Grad­u­a­tion is al­ways a mo­men­tous oc­ca­sion, as it sym­bol­is­es the com­ple­tion of a great ed­u­ca­tion mile­stone and stage of life. The fi­nal weeks and days be­fore grad­u­a­tion can be­come hec­tic with lots of things for the grad­u­ate to do. If you pre­pare ear­ly for your grad­u­a­tion cer­e­mo­ny, you can fo­cus more time on en­joy­ing this spe­cial oc­ca­sion.

• Mark the date of the grad­u­a­tion on all of the cal­en­dars used by your fam­i­ly. While fam­i­ly mem­bers will glad­ly change plans in favour of the grad­u­a­tion, it is best to be the first one to re­serve the date.

• Choose your in­vi­ta­tions to the grad­u­a­tion and sub­se­quent par­ty as ear­ly as pos­si­ble.

• Write out a list of every­one you want to in­vite to the grad­u­a­tion. You may have to in­vite a se­lect few peo­ple to the grad­u­a­tion cer­e­mo­ny, but you can in­vite every­one to the cel­e­bra­tion af­ter the cer­e­mo­ny.

• Ad­dress and send your grad­u­a­tion in­vi­ta­tions ear­ly so peo­ple can mark the date on their cal­en­dars.

• Find out how much the cap and gown will cost. Pay for your cap and gown ear­ly to make sure you are tak­en care of so you won't have to wor­ry about it as grad­u­a­tion nears.

• Ask about the school's re­quire­ment for dress un­der the gown.

• Find out when the site for the grad­u­a­tion cer­e­mo­ny will open so your guests aren't stuck wait­ing out­side for a long time.

• At­tend the pre-grad­u­a­tion cer­e­mo­ny meet­ing to pre­pare for the cer­e­mo­ny it­self. You need to know where to meet for the ac­tu­al cer­e­mo­ny, where your place is in line and where you will sit.

• Leave for the grad­u­a­tion cer­e­mo­ny ear­li­er than you nor­mal­ly would. You may run in­to a lot more traf­fic than nor­mal with all of the peo­ple at­tend­ing the cer­e­mo­ny. (eHow.com)