Congratulations on your graduation! (Graduation Ceremony in March, 2021)
March 24, 2021
Our graduation ceremony was held on March 24 (wed), 2021. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s graduation ceremony was held separately in the Prometheus Hall and Research and Lecture Building’s classroom.
378 students from the School of Language and Culture Studies, 359 students from the School of International and Area Studies, 123 master’s students and 9 doctoral students graduated and received their degrees.
The ceremony can be seen from the following link. Videos are also available so feel free to check them.
University President Ceremony Address
My heartfelt congratulations on your graduation and completion of your degrees.
It is my great pleasure to be able to hold this ceremony today on our campus even though we are still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of you are attending this ceremony remotely. I really wish I could see you and speak to you in person. Yet, I am very glad that we could all come to the campus to celebrate this good day.
There are so many things that come to my mind as I think about words I want to send you out with, but let me squeeze my thoughts into one message. We, TUFS, will be here to support and cheer for you. And that would always be true wherever you go or whatever you do.
Your last year at the university has turned out to be quite different from what you had expected. It makes me sad to think of frustration and disappointment that you must have felt as you lived through this year. But that is all the more reason why we are truly proud of how you applied yourselves to completing your course work, writing your graduation theses, and launching your careers.
I would like you now to think back on the day you first entered the university. In the four or five years since then, you have gained so much experience.
Hard study on languages and specialized fields, fun at a lively Gaigosai, extra-curricular activities, experiences of studying abroad, and struggles with thesis research -- Even though you may not have realized it at the time, I'm sure you now know that each and every piece of experience have shaped who you are today. I believe that the days you have spent here trying to understand the working of the world based on the deep knowledge of specific regions will benefit you as you move on with your lives.
Even as you start your new life in April, the effects of the coronavirus will still be with us and it may be unlikely we return to life as we once knew it.
While the pandemic is forcing some changes in society, it is also exposing the problems and contradictions of Japanese society.
We need to create a society in which everyone can live safely. I hope that you will take the empathy with people around the world that you have cultivated here and extend it to help solve the problems around you in the wider world.
Let me say some words to the graduate students who have completed your degrees. I can see that you have left an important mark on the academic world of the humanities and social sciences. As we can tell from the dissertation titles , your academic pursuits at this university have related to people and society. In these uncertain times, I hope that you will further your studies, connecting your own inquiries to the issues of society.
The university will be watching you from afar with caring thoughts as you move onward. Those of us who remain here promise to make every effort to ensure that you will be able to look back with pride on this university.
I hope you will keep walking in good health, both mentally and physically. We wish you success and will always be cheering for you.
March 24, 2021
Kayoko Hayashi, President
Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
