleiding Biologie
Once your Graduation Request is approved by the Board of Examiners and all your results are registered in uSis, the SSA will register your graduation with the granted judicium. The SSA will make your diploma and contact the members of the Board of Examiners to sign the Diploma and Diploma Supplement (this takes approximately 3 weeks after graduation).
There are two ways to receive your diploma:
1. Receive your diploma during the Graduation Ceremony. If you mentioned this preference on your graduation request the SSA will email you the next possible date for your graduation (If you didn't mention this on your graduation request please send an email to: bio-admin@science.leidenuniv.nl).
2. Collect your diploma at the Front Desk of the Science Student Administration in the Huygens Building (1st floor). Please send an email to bio-admin@science.leidenuniv.nl for an appointment.
Do you need a certified copy of your diploma? You can download a certified extract of your diploma from the DUO diploma registry (Dutch government education agency). This has the same status as a certified copy in the Netherlands. All information on certified copies and transcripts can be found on the statements & proofs of graduation webpage
Once you are graduated (the date on which you recieve your last result), you need to deregister on Studielink. Please select the option 'graduation' as reason of deregistration.
For more information about deregistration please see this page.