Commencement Checklist

MANDATORY REQUIREMENT FOR ALL GRADUATES

1. Complete an Online Exit Survey: Complete this survey to provide important bar exam and career plans. You must use your USD Email Address to complete the survey. If you have questions about the online exit survey, contact the ASBP (lawacademicsuccess@sandiego.edu).
   • JD Candidates: 2026 Exit Survey
   • LLM and MSLS Candidates: 2026 Exit Survey
2. Complete the Graduate Employment Outcome Survey (for JD Candidates): The ABA accreditation standards require that you complete the Post-Grad Employment Survey in your #HireUSDLaw account.
   1. Click on "Profile," which is on the left side of your HireUSDLaw homepage. Scroll down to "Post Grad Employment" and click on "Add Experience or Status."
   2. In the "Report Status" pop up, select the appropriate outcome for what you plan to do after graduation/taking the Bar exam, and complete the accompanying survey questions. When reporting a job, please report only jobs you have accepted. If you need help or your employment status changes any time after you initially complete the survey, please contact Jocelyn Salvatori at jocelynsalvatori@sandiego.edu.
   3. The ABA as well as NALP require all law schools to collect this information. NOTE: The agencies publish the information as collective statistics, not tied to any particular graduate's name to protect your privacy. For guidance on answering the survey questions, refer to the NALP Graduate Employment Survey FAQs.

Failure to complete these steps by Sunday, March 1, 2026, may result in a delay in processing your approval to graduate. Please be sure to contact the appropriate department if you have questions or concerns.

Go to The State Bar of California website to register for the 2026 California July Bar Examination — the application typically opens on March 1 and the usual deadline to register is April 1st. Reminder emails will be sent in February.

If you are planning on taking a bar exam in another state, please refer to that state's website and contact ASBP at lawacademicsuccess@sandiego.edu with any questions. There may be earlier deadlines if you are taking the bar exam in another state.

If you would like to represent the Class of 2026 as the student speaker at Commencement, we invite you to submit a speech for consideration. Submissions are limited to graduating 3Ls and 4Ps. Speeches must be no longer than eight minutes when delivered and should contain no identifying information in the document.

Submit your written speech by 5:00 p.m. on March 16. Late submissions will not be considered.

All submissions will be evaluated through a blind scoring process. Applicants will be notified by April 2 whether they are moving forward in the selection process. The top three finalists will be invited to audition their speeches in person on April 14 during the lunch hour. If you have any questions, contact Amii Cambaliza (acambaliza@sandiego.edu).

Email lawstudentaffairs@sandiego.edu to request your USD Law alumni relative to participate in commencement. Check out the FAQs on the Commencement page for more information.

Join us on March 18 & 19th for Grad Fest! This is your opportunity to purchase your regalia onsite, shop for gifts, and more. Plus, unleash your creativity and decorate your cap at the event! Please note: there will not be a second Grad Fest event.

Starting March 21, you can order your regalia online and schedule a pick-up at the Torero Store. Be sure to check this off your to-do list before finals. For more details and the order link, check your email.

The typical timely filing deadline (before late fees) to register for the July 2026 California Bar Exam. If you have questions about the bar exam, contact the Academic Success & Bar Programs office at lawacademicsuccess@sandiego.edu, or make an appointment here: www.calendly.com/bar-counseling.

Apply to audition to perform the National Anthem at the School of Law 2026 Commencement Ceremony by April 1st. Auditions are open to all USD School of Law students, including vocalists and instrumentalists. In-person auditions will be held April 7–10.

• Registration is required for all graduates planning to participate in the Commencement Ceremony. This process includes submitting your graduate information and phonetic name. You will receive an email with a link to register. Please note, this is a separate step from applying for graduation, which you completed in November.
• We want all graduates to fully enjoy this memorable event. To request an accommodation or for any accessibility-related inquiries, please contact Law Student Affairs (lawstudentaffairs@sandiego.edu).

All Pro Bono hours must be submitted by April 29, 2026 at noon. Submit hours via HireUSDLaw for recognition pursuant to the Pro Bono Service Recognition Policy and Process. Contact Law Careers (lawcareers@sandiego.edu) if you have any questions.

Westlaw: Graduating law students will continue to have access to Westlaw for 6 months after graduation if they sign up for Grad Elite Plus. This program allows graduates to use Thomson Reuters products, including Westlaw, Practical Law and Practice Ready solutions for non-commercial research for up to 60 hours/month. Graduates can turn to these resources to gain understanding and build confidence in their research skills, but they cannot use them in situations where they are billing a client. In addition, graduates get access to job searching databases on Westlaw and TWEN for 1 hour/month.

Lexis: Law graduates automatically receive 6 months of access to Lexis after graduation. Graduates conducting verifiable 501(c)(3) public interest work may also sign up for the Lexis ASPIRE Program, which will permit further limited access to Lexis Advance for an additional 6 months.

Bloomberg Law and CEB OnLaw Pro: Graduating law students also automatically receive 6 months of access to Bloomberg Law and 18 months of access to CEB OnLaw Pro if they sign up for accounts before graduation. If you do not have a Bloomberg or CEB OnLaw Pro account, please contact the LRC Reference Desk.

For more information about graduate database access, please see the LRC’s webpage on Summer and Post-Graduation Use of Databases or contact the LRC Reference Desk (lrcrefer@sandiego.edu).