December 2025 Commencement student speaker applications now open
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 23, 2025) — Continuing with university tradition, the University of Kentucky December 2025 Commencement ceremonies will feature a student speaker at each ceremony.
Applications for student speakers are now open and will close 11:59 p.m. ET, Oct. 31. Interested students should apply here: https://commencement.uky.edu/student-speakers.
Students interested in applying must be receiving a degree as a December 2025 graduate. Applicants will present their speech (a fully written, proposed draft) to the Commencement Speaker Selection Committee.
Application materials include a resume with activities, work experience and accomplishments achieved during the applicant’s study at UK. In addition, a summary of no more than three typed, double-spaced pages of the proposed speech and a completed online application are required. Speeches should be between 3-5 minutes.
Incomplete applications are unable to be considered by the selection committee. Documents must be submitted in PDF format with the applicant’s first and last name.
The university will hold two ceremonies Friday, Dec. 19, at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. One student speaker will be selected for each ceremony.
View the December 2025 Commencement schedule at https://commencement.uky.edu/december-2025.
For further questions, please email commencement@uky.edu.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.