5/1/2019 - Jackson, Miss.
Mississippi Public Universities will award 11,518 bachelor’s, master’s, specialists and doctoral degrees during Spring Commencement Exercises. The system total for Spring 2019 represents an increase of 192 graduates from Spring 2018, when the total number of degrees awarded was 11,326.
"Earning a college degree is a milestone accomplishment for an individual," said Dr. Alfred Rankins Jr., Commissioner of Higher Education. "I congratulate all the graduates, along with the faculty and family who helped them achieve this goal. This also benefits our state as these graduates enter the workforce and help grow Mississippi’s economy."
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), obtaining higher levels of education increases an individual’s earning power. As the BLS charts below show, earning a degree increases income while decreasing the likelihood of being unemployed.
The median weekly earnings for someone with a bachelor’s degree, with no additional advanced degree, is $1,173. This compares with $712 median weekly earnings for high school graduates and $520 median weekly earnings for those with less than a high school diploma. Those with a professional degree have the greatest earning power at $1,836 median weekly earnings. Unemployment rates range from 6.5 percent for those with less than a high school diploma to 1.5 percent for those with a doctoral degree.
Source: Elka Torpey, "Measuring the value of education," Career Outlook, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, April 2018.
2019 SPRING COMMENCEMENT SCHEDULES
Alcorn State University
| Time/Date: | 8:30 a.m., Saturday, May 4, 2019 |
| Location: | Davey L. Whitney Health and Physical Education Complex |
| Speaker: | Mr. Leo Denault, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Entergy Corporation |
Delta State University
| Graduate and College of Nursing & Health Sciences | |
| Time/Date: | 10:00 a.m., Friday, May 3, 2019 |
| Location: | Bologna Performing Arts Center |
| Speaker: | Josh West, 2005 Delta State Alumnus, CEO, Blue Delta Jeans, Oxford, MS |
| Undergraduate | |
| Time/Date: | 2:00 p.m., Friday, May 3, 2019 |
| Location: | Bologna Performing Arts Center |
| Speaker: | Josh West, 2005 Delta State Alumnus, CEO, Blue Delta Jeans, Oxford, MS |
Jackson State University
| Graduate | |
| Time/Date: | 4:00 p.m., Friday, May 3, 2019 |
| Location: | Lee E. Williams Athletics and Assembly Center |
| Speaker: | Alum Bishop Ronnie Crudup, Pastor of New Horizon Church International, Jackson, MS |
| Undergraduate | |
| Time/Date: | 8:00 a.m., Saturday, May 4, 2019 |
| Location: | Lee E. Williams Athletics and Assembly Center |
| Speaker: | Retired Brigadier General Robert Crear, CEO of The Crear Group Consulting Firm |
Mississippi State University
| Meridian Campus | |
| Time/Date: | 11:00 a.m., Thursday, May 2, 2019 |
| Location: | MSU Riley Center |
| Speaker: | Dr. Malcolm Portera, 16th President of Mississippi State University, 1998-2001 |
| Starkville Campus, Undergraduate—College of Business, College of Education | |
| Time/Date: | 3:30 p.m., Thursday, May 2, 2019 |
| Location: | Humphrey Coliseum |
| Speaker: | Major General Janson D. Boyles, Adjutant General of Mississippi, Mississippi National Guard |
| College of Arts & Sciences, College of Architecture, Art & Design, College of Veterinary Medicine | |
| Time/Date: | 9:30 a.m., Friday, May 3, 2019 |
| Location: | Humphrey Coliseum |
| Speaker: | Major General Janson D. Boyles, Adjutant General of Mississippi, Mississippi National Guard |
| Bagley College of Engineering, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, College of Forest Resources, University Studies | |
| Time/Date: | 3:30 p.m., Friday, May 3, 2019 |
| Location: | Humphrey Coliseum |
| Speaker: | Major General Janson D. Boyles, Adjutant General of Mississippi, Mississippi National Guard |
Mississippi University for Women
| College of Nursing and Heath Sciences | |
| Time/Date: | 10:00 a.m., Saturday, May 11, 2019 |
| Location: | Rent Auditorium, Whitfield Hall |
| Speaker: | Colonel Samantha Weeks, Wing Commander at Columbus Air Force Base |
| College of Arts, Sciences and Education, and College of Business and Professional Studies | |
| Time/Date: | 2:00 p.m., Saturday, May 11, 2019 |
| Location: | Rent Auditorium, Whitfield Hall |
| Speaker: | Colonel Samantha Weeks, Wing Commander at Columbus Air Force Base |
Mississippi Valley State University
| Master's degrees and bachelor's degrees from the Departments of English and Foreign Languages, Fine Arts, General Studies, Mathematics, Computer and Information Sciences, and Natural Sciences and Environmental and Social Sciences | |
| Time/Date: | 8:00 a.m., Saturday, May 4, 2019 |
| Location: | Rice-Totten Stadium |
| Speaker: | Mr. Victor McTeer, Retired Attorney |
| Bachelor's degrees in Business Administration, Criminal Justice, Engineering Technology, Mass Communications, Social Work, and Health, Physical Education and Recreation | |
| Time/Date: | 11:00 a.m., Saturday, May 4, 2019 |
| Location: | Rice-Totten Stadium |
| Speaker: | Mr. Victor McTeer, Retired Attorney |
The University of Mississippi
| Time/Date: | 9:00 a.m., Saturday, May 11, 2019 |
| Location: | The Grove |
| Speaker: | Major General Augustus L. Collins (U.S. Army, Ret.), CEO of MINACT Inc. |
The University of Mississippi Medical Center
| Time/Date: | 10:00 a.m., Friday, May 24, 2019 |
| Location: | Mississippi Coliseum |
| Speaker: | No Speaker |
The University of Southern Mississippi
| Graduate School | |
| Time/Date: | 6:00 p.m., Thursday, May 9, 2019 |
| Location: | Reed Green Coliseum, Hattiesburg, MS |
| Speaker: | No speaker |
| Undergraduate—College of Arts & Sciences and College of Nursing & Health Professions | |
| Time/Date: | 9:00 a.m., Friday, May 10, 2019 |
| Location: | Reed Green Coliseum, Hattiesburg, MS |
| Speaker: | No speaker |
| College of Business & Economic Development and College of Education & Human Sciences | |
| Time/Date: | 2:00 p.m., Friday, May 10, 2019 |
| Location: | Reed Green Coliseum, Hattiesburg, MS |
| Speaker: | No speaker |
| USM Gulf Coast | |
| Time/Date: | 10:00 a.m., Saturday, May 11, 2019 |
| Location: | Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, MS |
| Speaker: | No speaker |
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The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning governs the public universities in Mississippi, including Alcorn State University; Delta State University; Jackson State University; Mississippi State University including the Mississippi State University Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine; Mississippi University for Women; Mississippi Valley State University; the University of Mississippi including the University of Mississippi Medical Center; and the University of Southern Mississippi.
John Sewell
Director of Communications
Telephone: 601.432.6333
