It was a jubilant occasion for more than 3,000 graduates of UTAR when they received their respective postgraduate and undergraduate degrees at UTAR’s 35th Convocation. The graduates celebrated their academic achievement together with dignitaries, lecturers and staff from UTAR at Dewan Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik of Kampar Campus from 26 to 28 August 2022. The graduation ceremony was a three-day celebration of the graduands’ perseverance, determination and dedication to the ideals of UTAR.

Session One and Two of the Convocation were declared open by UTAR Council Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Ting Chew Peh; Session Three was declared open by UTAR Education Foundation Board of Trustees Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Sak Cheng Lum; Session Four was declared open by UTAR Education Foundation Board of Trustees Member Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Lee Ooi Hian, and Session Five was declared open by UTAR Council Member Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Ong Ka Chuan.

Also present at the ceremony were UTAR President Ir Prof Dato’ Dr Ewe Hong Tat, UTAR Education Foundation Board of Trustees Members and UTAR Council Members, namely Ir Academician Emeritus Professor Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Chuah Hean Teik, Datuk (Dr.) Oh Chong Peng, Datuk Lee Leck Cheng, Tan Sri Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn, Datuk Lim Si Cheng and Mr Hew Fen Yee.

The scroll presenters for Session One were Tan Sri Ting, Tan Sri Sak and Tan Sri Chuah; for Session Two were Tan Sri Chuah and Datuk Lee; for Session Three were Datuk Oh and Datuk Lim; Session Four were Tan Sri Lee, Prof Ewe and Hew; and Session Five were Tan Sri Fong and Tan Sri Ong.

In his convocation address, Prof Ewe congratulated the graduands and explained to them that the graduation was the culmination of a long and challenging, however, ultimately rewarding journey. He inspired, “We need challenges and adversity to make us think, improve and grow. As you leave this campus, be guided by higher values in life; values which will lead you to be responsible citizens in society, positive contributors at work and most of all, a cherished and loving member of your family at home.”

Faculty of Accountancy and Management (FAM) Doctor of Philosophy graduate Dr Lok Bee Lan said, “I worked at UTAR Department of Soft Skills Competency before resigning to further my study. I was in my 50s when I started my study journey for a doctoral degree, I finally graduated after 10 years. For the first seven years, I had to balance my life between studying and working in Penang. However, I soon realised my limited capability and resigned from my employment. I spent the last three years focusing on completing my study. I believe working at the age of 66 is not an issue, I will continue to make contributions toward society by seeking another job.”

Faculty of Arts and Social Science (FAS) Doctor of Philosophy (Social Science) graduate Dr Tiny Tey Chiu Yuen said, “I was initially not interested in becoming a researcher. I was hoping to become a professional lecturer, hence I pursued bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and doctoral degree at UTAR. I even worked part-time in UTAR administration to pay my tuition fees. However, while I was working on my doctoral dissertation, my supervising professor told me that I have talents in researching and encouraged me to work in the research-related field. That is my main motivation behind the decision to work as a researcher in China.”

Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) Bachelor of Nursing (Honours) graduate Gilbert H’ng Yung Han said, “My interest in Nursing was deeply influenced by my family members who were all working in the medical field. Although it was challenging, I discovered that helping patients make me happy during my internship. I also realised from daily conversations with my family that male nurses were not viewed with deserved respect in Malaysia due to the ‘female nurse stereotype’. I hope our country will soon start to accept the fact that male nurses are also great assets to the country. Despite the stereotype, I still choose to endeavour to become a professional nurse.”

Another FMHS Bachelor of Chinese Medicine (Honours) graduate Chew Jia Sin said, “I graduated from a national secondary school, however that time the national schools gave limited options to study Chinese medicine. I inquired about UTAR programmes from my sister who happened to be a UTAR student. To my surprise, I found that UTAR did offer a Chinese medicine programme. Since I have always wanted to pursue Chinese medicine studies, I applied for it. Currently, I’m learning first-hand from a Chinese medicine practitioner in my hometown. I hope that one day, I can start my own Chinese medicine clinic after obtaining a license to practice traditional Chinese medicine.”

Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Game Design graduate Cheong Kho Sin said, “After graduating from the field of game designing, I finally understand the importance of psychology in game designing. It is because game designing requires not only designing and planning procedures, but also researching players’ mental states and preferences. Psychology is a fascinating topic, but the assignments are strenuous. Nonetheless, I am still considering to further my study in Psychology.”

With the addition of 2,791 graduates from this 35th Convocation, the number of the University’s alumni now stands at more than 77,000 since its inaugural convocation in 2005.