Inaugural TUS conferring ceremony to take place in Athlone

Ireland’s newest technological university, TUS, will confer its first ever group of graduates at its inaugural conferring ceremony in Athlone later this month.

The ceremony, which will be held in the Athlone International Arena, will take place over seven sessions from October 27 to October 29, with students graduating across the faculties of Engineering and Informatics, Business and Hospitality, Science and Health, and Continuous, Professional, Online and Distance Learning.

All graduating students from TUS, which was established on October 1, 2021, and formed from AIT and LIT, will receive a university qualification.

This year’s conferring ceremony will mark the first in-person graduation since the campus went into lockdown mode in March 2020 due to COVID-19.

A number of preventative measures have been instituted to facilitate this graduation, among them the wearing of face coverings throughout the graduation ceremony and limiting the number of attendees per session, including the guests of graduands.

Speaking ahead of this year’s inaugural conferring ceremony, TUS President Professor Vincent Cunnane (pictured) said he was looking forward to celebrating this milestone occasion in person with students and staff.

“Graduation marks the pinnacle of academic accomplishment and is always the highlight of the academic calendar; however, this year is particularly special as it marks our inaugural conferring ceremony as TUS, a new kind of university, built on the educational heritage of AIT and LIT.

“I am delighted that our graduands will be able to celebrate their tremendous achievements in person in the company of their family, friends, mentors and, of course, the wider campus community. As the first cohort of graduates from our new university, they will have a special role to play in our story, and I look forward to meeting them all to present them with their richly deserved awards.”

Vice President of Academic Affairs and Registrar Frances O’Connell echoed this sentiment, stating that the entire campus community was looking forward to assembling in person in honour of TUS’ first cohort of graduates.

“Last year, more than 2,200 graduands were conferred virtually here at our Athlone campus due to the limitations imposed by COVID-19. Thankfully, we are at a point where we can once again celebrate this joyous occasion in person on campus. It is especially apt that we will be doing so as we emerge from the pandemic and under the aegis of our new university, TUS, which echoes the Irish word for ‘beginning’.”

She continued, “The class of 2021, our first set of TUS graduates, have dealt with significant disruption to their studies due to COVID-19, but in overcoming these challenges, they have developed a resilience and fortitude that will stand them in good stead as they go out into the world building lives and forging careers.

“I look forward to seeing all that they will accomplish into the future. It is a true celebration of both their academic ability and personal capabilities for life after their eventful and successful journey with us.”

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