With a more than nine percent increase in the number of students receiving degrees compared to last year, College of the Canyons will honor its 2018 graduating class – the largest in school history — during the college’s 49th annual commencement ceremony on Friday.

The event will begin promptly at 8 a.m. Friday, June 1, in the college’s Honor Grove, located on the Valencia campus.

“It is with great pride that we honor the hard work and tenacity of the members of the College of the Canyons class of 2018,” said Chancellor Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook. “It is our hope that no matter where our graduates go that they will always remember College of the Canyons as the place where their dreams first took shape with the encouragement of our dedicated faculty, staff and administrators.”

The class of 2018 has 2,232 students who petitioned for graduation, representing a 9.1 percent increase from the class of 2017 (2,046).

This class represents 111 majors, with liberal arts and sciences (810) ranking as the leading field of study among graduates, followed by psychology (273), accounting (217), business (180), sociology (166) and communication studies (113).

There are also 165 students graduating with two or more degrees.

The class of 2018 is approximately 58.7 percent female (1,310) and 41.3 percent male (922).

Academically, there are 590 students graduating with honors — which requires a 3.5 GPA or higher — and 50 students with perfect 4.0 GPAs, which grants them the status of valedictorians at the college. The average GPA of the class of 2018 is 3.14.

The average age of a COC graduate is 24.5. The oldest student in the class is 64-year-old graduate Estela Marquez. In total, there are six graduates over the age of 60.

In addition, the youngest graduates in the class are 61 students who are 17 years old.

Notably, there are also 86 veteran graduates in the college’s class of 2018.

There are 63 graduates from the school’s Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA) program, which is the largest graduating cohort in MESA history.

Additionally, 71 percent of this year’s graduates have completed at least one course at the college’s Canyon Country campus, which first opened in 2007.

This year’s graduating class also includes more than 90 COC student-athletes, with a combined GPA of 3.1, who will be earning an associate degree and/or transferring to a four-year school in the fall.

Graduates from the class of 2018 will be heading to four-year schools including: UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, UC Merced, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, USC, CSU Long Beach, CSU Northridge, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly Pomona, San Diego State University, Humboldt State University, CSU Channel Islands, CSU East Bay, CSU Fullerton, CSU San Jose, CSU San Francisco, CSU Sonoma, California Lutheran University, Washington University in St. Louis, Cornell University, Arkansas State University, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Fisher College, Florida Atlantic University, Henderson State, Holy Names University, Indiana State University, Kaiser University, Lubbock Christian University, MidAmerica Nazarene University, Mississippi Valley State University, Missouri State University, Ottawa University, Portland State University, South Dakota State University, Texas Tech University, University of Arkansas, University of Maine, University of Michigan, University of San Diego, University of South Alabama, Vanderbilt University, Presentation College, Missouri Valley College, and the University of South Alabama.

The scene of many graduations and other college ceremonies and events, the COC Honor Grove is located in the center of campus and will be outfitted with a stage for the presentation of diplomas and certificates, as well as seating for the graduates and the proud families and friends who will be in attendance.

Community members attending the ceremony should plan to arrive at the campus no later than 7:45 a.m., as parking lots are expected to be congested and guest seating will be limited.