Liberty University expects 60,000 visitors in Lynchburg this weekend for graduation. The school will have approximately 9,800 graduates participating.
For the first time since 2019, Liberty will hold its main ceremony in Williams Stadium. The event is planned for 6:30 p.m. Friday and will feature Christian leadership expert John Maxwell as the keynote speaker. Friday’s ceremony will be the culmination of Liberty’s 50th Anniversary celebration and will be capitalized by a fireworks display.
In all, Liberty will confer degrees to over 23,000 graduates in the Class of 2022. Approximately 80% (18,505) of those earned their degrees through online programs, the school said.
The campus events begin on Wednesday with an Army ROTC commissioning ceremony at 4 p.m., followed by three days of degree presentation ceremonies held in the Vines Center, Williams Stadium, Thomas Road Baptist Church, Liberty Arena and LaHaye Multipurpose Center.
All degree ceremonies and the main ceremony will be streamed live from the commencement website.
A recently unveiled multimedia presentation projected onto the front of DeMoss Hall that explains the vision and purpose for the university will be shown every half-hour from 8 p.m. to midnight. The 6-minute presentation is narrated by Liberty founder Dr. Jerry Falwell, using various sermons and speeches he made over the years. The setup is similar to the large video projections used at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.
For a full schedule of Liberty’s commencement weekend, information about parking and security, and a list of FAQs, visit the commencement website.
Class of 2022 Facts & Figures
- Liberty will award 867 associate degrees, 9,653 bachelor’s degrees, 1,267 graduate certificates, 8,534 master’s degrees, 1,543 doctoral degrees and 1,197 Liberty Online Academy high school program diplomas. Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine will celebrate 147 graduates. Liberty University School of Law will award 69 juris doctorates.
- 5,701 military graduates (including 1,900 active duty) and 2,539 military spouses
- The top states represented by this year’s graduating class are Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, Georgia, Florida, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, California and Maryland. Outside of the United States, the top countries represented are Canada, Korea, Japan, Nigeria, China, Germany, Bahamas and United Kingdom.
- 10,566 graduating with honors, including 3,746 with a perfect 4.0 GPA
- 31 married couples are graduating together, as well as 62 parents graduating with a child and 164 pairs of siblings, including 20 sets of twins.
- The average age of the graduating class is 35. The oldest graduate is 91, earning a bachelor’s degree, and the oldest postgraduate degree recipient is 83. The youngest associate and bachelor’s degree recipients are both 15.
- Top 5 Residential Undergraduate Degrees
- Business Administration
- Interdisciplinary Studies
- Psychology
- Nursing
- Criminal Justice
- Top 5 Residential Graduate/Doctoral Degrees
- Osteopathic Medicine
- Juris Doctorate
- Master of Business Administration
- Clinical Mental Health Counseling
- Biomedical Sciences
- Top 5 Online Undergraduate Degrees
- Interdisciplinary Studies
- Psychology
- Business Administration
- Criminal Justice
- Religion
- Top 5 Online Graduate Degrees
- Master of Business Administration
- Human Services Counseling
- Clinical Mental Health Counseling
- Doctor of Education
- Criminal Justice