Graduation is back!

Thousands of students came back to our Colchester Campus to celebrate their long overdue Graduation.

It was the first graduation ceremony the University has been able to hold since 2019, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

More than 4,000 students came together to celebrate their achievements during our week-long Spring Graduation ceremonies, with friends and families able to watch everything online throughout the week.

• See all the photos on our Flickr account

There were three ceremonies a day, with a total of 15 ceremonies, meaning that for five whole days the campus came alive with colour, joy and celebration.

The University's first Spring Graduation saw a bumper crop of students eligible to graduate as it included both the 2020 and 2021 cohort.

There were 105 nationalities represented amongst those attending the Spring Graduation – and 31% of attendees were international graduates.

The top five nationalities represented – other than the UK – were Italy, China, Malaysia, Nigeria and Cyprus.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Forster said he was delighted that the University community could come together to celebrate with students, their friends and their families.

“We are truly proud of our students’ achievements and are absolutely delighted that we can finally celebrate together,” he said. “It was painful for us to have to delay the graduation ceremonies – we are so pleased they can now, once again, take place.”

The graduation ceremonies are a highlight of the University calendar, and the absence of them over the last few years has been felt by students and staff alike.

Charlotte Gowers, who is graduating with a BSc Sport and Exercise Science, said: “It is amazing to be finally graduating and to be able to celebrate with friends and loved ones after the three years of hard work”.

Our graduation ceremonies can all be watched live online.