SU Sees off Class of 2021 with First-Time Online Graduation Ceremony

On June 12^th, 2021, nearly 4,000 graduates of doctoral, master’s, and bachelor's degrees joined in the first-ever virtual commencement to commemorate their accomplishments, while staying safe when the threat of the coronavirus pandemic has turned intense.

Graduates, friends and families gathered to enjoy the live celebration featuring creative activities in the form of a game. The music video made by the student association kicked off the ceremony, allowing participants to reminisce about the days of studying in SU. During the playing of videos with chairs’ remarks, students received blessings and were encouraged to keep moving forward as beating levels in games.

Heartfelt wishes from SU President Wei-Ta Pan were sent through text messages, and virtual “honor cords” were awarded to students who have earned academic distinction as they needed to click on the text messages sent to their cellphones. Despite the absence of an in-person graduation, with technology, students now had one silver lining to be filled with praise and care.

In the ceremony, President Pan mentioned that though living through the ramifications of COVID-19, the pandemic is a chance for self-reflection. Besides, facing globalization and digital innovation, it is crucial to maintain curiosity, gain cross-disciplinary knowledge, and find one’s purpose in life.

With the hope to motivate students to enrich themselves and overcome challenges in the job market in the year like no other, Frank Liu, President of SU Alumni Association, inspired graduates with some words of wisdom: “Quitters never win and winners never quit.”

Ru-Ling Huang, a representative of graduates from the School of Science, reminded graduates to thank themselves for being young but brave enough to try new things, and to extend gratitude to teachers and friends.

Turkish graduate of the law school Wen-De Wang, who could only write three lines on his first exam, can now write two-pages long essays in Chinese, motivated graduates to work hard and be determined by sharing his personal learning experience as an example.