Why Commencement?
Well I was writing this because I think some time people do not know the embedded values in words and just make a change at its whim and fancy without consultation.
Many people would have known that NUS has changed its “Graduation Ceremony” into “Commencement Ceremony” The excuse given for such a change is because the undergraduates turn graduates are now commencing on a new part of their journey.
The problem here is that, do I need a grim reminder that I am moving to the next part of my life, having to fret whether I have enough money to retire, pay my loans, get married, worried about children, living a life of drudgery constantly working and upgrading myself and so on and on and on. Anyone need a reminder of that?
Any high level who read this, please change the name back to Graduation. “Graduation” have an embedded feeling of achievement because you have spend so much effort to get your degree and finally that effort has paid off and you have your degree to show. All people want a sense of achievement rather than a grim reminder of what the world has for him/her. The worse thing is they change it during my year when there is recession and fresh graduates are having great problem looking for a job and even most have to end up fighting for job with diploma students.
Ok, I have to admit that even when they change it to “Commencement”, I would not attend the ceremony anyway, because where is the sense of achievement when almost everyone is obtaining the basic degree. And only those that have the family background can immediately pursue a local or overseas Master’s degree.
But it is a fact that if Singapore is to be a knowledge driven economy, its human resource which is the population has to have higher education level.
Anyway, Commencement or Graduation, what the heck, I would not be going through it anymore and if I have a kid going to University, I want him/her to attend Graduation and not Commencement Ceremony if possible. Haha!
Cheers!
Many people would have known that NUS has changed its “Graduation Ceremony” into “Commencement Ceremony” The excuse given for such a change is because the undergraduates turn graduates are now commencing on a new part of their journey.
The problem here is that, do I need a grim reminder that I am moving to the next part of my life, having to fret whether I have enough money to retire, pay my loans, get married, worried about children, living a life of drudgery constantly working and upgrading myself and so on and on and on. Anyone need a reminder of that?
Any high level who read this, please change the name back to Graduation. “Graduation” have an embedded feeling of achievement because you have spend so much effort to get your degree and finally that effort has paid off and you have your degree to show. All people want a sense of achievement rather than a grim reminder of what the world has for him/her. The worse thing is they change it during my year when there is recession and fresh graduates are having great problem looking for a job and even most have to end up fighting for job with diploma students.
Ok, I have to admit that even when they change it to “Commencement”, I would not attend the ceremony anyway, because where is the sense of achievement when almost everyone is obtaining the basic degree. And only those that have the family background can immediately pursue a local or overseas Master’s degree.
But it is a fact that if Singapore is to be a knowledge driven economy, its human resource which is the population has to have higher education level.
Anyway, Commencement or Graduation, what the heck, I would not be going through it anymore and if I have a kid going to University, I want him/her to attend Graduation and not Commencement Ceremony if possible. Haha!
Cheers!
posted by Strategist at 8:58 AM
5 Comments:
why, you sounded a bit pessimistic there. commencement to me means there's something new to look forward to after i've finished/achieved something. being able to finish school is definitely an achievement, and since finishing means i've passed then i won't have to repeat which means i should look forward to new things to do. :-) thus, commencement.
trials seem hard to overcome but i seem to believe that the reason we live is just to overcome trials that are passed our way. we may win over them, and that's good. we may fail to overcome them, that's frustrating and painful, but the so-called defeat are the ones that teach us precious lessons which eventually make us better persons, and in the end maybe will make us realize the meaning of our lives. so, try to chill a bit and let life flow as it happens.
Hello,
No idea are you the anonymous from Oz. Haha.
Maybe I did sound a bit pessimistic there but most of my friend's agree with me on this point. It would have been better if it is called a Graduation because human celebrates a good end but does not celebrate a beginning at all.
You would never celebrate when you make an investment but you celebrate your first successful investment. And how do you realise that you make a first successful investment? When you know you have reached your goals. Use this as an analogy on the graduation ceremony and you would know what I mean.
I agree with what you said in your 2nd paragraph though. But like I mention in some place on my blog, most of us are caught in this spiral that we have lost ourselves and fail to realise the meaning of our lives.
And Singapore, sad to say, the culture of accepting failure is still not strong but happy to say we are moving towards that albeit a slow march, in my opinion.
Cheers!
what about birth? we celebrate birth don't we? and we celebrate if because of the beginning of new life much more than we would celebrate the end of pregnancy or delivery. :-)
But birth is the end of the laborious, figure-damaging and 9 months long pregnancy great relieve for the mother. :)
sounds pessimistic again
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