More than 6,500 students will earn in-demand degrees from Maine’s public universities this academic year, with the University of Maine conferring a record number of advanced degrees this weekend and the University of Maine at Presque Isle holding two ceremonies for the first time due to their explosive enrollment growth
ORONO, Maine — The University of Maine System (UMS) will boost the size and skill of the state’s workforce by graduating thousands of career-ready professionals this weekend.
More than 6,500 students are expected to earn in-demand degrees through Maine’s public universities this academic year. Hundreds of additional students on track to complete their degrees by December 2025 can also walk in May commencements.
The University of Southern Maine (External Site), which has recently doubled its Ph.D. program enrollment, will kick off the System’s commencement celebrations with its first-ever doctoral hooding ceremony on its Portland campus this Friday, May 9.
Nearly 1,100 students seeking bachelor’s degrees and more than 600 earning master’s degrees are eligible to participate in USM’s commencement at the Cross Insurance Arena on Saturday, May 10 at 9 a.m.
The University of Maine at Augusta (UMA) (External Site), the University of Maine at Farmington (UMF) (External Site), the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK) (External Site), the University of Maine at Machias and the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI) (External Site) will host their commencement ceremonies Saturday at 10 a.m.
For the first time in its 122-year history, UMPI will also hold a second ceremony, which will take place at 2:30 p.m. that same day. Driven by the popularity of its YourPace competency-based, online adult degree completion program, UMPI has tripled its enrollment in just five years. There are nearly 1,300 students eligible to graduate this weekend, with 400 planning to participate in person — more than the on-campus Wieden Gymnasium can accommodate at once.
Meanwhile, UMFK’s ceremony includes the graduation of its first Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) class, which launched in 2022 to meet Maine’s acute need for advanced practice nurses and is offered entirely online to ensure accessibility to those already working in healthcare.
The University of Maine (External Site), the state’s largest university, is also making history with its 2025 commencement.
Nearly 1,000 advanced degree-seeking students — a record — are eligible to participate in UMaine’s graduate ceremony at 6 p.m. on Saturday. UMS is experiencing its highest-ever graduate enrollment this year, with more than half of students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees through UMaine. The state’s only Carnegie-classified R1 institution, UMaine now offers 152 graduate and professional programs supporting employer needs for more professionals with advanced degrees and research-driven innovation.
UMaine’s two undergraduate ceremonies will be Sunday, May 11 at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., with more than 2,200 students eligible to take part. For the first time, the flagship’s commencement will not be on the Orono campus but at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor due to ongoing renovations at UMaine’s iconic Alfond Arena, where the institution’s commencement ceremonies are traditionally held.
The University of Maine School of Law (External Site) will hold its commencement May 24 at Merrill Auditorium in Portland and anticipates awarding 88 Juris Doctor degrees — the most in at least a decade as the state’s only law school expands enrollment and access to justice.
“I want to congratulate the University of Maine System Class of 2025 and commend their hard work and the dedicated family, friends, faculty and staff who supported their success. Each of our graduates has overcome adversity to achieve this milestone and stayed the course, knowing higher education is the most proven path to prosperity and positive impact,” said Chancellor Dannel Malloy. “As they move forward, I hope they choose to stay in Maine to live, work and lead in the communities that need their talents. I can’t wait to see what they accomplish next — as individuals and as a collective force for good and growth in our state and well beyond.”
More than half of current UMS undergraduates are eligible for need-based federal Pell grants, and 40% are the first in their families to go to college.
Among this year’s graduates are:
- Emma Soctomah (External Site), of Indian Township, who works at the elementary school on her reservation and is the UMaine Machias valedictorian;
- Shannon McNamera (External Site), who served as an Intelligence Specialist in the U.S. Naval Reserves before starting over as a nontraditional student at UMA, where she will be the student commencement speaker and earn a bachelor’s degree in architecture; and
- Belviga Mpolo (External Site), a community college transfer student who spoke no English when she moved to Maine from the Republic of the Congo in 2014 and will graduate from USM with a bachelor’s degree in social and behavioral sciences and a commitment to helping children and families as a social worker.
Maine’s public universities will also confer a number of honorary degrees this weekend, including at UMF, where alumnus Jonathan Moody, superintendent for MSAD 54 and the 2024 Maine Superintendent of the Year, will be recognized for his leadership and vision, including the development of Maine’s first-of-its-kind birth through grade 5 elementary school (External Site). Others receiving honorary degrees from UMS institutions include Maine Development Foundation President/CEO Yellow Light Breen (UMPI), world-renowned climate scientist and UMaine professor George Denton (UMaine), retired MaineGeneral Health President/CEO Chuck Hays (UMA) and Passamaquoddy language keeper, director and curator of the Sipayik Museum Dwayne Tomah (UMaine Machias).
UMS is the state’s largest producer of talent and innovation. The System has conferred more than 53,000 door-opening degrees in the last decade, led by those in business, education, health care, and engineering and computing. According to the most recent data, 86% of the System’s graduates from Maine stay in the state, while 26% of out-of-state students remain in Maine after their graduation. UMS is also an engine of economic mobility, with working-age UMaine alumni in the state earning more than double Maine’s average median income (External Site).
About the University of Maine System
The University of Maine System (UMS) is the state’s largest driver of educational attainment and economic development and its seven public universities and law school are the most affordable in New England. Over the past two decades, UMS has awarded 106,362 degrees and spurred and strengthened thousands of small Maine businesses through its world-class research and development activities. For more information, visit www.maine.edu.
Media Contact:
Samantha Warren
Director of External Affairs, University of Maine System
207-632-0389 / samantha.warren@maine.edu