Been there, graduated, got the t-shirt

I had a little lapse of confidence last week: I started to doubt whether it was worth me bothering to go to a ceremony to graduate when I finish my honours degree. Not because I don’t WANT to, but by the time I get my results it will be next summer before there's a ceremony for me to attend - by which time I’m hoping to be halfway through my masters and would’ve finished my honours degree sooooo long ago that the excitement would’ve disappeared and my BSc would seem quite unimportant in comparison to my MSc...

However I had a change of heart on Saturday. I volunteered at the degree ceremony in Harrogate and had the opportunity to see hundreds of students pass through the doors of the Harrogate International Centre, all gowned up with big smiles on their faces, and then see the looks of pride on the faces of their guests. It made me remember that going to a graduation ceremony isn’t just for me; it’s for my parents too. My parents were (I presume) quite proud of me when I first signed up for the degree although I suspect that they had doubts as to whether I’d actually see it through, given my reputation for fickleness. So now that I’m nearing completion they are (I presume) even more proud of me and would like the opportunity to see me graduate properly, although I never intended to graduate in my hometown so that might put a spanner in the works.

I thoroughly enjoyed the day on Saturday. I was working on the OUSA stall selling the OU/OUSA branded merchandise and it was a great feeling selling mementos and keepsakes to the graduates and their families because it was their way of showing their appreciation and pride for having studied with the OU. They WANT to be able to wear something with the OU logo on like it’s a badge of honour and it’s amazing to be part of something like that.

I’m pleased to say that we were very busy throughout the whole day (except during the ceremony obviously but I took that opportunity to tidy up the stall and do a stock check), however I was slightly disappointed at how busy we were because it meant I didn’t get to chat to any of the graduates about their experience of the OU, what they were graduating with and if they were continuing with study. I did however manage to have a brief chat with one woman who was buying a gift for her father who had finally made it to his graduation a whopping 20 years after first starting his degree. Now isn’t that just the OU in a nutshell? Who else offers students the opportunity to study modularly, completely at their own pace, study whatever subjects take their fancy and graduate with fellow students ranging from their 20’s right up to 80’s and beyond! Excellent.

I was also pleasantly surprised at the number of graduates donning masters gowns; it’s testament to the fact that the OU is a very reputable education institution which is not only seen for its easy access to bachelors degree level study. I sincerely wish I had been able to do my masters with the OU too; that would’ve made me so proud, but alas I won’t. C'est la vie; I’ll just have to do another bachelors degree with them.

I realised something in the aftermath of the ceremony though; plonk down any university logo in front of anyone and put the OU’s logo (the shield) next to it and I’d bet more people would recognise the shield than ANY other university logo. Little wonder so many graduates want to show it off with pride.