Gulu University is set to graduate 1,755 students during its 22nd graduation ceremony on Friday, November 13, 2026, as the institution marks 25 years since its establishment.

The ceremony will take place at the University playground in Gulu City.

The figure represents the university’s largest graduating class since its inception, according to Academic Registrar Dr Jerry Bagaya. It is also a significant increase from last year’s ceremony, which had 1,431 graduating.

Prof. Davy David Okello Owiny, the Deputy Vice Chancellor chairing the graduation organising committee, said preparations are at an advanced stage. He said the university expects to host more than 3,000 guests during the event.

“The graduation booklet has been printed and is ready for picking. Already, others have started picking, and all transcripts and certificates are ready. All the students who deserve to pick their academic documents will be able to walk back home with their documents after the graduation,” Prof. Okello said.

While addressing the press from the University Council Board Room, Prof Okello explained that graduands whose names appear in the graduation booklet will receive their documents immediately.

However, students with outstanding academic or administrative issues will be advised to collect theirs the following week after the ceremony.

This will be the second consecutive year that Gulu University issues transcripts and certificates to graduands on graduation day.

Of the 1,755 graduands, 60 percent are male while 40 percent are female. Dr Bagaya described the number as the highest since the university was established.

“This ceremony has attracted up to 1,755 graduands, and it is the highest so far since the inception of the University, of which 60 percent are male and 40 percent female, with a significant increase from last year’s ceremony, which had only 1,431 students,” Dr Bagaya said.

Among the graduands, 98 will receive First Class undergraduate degrees. The university will also award two honorary doctorate degrees, four PhDs, 183 master’s degrees, 137 postgraduate diplomas and 1,284 undergraduate degrees.

Science-related programmes account for 39 percent of the graduands, while humanities account for 61 percent.

A total of 1,555 students are privately sponsored, while 200 are government-sponsored. Eight students are international.

The university will also graduate 77 students under an amnesty arrangement for those who had not completed their research but were given an opportunity to do so.

University Secretary David Obol Otori, said that by the end of November 2026, Gulu University will have graduated a cumulative total of 25,804 students since its inception.

He said the university’s growing admission numbers have increased pressure on available infrastructure. The university admitted 7,025 students in the current academic year, and Otori projected that annual graduations could rise to more than 6,000 students within the next three years.

“We cannot admit beyond our current capacity, and we are experiencing a lot of pressure in terms of buildings, study areas, equipment, laboratories and others,” Otori said.

He said the ongoing construction of a six-storey Business and Development Centre next to the University Playground is expected to ease the pressure once completed. The facility will accommodate lectures that currently attract more than 500 students.

The Business and Development Centre, valued at approximately shs30.12 billion, is being constructed by Chongqing International Construction Corporation (CICO).

It was initially expected to be handed over in December, but Otori said the university may extend the contract because of delays linked to the untimely release of government funds.

The university is also awaiting the completion of a Senate Building being constructed by the National Enterprise Corporation (NEC), an arm of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, at a cost of shs27.406 billion.

Otori said the facility is expected to reduce pressure on office and record-storage space by July next year.

Security agencies say they are prepared to manage the large crowd expected at the ceremony. SSP Okello Dicken, the officer in charge of the Gulu University Police Post, said officers are already conducting patrols around the university and Gulu City.

“We expect all types of people to attend the function, and we are ready to manage them,” SSP Okello said.

He said there will be one entrance and exit point, with guests directed to follow designated security routes.

Parents and other guests have been urged to sit in designated areas and avoid mixing with students during the function.

“We know there are goons disturbing the areas around the university, and we have held their ring leaders. We are continuing to arrest more of them, but we also suspect that wrong elements might want to take advantage of the day and steal guests’ property.

“We call upon members to be vigilant and report any suspicious elements or people during the function,” SSP Okello said.

Gulu University published its final graduation list on November 4, confirming the preparations for the November 13 ceremony.