Introducing the 42Chat Connected Commencement Platform
Commencement has evolved.
Universities have modernized nearly every student experience, yet commencement is often still managed across disconnected systems.
Registration.
Communications.
Guest ticketing.
Ceremony preparation.
Live execution.
We've changed that.
Registration That Fits Your Institution
Every commencement is different, and your registration process should reflect that. The Connected Commencement Platform gives universities the flexibility to build registration experiences around their unique ceremonies, policies, and graduate requirements—not the limitations of a one-size-fits-all form.
Configure registration once, reuse it across ceremonies, and customize where needed with ceremony-specific content, conditional logic, registration windows, and flexible name collection options. Whether you're collecting accessibility requests, department-specific information, or choosing how graduates confirm the name announced on stage, every part of the experience can be tailored to your institution.
Because registration is built on Curated AI, it becomes the foundation for every step that follows. The information collected here powers personalized communications, graduate dashboards, guest ticketing, ceremony management, and ultimately the live recognition experience on ceremony day.
Configure Once. Reuse Everywhere.
Create institution-wide registration experiences that can be reused across ceremonies while allowing ceremony-specific customization when needed.
“Registration isn't the first step of commencement - it's the foundation for the entire graduate journey."
Graduate Journey Automation
Powered by Curated AI + two-way SMS
Deliver the right message to the right graduate at exactly the right moment.
Every graduate follows a different path to commencement. The Connected Commencement Platform combines Curated AI, personalized SMS, web engagement, and a secure graduate dashboard to guide each student through the next required step at exactly the right time.
Rather than sending the same reminder to every graduate, the platform understands each student's progress and delivers personalized communications based on completed milestones, outstanding tasks, ceremony eligibility, and upcoming deadlines. Each communication leads graduates back to one connected experience where they can confidently complete their next action.
From registration and guest ticketing to reviewing name recordings and preparing for ceremony day, every message is designed to reduce confusion, increase engagement, and help institutions deliver a more connected commencement experience.
Every message has a purpose. Every interaction moves the graduate forward.
Questions Asked and Correctly Answered
Curated AI delivers trusted, institution-approved answers through SMS and the web, helping graduates quickly find the information they need, anytime.
Personalized Engagement
Communications automatically adapt to each graduate's progress, ensuring every message is timely, relevant, and focused on the next step, not a generic reminder blast.
Meaningful Actions
Every communication includes a clear call to action, guiding graduates back to their personalized dashboard to complete registration, claim guest tickets, review name recordings, and prepare for ceremony day.
Connected Guest Ticketing
Guest ticketing isn't another system - it's simply the next step in the graduate journey.
Guest ticketing should be a seamless extension of registration — not a separate portal or disconnected process. The Connected Commencement Platform integrates ticketing directly into the graduate journey, allowing graduates to claim, manage, view, and distribute guest tickets from the same personalized dashboard they use throughout commencement.
Institutions maintain complete control over ceremony-specific ticket allotments, distribution windows, eligibility rules, and ticket availability, while graduates enjoy a simple, mobile-first experience. Guest tickets can be delivered instantly via SMS or email, making sharing with family and friends effortless while reducing support requests and eliminating unnecessary complexity.
From claiming tickets to distributing them and scanning them at the venue, every step happens within one connected experience — creating a seamless journey for graduates, guests, and commencement teams alike.
One connected experience for graduates.
One less system for commencement teams.
Key Capabilities
- Integrated directly into the graduate registration experience
- Configurable ticket allotments by ceremony
- Claim, manage, and distribute tickets from one personalized dashboard
- Instant ticket delivery via SMS or email
- Secure digital tickets ready for venue scanning
- Reduced ticket-related support requests
What Makes It Different
Unlike traditional commencement ticketing solutions that rely on separate portals or PDF downloads, guest tickets are delivered instantly through SMS or email, making distribution effortless for graduates and accessible for every guest.
Ceremony Management
Everything that happens on ceremony day depends on the preparation that happens beforehand. The Connected Commencement Platform gives commencement teams one connected workspace to configure, validate, and produce every detail of the recognition experience before the first graduate walks across the stage.
From graduate records, stage cards, display templates, branding, name recordings, and ceremony assets to print-ready materials, every component is reviewed, approved, and connected within a single workflow. Once preparation is complete, teams launch directly into Ceremony LIVE, knowing every graduate's recognition has been fully prepared, validated, and approved.
Ceremony Management bridges the gap between graduate registration and live ceremony execution, ensuring every detail is finalized before the first graduate reaches the stage.
Every ceremony prepared with confidence. Every graduate ready for recognition.
When ceremony day arrives, your team isn't preparing, you’re executing.
Key Capabilities
- Configure ceremony branding, stage cards, display templates, and the graduate recognition experience
- Validate graduate records, ceremony assignments, and production assets before ceremony day
- Produce print-ready stage cards and ceremony materials
- Manage display templates, name recordings, and ceremony assets from one centralized workspace
- Launch seamlessly into Ceremony LIVE
Purpose-Built for Commencement
Designed by commencement professionals who have planned and supported hundreds of commencement ceremonies, the platform reflects the real operational workflows universities rely on to deliver successful ceremonies.
Ceremony LIVE
The final moment of commencement deserves technology that is as reliable as the preparation behind it. Ceremony LIVE transforms months of planning into a seamless, real-time recognition experience by guiding every graduate from queue to stage while presenting the approved name, honors, and ceremony information exactly as configured during Ceremony Management.
Whether operated through barcode scanning or manual controls, Ceremony LIVE keeps operators, announcers, display systems, and ceremony staff synchronized throughout the event. Every graduate is recognized using validated ceremony data, ensuring the right recognition is presented at the right moment, with confidence.
When the moment arrives, Ceremony LIVE delivers the recognition you've already prepared.
Key Capabilities
- Guide graduates confidently from queue to stage
- Present approved names, honors, and ceremony information in real time
- Keep announcers, operators, and display systems synchronized
- Support scanner-driven or manual ceremony workflows
- Monitor ceremony pace and live operational status throughout the event
From Registration to Recognition, every graduate journey leads to one unforgettable moment - and every moment is delivered with confidence.
Built on the 42Chat Engagement Platform
The Connected Commencement Platform is built on the same proven engagement technology that powers successful conversations across higher education. Combining Curated AI, SMS, web engagement, and intelligent automation, 42Chat helps institutions deliver trusted information, guide meaningful actions, and create successful engagements throughout the graduate journey.
Trusted communications. Curated AI. Successful Engagements.
Meet the Higher Education Team
Rebecca Alptekin
Senior Director of Higher Education
More than 20 years helping universities create exceptional commencement experiences.
Rebecca started her career as a university commencement planner before going on to lead operations and customer success for hundreds of ceremonies nationwide. She brings more than 20 years of experience spanning campus leadership and large-scale ceremony execution. At 42Chat, she will pair that expertise with our SMS engagement and Curated AI platform to help you strengthen student, graduate, and alumni connection through communication solutions built specifically for higher education.
Michael Flanigan
Higher Education Account Executive
Nearly three decades partnering with higher education institutions to strengthen student engagement and communications.
Michael has spent nearly three decades partnering with colleges and universities on initiatives across student engagement, commencement, alumni relations, and digital communications. That broad perspective enables him to understand institutional priorities and connect campuses with solutions that deliver meaningful results.
Together, Rebecca and Michael combine decades of commencement expertise with the power of the 42Chat Engagement Platform to help institutions modernize the graduate experience.
Ready to See It in Action?
Whether you're looking to modernize registration, simplify guest ticketing, improve graduate communications, or streamline ceremony operations, we'd love to show you what's possible.
