NEWS

On Friday, March 15, the APU Spring Graduation Ceremony for 2013 was held, marking the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of 719 graduates from 23 countries and regions. Held at the Beppu City B-con Plaza, this day of celebration was attended by many parents, friends and well-wishers.

APU President KORENAGA Shun congratulated the graduates before presenting a graduate representative of each College with their degree. “The future of Asia and the world will be shaped by you, the youth of today. I especially hope that those of you who studied at APU will play leading roles in shaping the future. Almost 70 years have passed since the end of World War II, but East Asia is still shaped by confrontation. I think the open-mindedness you have developed in APU's multicultural environment will play a major role in changing the negatives of today into the positives of the future”.

Graduates representing the undergraduate and graduate schools addressed the audience and spoke of their time at APU. Recipient of the ANDO Momofuku Honor Prize, NAGANO Yuta (APM4, Japan) delivered a motivational speech to current students and fellow graduates: “Remember: Who was it who stood in front of APU cafeteria to raise money for disasters in Thailand, Indonesia, Japan and other countries? Who held seminars and photo exhibitions about war? The students of APU, regardless of nationality, came together and did that. We did those things. Solving global and grave issues can be realistic if we bring our heads together and muster the will to act. We have to find a way to move forward together”.

Representing the graduate school, THIHA Ko Ko (GSAM, Myanmar) also addressed the audience: “APU educated us all with its core values of freedom, peace, humanity and also international mutual understanding. Because of this, although we studied in different areas, we APU Students all have these same values. And also I do believe we can bring these principle values that APU taught us to our working places and different places around the world”.

HUSNA Nurrotul (APS4 Indonesia) and YOO Jin Wook (APS4, Korea) were then each presented with the President's Award for their outstanding achievements in academic and extracurricular activities.

Bringing the ceremony to a close, the graduates tossed their Ritsumeikan-crimson caps into the air and cheered “We are APU” before heading off towards their new goals and careers. 

*The ANDO Momofuku Honor Prize
Established through the courtesy of the late Honorary Doctor ANDO Momofuku, the founder of Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd. The scholarship aims to support undergraduate students who are scheduled to graduate and who have a strong desire to contribute to the Asia Pacific Region in their future careers. Each year one to two students are awarded this scholarship.

The graduation ceremony was also broadcast live on the internet via Ustream. Footage can be viewed here.
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