USC graduates let out celebratory whoops before receiving their diplomas at commencement exercises Friday at Alumni Park on campus. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Liye Zhang gets help from his mother, Xumin Li, with the hood of his gown before receiving his PhD in physics. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Students snap photos as they walk to their seats for commencement exercises at USC. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Tasha Tsukamoto wears a floral wreath while waiting with other pharmacy graduates for their turn to walk on stage. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
PhD students respond to a joke told by USC commencement speaker and President Steven B. Sample, who is retiring after 19 years in the post. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Former LAPD Chief William J. Bratton admires his honorary Doctor of Laws degree after receiving it from USC President Steven B. Sample, left. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Students soaks up their last undergraduate rays, along with the wise words of USC President Steven B. Sample, Friday’s commencement speaker. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
A congratulatory note is tucked into a graduate’s gown. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
White doves take wing after being released as part of the USC ceremony. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
USC President Steven B. Sample, who is retiring in August after 19 years in his post, waves to students after the ceremony. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Kim Chi Nguyen can’t wait to see what she looks like as a graduate in photos taken by her husband, Tri Ha. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
