400 CDU students to graduate in Alice, Adelaide

Almost 400 students will don mortarboards and gowns to celebrate their academic achievements at Charles Darwin University graduation ceremonies in Adelaide and Alice Springs next week.

In Alice Springs, the ceremony at the Convention Centre on Thursday 13 June will recognise more than 200 VET graduates and 32 higher education graduates, including a PhD candidate who developed a “survey method” to help manage the impact of climate change on cultural heritage sites.

Director, Regional Engagement and Development Jay Walker said graduation marked a significant milestone in the lives of individuals who recognised the value of education as a step on the pathway to success and fulfilment.

“Each graduate has demonstrated a high degree of dedication and the ability to learn new skills, expand knowledge and navigate the challenges of quality structured learning,” Mr Walker said.

He said that VET numbers were strongest in Hospitality, Electro-technology, Carpentry, Project Management and Community Night Patrol, while in higher education, the largest cohorts were from Nursing, Midwifery and Education.

Nursing Lecturer Dr Colin Watson will carry the mace during the Academic Procession, and Bachelor of Education Secondary Teaching (Science) Rebecca Stephens will deliver the Graduate Response.

Both ceremonies will be presided over by the university’s recently appointed Chancellor, The Hon Paul Henderson AO, who will deliver the Occasional Address. Mr Henderson will reflect on his own learning experiences that took him from being an apprentice marine fitter in a UK dockyard to the position of Chief Minister of the Northern Territory.

Mr Walker said that CDU’s Indigenous students would be further honoured earlier in the day at a Valedictory Ceremony at the campus Yarning Circle. Participants will be presented with an Indigenous leadership pin and those achieving a certificate IV or higher qualification also will receive and Indigenous stole, recognising the importance of their success.

“As a university that places an emphasis on Aboriginal places, their knowledges, teachings and wisdom, we are proud to have reached two significant Indigenous student milestones, with 1000 graduates in higher education and 10,000 with VET qualifications.”

In Adelaide, some 154 students, with degrees in Nursing, Education, Accounting and other disciplines, will be honoured at a ceremony at the Convention Centre on North Terrace on Tuesday 11 June.

More information: www.cdu.edu.au/graduation