ALL eyes will be on the University of KwaZulu-Natal this week and the next as they kick off their Autumn Graduation ceremonies today (May 4).

Known for their flair and often going viral on social media for their graduates’ on-stage celebrations, the highly anticipated UKZN Autumn Graduation ceremonies will be held from May 4 to 15, at the Westville campus. UKZN spokesperson Normah Zondo confirmed that a total of 9586 graduands will be receiving their degrees.

Among them, a doctor with a gift for poetry, a former taxi driver turned harbour master, a summa cum laude graduate who has excelled despite living with dwarfism and scoliosis, a top-performing statistician bound for Oxford and 76-year-old Denise Ingrid Adams who receives a PhD in Fine Arts.

“This cohort reflects both intellectual achievement and a commitment to contributing to society. For us as UKZN, graduation is also a reaffirmation of our role in developing graduates who are prepared to serve, lead and respond to the needs of a changing world,” said Zondo.

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She applauded the powerful reflection of resilience and excellence of the graduands with inspiring personal stories and strong academic performance across disciplines, stories similar to those of top-performing graduand Jaedon Naidu, who will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in Statistics and is set to pursue a master’s degree at Oxford University later this year.

Siyabonga Khumalo, who has excelled academically despite living with dwarfism and scoliosis, will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Anthropology and Psychology. “These ceremonies highlight the value of higher education in shaping capable and engaged graduates,” said Zondo.

Of the 9586 graduands, 6578 are undergraduates and 3008 are postgraduates. Women make up 66% of the cohort and dominate the top distinctions, accounting for 72% of cum laude and 73% of summa cum laude achievers.

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