第510期：Commencement speech 毕业典礼演讲

最近正是学生毕业季，美国的媒体上又能欣赏到很多名人在大学毕业典礼上的精彩演讲了。佛老最喜欢看这些演讲了。今天我们来讲一个简单的词：commencement speech 毕业典礼演讲。

*随本期文章一起发送的另一篇文章是6月15号苹果公司CEO库克在斯坦福大学做的毕业典礼演讲全文，请大家欣赏。

To commence is to begin to happen; to begin something.

Commencement这个名词形式在美国英语中的一个特殊意思就是毕业典礼，一般指大学，但也可以指中小学毕业典礼。

A commencement speech is typically given by a notable figure in the community, during the commencement exercise. The person giving such a speech is known as a commencement speaker（毕业典礼致辞/演讲嘉宾）.

有人肯定奇怪了，既然是毕业典礼，是结束了，怎么反而用commencement（开始）这个词呢？

其实这主要是美国英语特有的说法，美国人认为大学毕业不仅仅是大学四年的结束，更是一个人开始工作和下一段人生的开始，所以叫commencement. 我觉得这个视角很不错，积极向上。

Graduation和commencement最主要的区别在于：graduation是毕业这回事，commencement是毕业典礼（庆典这回事）。

如果有人继续纠结这两个词的区别的话，可以参阅本文末尾附的一段英文解释。

好了，今天这篇小文仅为抛砖引玉之用。主要是希望跟大家分享Tim Cook在斯坦福大学毕业典礼上的那篇演讲。

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Top 10 Commencement Speeches – 10篇最佳毕业典礼演讲

https://www.graduationwisdom.com/speeches/topten.htm

Difference between graduation and commencement:

Commencement refers to the ceremony, officiated by
the provost of the university, where you share the excitement and
importance of your academic accomplishments with peers, family, and
friends. It is also a time for the university, president, deans, program
directors, faculty, and staff to pay special tribute to you for the
outstanding efforts you have shown in earning your degree. The
university holds one ceremony, traditionally in the spring, to celebrate
the graduates for the four prior conferrals. There is no registration
fee to attend commencement; however, graduates will need to secure
academic regalia, and any charges affiliated with traveling to the
ceremony location.

Graduation, on the other hand,
is the process of submitting an online graduation application,
completing all academic requirements for your degree, and settling all
financial obligations, among a few other audits/assessments. The
administrative process of degree conferral will indicate your official
date of graduation. Conferral date is defined as the date on which your
degree is officially awarded. There are six official conferral (degree
posting) dates per year: February 1, April 1, June 1, August 1, and
October 1, December 1. There is a one-time, nonrefundable graduation fee
of $100 per degree. The fee covers administrative costs associated with
completing the graduation review, as well as printing and shipping your
diploma. Also note, you will receive your diploma whether you attend
commencement or not.