1,787 graduands will receive their qualifications during UCOL’s Graduation season, with many overcoming the challenges of studying through 2020’s COVID-19 alert level changes.
Many of the graduands will receive their Certificates, Diplomas, Degrees, and Postgraduate qualifications at ceremonies in Manawatū, Whanganui, Wairarapa, and Horowhenua. UCOL Wairarapa will kick off UCOL’s Graduations as the first ceremony on 18 March.
UCOL Acting Chief Executive Dr Linda Sissons says graduation is a highlight of the year and a chance for graduands to celebrate with their family, friends, and UCOL staff.
“Completing a tertiary qualification is a great achievement. I congratulate our graduands who have shown great drive and dedication to get to where they are now. I would also like to acknowledge the whānau, friends, and UCOL staff who supported our graduands during their education journeys.
“2020 was a challenging year for everyone. Many of our new graduates studied at home for part of the year when we switched to blended learning during Alert Levels 3 and 4. This was a new style of learning for a lot of our students, so I applaud them for adapting and rising to the challenge.
“Across all our programmes, we’ve been focused on connecting our learners to industry, to create work-ready graduates that can help our regions thrive. UCOL graduates bring valuable skills to their chosen industries, and the UCOL whānau look forward to seeing what our new graduates achieve.”
As was the case in 2020, the Bachelor of Nursing will have the largest graduating classes at UCOL’s Manawatū (111), Whanganui (27), and Wairarapa (27) campuses.
The biggest graduating class at UCOL Horowhenua will be the NZ Certificate in Early Childhood Education and Care Level 4, with 24 graduands. The Horowhenua graduation ceremony will also celebrate 55 graduands who have completed programmes delivered in partnership with Horowhenua Learning Centre (HLC).
Rising in popularity are the Early Childhood Education programmes, which have some of the largest graduating cohorts on each campus. The NZ Certificate in Early Childhood Education and Care Level 4 class is the second largest at Manawatū (59) and Whanganui (18), while the NZ Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care Level 5 has the second largest class at Wairarapa (22).
2021 will also see the first graduating classes from the Bachelor of Applied Science (Laboratory Science) and the NZ Certificate in Study and Career Preparation (Business Pathway).
UCOL Graduation Dates:
Wairarapa Graduation
Thursday 18 March, 1.00 pm
Carterton Events Centre
Horowhenua Graduation
Friday 19 March, 1.30 pm
Horowhenua District Council – Civic Area
Manawatū Graduation (Ceremony for all Certificate programmes and Engineering & Applied Technology Diploma graduands).
Tuesday 23 March, 1.00pm
Regent on Broadway
Manawatū Graduation (Ceremony for all Degrees, and Humanities & Business and Health & Sciences diploma graduands).
Wednesday 24 March, 1.00pm
Regent on Broadway
Whanganui Graduation
Thursday 1 April, 12.30 pm
Whanganui War Memorial Centre
Graduands per campus:
Manawatū: 1,298 (including students whose programmes were delivered in partnership with eCampus NZ)
Whanganui: 225
Wairarapa: 172
Horowhenua: 92 (including students whose programmes were delivered in partnership with Horowhenua Learning Centre)