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Student Speaker Audition Criteria

The 113th Annual Commencement Exercise will feature an address by a Spring or Summer 2024 candidate.

Auditions

  • Sign up to audition by Wednesday, March 13th using this Google Form.
  • Email a copy of your speech to graduate@hawaii.edu by Thursday, March 14th at 11:59 p.m.
  • Preliminary auditions will be held on Friday, March 15th at 4:30 p.m. in Crawford Hall 105.
  • If a speaker is not selected in the preliminary round, the top three speakers will be invited for a final round of auditions.

Eligibility

  • Must be a candidate for Spring or Summer 2024
  • Students completing additional courses in Fall 2024 are ineligible
  • Minimum 3.0 overall GPA (as of January 2024)

Selection Criteria

Content

The speech should be:

  • thoughtful, creative and inspirational; avoid clichés;
  • well-organized with a clear message;
  • appropriate for graduation;
  • relevant to the audience, including families and the UH community; and
  • focused on the entire class, not solely about the speaker

Delivery

The speaker should:

  • project voice and pace/speech well;
  • connect with the audience;
  • make regular eye contact; and
  • use written notes sparingly/not at all.

The speech should not exceed five minutes.

Additional Information

  • Be prepared to introduce yourself before the audition (not included in the time constraint). The judges may ask you a few questions about yourself before you begin.
  • Content must be identical to that delivered in the ceremony.
  • Order of auditions will be determined by lottery.
  • Auditions are open to the public but not to those auditioning. Disruptive attendees will be asked to leave.
  • A selection committee, including representatives from the administration, faculty, staff, students, and the alumni association, will choose the winning speech.
  • All candidates will be notified of the decision by email, letter, or phone call.
  • The selected speaker will meet with a coach from the Communicology Department for coaching before commencement.

For more information, contact the Commencement Team at graduate@hawaii.edu.