After a long wait, Auckland University’s School of Optometry and Vision Science class of 2020 finally celebrated their graduation on a glorious winter day.
Pre-ceremony drinks and nibbles were served at the Grafton Campus Atrium, allowing graduates to celebrate and mingle with SOVS staff, friends and family before officially marking the completion of their degrees at the university-wide graduation ceremony at Auckland’s Spark Arena that evening.
Professor Steven Dakin, head of SOVS, welcomed everyone and congratulated the graduates. Reflecting on the challenge that was 2020, he said students and staff had displayed extraordinary levels of resilience. “Working together with kindness and determination, you have achieved remarkable results. Emotions always run high on graduation day. Happiness is one emotion running high today; another one is probably relief!”
Last year’s Anna Pritchard Memorial Cup for Optical Dispensing was presented to Renate Botha, who also picked up the Excellence in Clinical Optometry Prize, while Sachi Rathod was awarded the Dean’s Medal.
