Tuesday 1 June 2021 was a very special day for our Part V BOptom Class of 2020: after a somewhat disrupted year, graduands finally were able to come together to celebrate their achievements with fellow classmates, family and SOVS staff at a pre-graduation function hosted by the school in the Grafton campus atrium.
Renata Botha scooped up both the Anna Pritchard Prize for Optical Dispensing and the prize for Excellence in Clinical Optometry, whilst Sachi Rathod was awarded the Dean’s Medal for making an outstanding contribution to the academic environment across the School and Faculty. The healthcare practitioner oath was read out in both te reo and English, thanks to Aimee Lloyd-Parangi and Sachi Rathod.
The atrium was filled with laughter, hugs, and words of congratulations before the students descended onto Spark Arena for the official Graduation Ceremony later that evening. The challenges and hurdles that 2020 brought certainly didn’t hold these students back, and their resilience is a source of pride for staff and families alike.
As well as our undergraduates we also saw Soheil Doustkouhi and Wilson Pan receive their PhDs at the same ceremony, the culmination of an enormous amount of work for both of them.
A huge congratulations to all our graduates – we wish you all the best in your future endeavours.