2018: By the Numbers
Number of graduates: 1,804 total (May graduates only)
1,076 | Undergraduates |
151 | Graduate School of Arts and Sciences |
163 | School of Law |
194 | Schools of Business (graduate programs) |
193 | School of Medicine (including Physician Assistant Studies) |
27 | Divinity School |
Commencement: Past and Present
4 | Number of graduates in first graduating class, 1839 |
12,500 | Number of chairs set up on Hearn Plaza |
3 hours | Approximate length of commencement |
1964 | The year the first black student (Edward Reynolds) graduated |
6 | Number of honorary degrees awarded this year |
1966 | First year commencement was held on the Quad, now known as Hearn Plaza; (from 1957 to 1965 commencement was held in Wait Chapel) |
4 | Number of times rain has forced commencement inside (2010, 1991, 1983, and 1973) |
1957 | First class to graduate on the “new” campus |
2 hours | Length of commencement speech delivered in 1858 by Solomon Satchwell |
1981 | Last class to receive sheepskin diplomas |
Post Graduation Statistics:
In 2017, 97.5% of Wake Forest students who responded to the first-destination survey reported being employed or in graduate school within six months of graduation.