This week, we mark the achievements of 617 IDS graduates – congratulations all!
617 graduates from 42 different countries
Summer graduation is taking place at the Brighton Centre on 15 July and includes cohorts from 2020 and 2021 – making it our biggest graduation ceremony ever.
Due to the disruptions of Covid-19, winter and summer graduation ceremonies at Sussex were postponed in the past two years for safety reasons. Graduating can be one of life’s most rewarding and memorable experiences, so we are delighted to once again be able to re-convene in-person with staff and students to share this joyous occasion.
Our development studies students come from all over the world, providing a multitude of diverse perspectives which enrich the learning experience. Our graduates this year span 43 different countries.
They are already making waves. For example, Class of 2020’s Jennifer Uchendu recently launched The Eco-anxiety Africa Project to create space and support to help safeguard young people. And Yoko Inhagaki became a delegate for the Australian-Japan Youth Dialogue and established social start-up Manasa Mora, a laundromat for empowering women and improving public sanitation.
9 IDS Scholarship Scheme Graduates
Our summer 2022 graduates include nine students who benefitted from the IDS Graduate Scholarship Scheme. The Scheme is designed to encourage high achieving scholars from the Global South to study for a master’s degree. Priority is given to those who have the greatest potential to make a difference in their home countries after completing the degree.
Describing her time at IDS, scholarship student Saba Aslam said:
“My experience at IDS has been just like a dream come true. It’s hard to put into words how I feel as it’s a very emotional as well as intellectually stimulating experience.”
Saba is currently working as a researcher, providing vital new insights to promote sustainable and inclusive development in urban areas.
Message from IDS’ Director of Teaching and Learning
“I am immensely proud of all our graduates – not least for studying through the most extraordinary and challenging circumstances of a global pandemic and emerging as resilient and independent learners.
“Graduation in higher education is a big deal, for our former students, for their parents, partners, children or others who made sacrifices in order that they might study, and for IDS.
“Graduation is also a time of transition and reflection. It marks the change in status, from former students to qualified development specialists actively engaging in the world of work. Most IDS graduates will become development practitioners, working proactively with governments, NGOs, think tanks, and civil society to shape development initiatives. Some IDS graduates will become academics, researchers and lecturers, contributing theoretically and empirically to development, policy and practice. All, we hope, will have been inspired by IDS’ vision to of a more equitable and sustainable world, where people everywhere can live their lives free from poverty and injustice. “
Share your celebrations
If you are graduating, we’d love to see your pictures. You can tag us on Twitter or Instagram @ids_uk or use the hashtag #idsgrad. And remember to stay in touch with all things IDS via the IDS Alumni Network.