Student Awards: Programs may nominate graduate students for the following awards given at December and May commencement ceremonies. Those individuals who received their degrees in August must be nominated for consideration during the December commencement program.

Graduate Dean's Citation: Graduate Dean's Citations are awarded at each commencement to both MA and PhD students recommended by their departments in recognition of superior accomplishment (e.g., publications, teaching excellence, and professional service) in their graduate studies beyond the achievement of a high grade point average. Each school or college may recommend up to 10 percent of its graduate students completing their degrees in August, December, and May of the academic year. Recommendations are to be based on the student's achievements both in their area of scholarship and outside the classroom.

Alice Eaves Barns Award: This award is named in honor of Mrs. Alice Eaves Barns for her many years of outstanding service as a staff member of the Graduate School at the University of Louisville. This award recognizes a student who has displayed tenacity in the face of adversity, while attaining excellence in both the classroom and outside endeavors. The Award is given in recognition of outstanding achievement in a Master's Program. Nominations may be submitted to the Vice Provost for Graduate Affairs for the May and December commencements.

Guy Stevenson Award: The Guy Stevenson Award for Excellence in Graduate Studies honors a former dean of the Graduate School. The Stevenson Award is presented to a doctoral degree recipient who excels in scholarship, leadership, and other areas within their discipline. The recipient of this award will carry the graduate school banner at commencement ceremonies, and will also be a candidate for student commencement speaker. Thus, to be considered for the Stevenson Award, the student must be available for the ceremony.

John Richard Binford Memorial Award: The John Richard Binford Memorial Award honors a former chairman of the Department of Psychology. Doctoral nominees for this award will be assessed in the same manner as those students considered for the Stevenson award. The recipient of this award is not required to attend commencement.

John M. Houchens Prize: The John M. Houchens Prize honors a former Registrar of the University. In the spring and fall of each year doctoral dissertations are submitted to the School of Interdisciplinary and Graduate Studies for consideration. If one is deemed to be of special merit, a committee may recommend that its author be awarded the Houchens Prize. Only those students expected to complete their doctoral degree by the end of the current term (or August in the case of December consideration) are eligible for consideration of this award.

Faculty Awards: Department chairs and directors of graduate programs and former graduate students and those graduating at the May ceremony may nominate a faculty mentor for the following awards given at the May ceremony:

Outstanding Mentor of a Doctoral Student

Outstanding Mentor of a Masters Student

Both awards honor faculty members who are deemed to excel in one-on-one mentoring of master or doctoral students to the completion of their degrees; in other words, these awards are given to faculty who successfully direct theses or dissertations, supervise students in labs, oversee students’ internships or final professional papers.