Universities in the United States awarded nearly 2 million BA degrees in 2021. If you're one of those individuals who have recently graduated with their BA, or you've recently graduated from high school, graduate school, or a PhD program, you're likely looking for ways to display your diploma.
In this article, we'll give you a few creative ways you can show off your diploma.
Read on for some inspiring diploma display ideas to show off your amazing achievements.
1. Put It in a Double Frame with Art
Are you one of the 3 million people who graduated from high school this year? Or, perhaps, you've graduated from another program or earned a certificate. Either way, this is truly the end of an era and time to celebrate what you have recently achieved.
No matter how difficult school may have been for you, you'll have at least a few fond memories to look back on. You may wish to commission an artist to help you do so--unless, of course, you're an artist yourself.
Purchase a double frame: one side for your diploma and one side for your piece of art. Hang them up together side-by-side.
Your art piece can be anything that represents your time in school: Greek letters, a hand-drawn photo of you in a cap and gown, or a unique painting of yourself and your friends. This is perfect for anyone who wants to create something a little extra, and it will look great in a home office or professional office away from home.
2. The Standard Frame
Most people get their diplomas framed, and you too can do that. However, you may wish to have it framed professionally so that you don't have to worry about cutting edges or doing anything that would potentially ruin your diploma. Instead, a professional can help you pick out a gorgeous background and other accessories for the frame.
One thing to keep in mind, however, is that you'll often need your diploma if you're looking at going to graduate school or for certain jobs. You may wish to scan your diploma first so that you have it on hand before you frame it. Or, you can get a fake duplicate diploma of your certificate to ensure that you don't ruin it and hang that one up. Keep the other one somewhere safe where you know you won't lose it or it won't be affected by natural disasters.
3. Make a Shadowbox
If you truly want a unique way to display your diploma, make a shadowbox. A shadowbox is a deeper display unit where you can place your diploma in, but also place other trinkets around like your tassel or medals or other memorabilia from the time you were at school. This way, you can create a beautiful piece of art from artifacts from your time at school. A shadowbox is a perfect way to be creative with your diploma while still showing it off to friends and family.
4. Put It In Glass
This one is a bit out there, but it is a perfect conversation piece, especially if you're a big fan of hosting parties.
Put your diploma in the glass of a coffee table or a side table and let your friends and family discuss it when they come over. You can also create a piece of art by placing things around the diploma like memorabilia, effectively creating a glass-top table shadowbox. If you're an artist that likes to work with mixed mediums, this is a fantastic way to show off your skills while also showcasing your diploma.
5. Create a Memory Wall
Miss college or high school like crazy? If so, why not consider making an entire memory wall dedicated to your time in school? Place your diploma at the very center of everything, and then place framed photos around the diploma of your time at school. Include photos of your favorite events and your favorite memories with the people you love and miss.
6. Create a Family Wall
Do you want to include your family in your accomplishments? After all, most college graduates did have some, if not a lot, of support from their families. If you're one of those individuals, you may want to pay homage to them with a family wall.
Put your diploma at the center of the action, and then place photos of your family around it. You may wish to hang photos of your family at your graduation, or photos of your parents graduating high school or college. If you're first-generation, perhaps you want to have photos of your family and where they came from to show how far you've come and to commemorate their sacrifices to help you get to where you are today.
A family wall is a great way to thank your relatives for being with you every step of the way on your journey.
The Very Best Diploma Display Ideas
We hope these diploma display ideas helped get the creative juices flowing and gave you some ideas on how you want to display your diploma. As we stated above, if you're going to get creative with your diploma, it may be a good idea to get a dupe of your diploma so you don't mess up the original. While you can always get a replacement, they aren't cheap, so it's a good idea to have a look at what we offer before doing anything that could damage it permanently.