Graduation 2005 - the biggest ever

Over 4,000 students will receive their degrees and awards at the University of Southampton's Graduation 2005, which starts next week.

Thirty-five separate Graduation ceremonies will take place at the University's Highfield Campus between 21 and 28 July. The University places a strong emphasis on ensuring that despite the large numbers of graduates and their guests, the ceremonies, which are held in the Nuffield Theatre and the Turner Sims Concert Hall on campus, remain informal and personal.

"Graduation is a time of great celebration for the University and its students," says Vice-Chancellor Professor Bill Wakeham. "It provides an opportunity for us to congratulate them on their academic endeavours and to wish them well as they make the transition from student to graduate. It is their achievements that help make Southampton one of the leading universities in the UK.

"We hope, however, that it is not the last we see of them. On graduation they will join the tens of thousands of Southampton graduates who make up the University's alumni society and we look forward to welcoming them back to campus in the future."

The University is also acknowledging distinguished contributions to science, optoelectronics, computing, literature, and music in awarding its honorary degrees.

Those receiving awards are: Professor Alec Gambling, a pioneer in the field of lasers and optical fibres and founding Director of the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at the University; Sandy Lerner, Chairman and Trustee of the Chawton House Library near Alton in Hampshire; Professor Jintong Lin, President of Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT) in China; author, science journalist and broadcaster Simon Singh; Graham Spittle, Vice-President of Business Integration Development at IBM and the Director of IBM's Hursley Laboratory near Winchester; award-winning songwriter and broadcaster Richard Stilgoe; and world-renowned guitarist John Williams.