Akademia awarded a record number of 384 qualifications this year resulting from eleven programmes at their annual qualification ceremony that took place at the Choose Life Church in Pretoria on 25 April.

According to Liana van Rooy, registrar at Akademia, the qualification ceremony is an important highlight on the institution’s annual calendar. “This event is the conclusion of years of hard work and dedication, not only of the staff, but in particular of the students who obtained the qualifications,” she said. “On this special day Akademia’s dedication as an academic environment is on display and the academic performance of our students is celebrated.”

Although obtaining a qualification symbolises academic performance, it is also a symbol of the personal growth of each student. “The qualification ceremony is the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of in many of our students who are entering the workforce for the first time. For others it is the key to the next step towards a promotion or a new career,” Van Rooy said.

The eleven programmes availabale to students are as follows:

• Post Graduate Certificate in Education (Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching)
• Post Graduate Diploma in Taxation
• Post Graduate Diploma in Management Accounting
• Advanced Diploma in Project Management
• BCom (Business Management)
• BCom (Economics and Law)
• BCom (Management Accounting)
• BCom (Financial Planning)
• BSocSci (Politics, Philosophy and Economics)
• Higher Certificate in Office Administration

• Higher Certificate in Accounting

According to Van Rooy, more and more students from various disciplines are rendered on an annual basis. “This year Akademia boasts nearly 400 new alumni who are most excellently equipped and free to return to their various communities to build a meaningful future.”

She further mentioned that in the course of the journey during their studies, the new alumni were exposed to the institution’s ideal of shaping the intellect as well as the heart. “Our students who have completed their studies are therefore also ready to go forward in their careers as hardworking employees with the ability to think independently, with a love of learning and a deeper understanding of themselves and their place in the world.”

The proceedings were concluded by an historic moment with the singing of the anthem of the university for the very first time during a qualification ceremony. According to Marthinus Visser, managing director of Akademia, this is a valuable new tradition. “The anthem of the university is a reflection of Akademia’s tradition, history, values and its people. It creates a sense of fellowship, pride and community for our students and staff.”

Van Rooy said that the completion of a qualification is a great accomplishment and that each alumnus can be proud of all the hard work that brought them to this point. “Each of them needed to demonstrate resilience and determination during their studies, while facing their own challenges that sometimes made this journey more difficult.”

Her wish for the new alumni is to be able to provide a positive contribution towards their various fields of expertise, their communities and the world by means of their knowledge and skills. “Akademia will be watching with expectation to see what each alumnus will achieve in their career,” she concluded.