The long nights, the stress before exams, it is all paying off for some 8,600 Anteaters who celebrated in a string of commencement ceremonies at UC Irvine’s Bren Center.
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UCI finished back-to-back ceremonies on Monday, having already celebrated graduates of its law school, its school of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences and its school of medicine in May.
Friends and family cheer for a graduate during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Abigail Yoo is lifted off the ground by friends after the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates Mikaela Hinton, left, Max Fardanesh and Lawee Sherif cheer for a video before the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates Amanda Zidron, left, and Vanessa Hicks wave to the crowd during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates celebrate during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Janelle Calma, left, is greeted by friends and family after the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Xavier Hunt smiles to the crowd during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Friends and family wait for their graduate after the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates Nakya Solomon, left, and Halyne Buycks and celebrate during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A decorated cap during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chancellor Howard Gillman greets students during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Iris Wang and her cap-and-gown-wearing dog, Laifu, during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates wave to family and friends during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Iris Wang and her cap-and-gown-wearing dog, Laifu, during the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduates Audrey Liujaya, top, and Grace Kalmbach use a mirror to check their outfits before the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Graduate Grace Kalmbach uses a mirror to check herself before the commencement ceremony for UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, CA, on Friday, June 12, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
“In the 60 years since our first commencement, UC Irvine has stood at the forefront of educating our state’s very best students regardless of their circumstances or background,” Chancellor Howard Gillman said in a statement. “The class of 2026 embodies that mission as it goes forth enabled, inspired and empowered to pursue a better nation and a better world.”
Nearly 11,200 degrees are being awarded by the university this academic year between undergrad and graduate students.
And college officials celebrate that 41% of those receiving their bachelor’s degree are first-generation college students, calling it a “testament to the university’s dedication to access and affordability.”
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Some 2,600 of the undergrads graduating transferred to UCI from community colleges.
In all, 8,510 bachelor’s degrees will be awarded by the end of ceremonies on Monday, along with 1,791 master’s degrees, and there will be 556 graduates with Ph.Ds.
More than 180 law degrees and more than 100 medical degrees have been awarded this academic year, and nearly 50 Pharm.D. degrees.
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