Diploma Delivery FAQs

Please contact our offices at registrar@rice.edu if you have graduated, but have not yet received your diploma and more than three (3) months have passed.

How do I change or correct my diploma name?

The diploma name can be edited in ESTHER until the diplomas are ordered. Instructions are available here.

Can I pick up my diploma in your office?

For a student to pick up a diploma from our office, the mailing address for the shipment of the diploma will need to be changed to the Office of the Registrar's address. A student can update the mailing address for the diploma via their ESTHER account. Please go to our Contact Us page for the mailing address.

What if I want someone else to pick up my diploma?

Diplomas can be picked up by someone else as long as written authorization is provided by the degree recipient.

When will you mail diplomas?

Students will receive an email to their Rice email address when the diploma has been mailed. Diplomas are mailed two or three times per year, depending on your graduation date and degree level.

December Degree Candidates

• Undergraduate Degrees: Diplomas will be mailed approximately 4 to 6 weeks after the Commencement Ceremony held in May. The delay is due to the fact that Latin honors cannot be calculated until final cumulative GPAs are recorded for the entire graduating class.
• Graduate Degrees: Diplomas will be mailed approximately 4 to 6 weeks after the Plenary Meeting of the Faculty held in late January.

May Degree Candidates: Diplomas will be mailed approximately 4 to 6 weeks after the Commencement Ceremony. Students will receive an email to their Rice email address when the diploma has been mailed.

August Degree Candidates: Diplomas will be mailed no later than the end of September.

Where will you mail diplomas?

All diplomas will be mailed via USPS to the address provided on the application for graduation. If no address was given, the diploma will be sent to the student's permanent address. If you have questions on what address we have on file for you or if you need to update the address you originally supplied, please contact the Office of the Registrar via email at registrar@rice.edu.

What if my mailing address is a PO Box?

There is not a problem delivering to a PO Box.

I live at a foreign address, when will my diploma arrive?

Please be advised that the Office of the Registrar cannot determine a delivery date to a foreign address once the diploma has been mailed from the US.

How do I open the diploma tube that my diploma was mailed in?

The mailing tubes are three piece telescopic tubes. There is a single piece in the center and then two equal ends that meet in the center at a seam. The label is placed over the seam to hold the tube together. In order to open the tube and prevent damage to the diploma, you will need to remove the label or gently slice through it to get to the seam and release the two sides. Opening in any other way risks damaging the diploma.

How do I download my certified electronic diploma (CeDiploma)?

For December 2013 graduates and later, you may download your CeDiploma in ESTHER by going to Student Services and Account Information and then navigating to Student Records and clicking the CeDiploma (Electronic Diploma) link. Additional information regarding the CeDiploma is available on the CeDiploma page.