By Eleanor Wilson
Graduation hats were flying at Bunjil Place on Wednesday 22 March, as more than 300 Federation University students celebrated their graduation.
Graduating teachers, nurses and accountants were some of the cohort to take to the stage to receive their degrees in the presence of proud staff, family and friends.
Federation University vice chancellor and president Professor Duncan Bentley said the ceremony is a special time for graduates to celebrate their hard work with friends, family and peers.
“It’s fantastic. You see the smiles on their faces…their families are proud, most of them are first-in-family and so they’ve discovered what university education can do and they’ve discovered the future that they can aspire to,” Mr Bentley said.
Federation University is the number one university in Australia for first generation enrolments, including Berwick Campus Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice student Sarah Wookey, who is now hoping to become a case manager for people exiting the prison system.
“The whole family is really proud, they were all watching it online on the livestream and my mum and boyfriend came to the ceremony,” the 21-year-old from Pakenham said.
“I was interested in becoming a police officer, so I looked into it and Fed Uni had lots of information online and they were pretty local too which was good, especially while trying to balance a job and that sort of thing.
“That was the main reason I went for it and they had a bunch of support for their students.”
Professor Bentley said Wednesday’s ceremony represented “the future of Australia”.
“Its one of the most multicultural parts of the country – this is the future of Australia.
“If you look at the graduates coming across the stage – this is our future and if we can get it right it really does make it a very special place.
“We look forward to seeing all that our students will achieve in their communities as we know they are graduating with the skills and knowledge employers need.”
The Berwick students were among more than 1400 students across Federation University’s campuses in Berwick, Brisbane, Gippsland and Wimmera to celebrate graduation this month.
