Applications for May 2025 Commencement student speakers now open
LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 6, 2025) — With the May 2025 Commencement ceremonies right around the corner, the Commencement Speaker Selection Committee is opening applications to continue with the tradition of featuring one student speaker in each ceremony.
The student speaker will give a three- to five-minute speech addressing the class of May 2025.
Applications for student speakers are now open and will close 11:59 p.m. Friday, April 4. Apply here.
Students interested in applying must be receiving a degree as a May 2025 graduate. Additionally, the applicant must have contributed to the university in some way, whether through campus involvement, community activities or contributions in their chosen field of study.
All applicants must demonstrate public speaking ability and be willing to present their address to the Commencement Speaker Selection Committee, which sends recommendations to the UK president.
All final interviews will tentatively be held on April 22 and 23, the location is to be determined.
Students should prepare application materials before applying including a resume that includes activities, work experience and accomplishments achieved during the applicant’s study at UK.
In addition to the application materials, the student must submit a summary of no more than three typed, double-spaced pages of the proposed speech. All documents must be submitted in PDF format and titled with the student’s first and last name.
Ceremonies will take place Friday, May 9, and Saturday, May 10, at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. View the ceremony schedule here.
If you have further questions, please contact the commencement graduate assistant at 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.