Baccalaureate Service
The Baccalaureate Service is an interfaith ceremony for all undergraduates (Columbia College, Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, Barnard College and the School of General Studies) held on the Sunday of Commencement Week. It takes place in St. Paul's Chapel.
Originally, the baccalaureate service was a series of orations, given by graduating seniors in Latin, that involved either relevant topics of the day, or a summary of the student's original academic work. Logistical concerns of scheduling 1,500 speakers combined with the fact that few know Latin well enough to compose (much less deliver) a speech may have had something to do with its dramatic change of format.
