The plans of thousands of BYU students who had hoped on graduating this week have been devastated by an announcement from BYU administration. Although they had been previously cleared for graduation, these students have had their clearance revoked last minute due to a new devotional attendance requirement.

“One of the aims of a BYU education is to be spiritually strengthening,” says BYU representative Idon Careaboutu. “Devotional attendance is important to achieving this goal. Students who have been skipping devotional all these years simply do not have the proper education and background to truly call themselves BYU graduates.” Students who were supposed to graduate Thursday but are unable to do so will have their caps and gowns confiscated, and they will not be refunded or returned for graduation in the future.

The new requirement states that BYU students must attend every weekly devotional held during the time they attended school in order to graduate from the university. Provisions have been made for the semesters that were held online due to the Covid-19 pandemic- in those cases, a general conference talk or listening to your grandparents lecture you about how BYU is becoming too liberal are acceptable substitutes.

Students also have the opportunity to test out of the requirement by reciting all 13 articles of faith in their mission language or memorizing the entirety of the Book of Mormon.

BYU student and almost soon-to-be graduate Caleb Johnson made this statement on the issue- “First they tell me that BS actually stands for Bachelor of Science, and now I can’t even graduate cause I skipped devo a few times to make out with my fiance McKenzeliagh?? What a bunch of BS.”