This week the latest round of City, University of London Graduation Ceremonies has been taking place at the Barbican Centre with students from all five schools marking the successful completion of their courses. These ceremonies are steeped in tradition and date back a long way, as this programme from 1899 shows.
All staff (your lecturers attending to award your certificate as well as others who will lead the procession into the hall) and students will all be wearing academic dress. For students this will show the level they have attained (see this guide on the City website) and are in the University’s colours of red and gold, which were approved in 1966 after the institution received its Royal Charter and became a University– the robes pictured above are for those who have been awarded a PhD, of which there will be many including Ludi Price, who wrote about fan communities, and will received her degree this afternoon (Well done, Ludi!). While the photo below is the one undergraduates will be wearing (there will be many more of these!).
The ceremonies will take place at the Barbican Centre but have not always done. They may well have started life in the Great Hall here in the College Building but, by 1966, as this picture shows, they were held at the Guildhall in the City of London.
We hope everyone graduating enjoys their big moment walking across the stage – this is what it has all been for! I know I enjoyed my own moment in July 2016 when my Dissertation Supervisor and course leader called out my name and I set forth into the future. This was me outside the Barbican before the ceremony:
Congratulations everyone!
James Atkinson, CityLibrary